The Site Selectors Guild has announced the addition of new Associate Member W. Ford Graham, senior vice president – economic development with McGuireWoods Consulting. The Guild, the only association of the world’s foremost professional site selection consultants, is now comprised of 63 Full members, five Associate members, and three Emeritus members.
Guild membership is the highest standard in the corporate site selection industry. All members must be actively engaged as site selection professionals and adhere to the Code of Conduct established by the Site Selectors Guild. At least seven years of business location strategy experience is required of Full members, and three years of experience is required of Associate members.
“Professional site selectors play a critical role in corporate facility location decision-making,” said Larry Gigerich, Site Selectors Guild board chair and executive managing director of Ginovus. “The addition of Ford as an associate member highlights our commitment to nurturing the growth and development of the site selection profession. Ford is an outstanding professional, and we are very excited to welcome him to the Site Selectors Guild.”
Ford Graham
Ford Graham, IMBA, Esq. is a senior vice president on McGuireWoods Consulting’s national infrastructure & economic development team and a partner with McGuireWoods LLP.
Graham has a depth of experience working in the economic development sector, where he has been one of the leading recruiters of international companies to the Southeastern United States. He has facilitated new industry and industrial expansion in over 132 projects, which have resulted in commitments of more than 13,000 new jobs and $38.9 billion in new investment. Graham’s practice focuses on companies opening or expanding operations in the U.S. In addition to economic incentives and site selection, Graham assists companies with the full spectrum of legal needs that arise when companies enter new markets.
Before joining McGuireWoods, Graham was a partner at K&L Gates LLP, and he previously served as director of global business development and director of international strategy & trade for the South Carolina Department of Commerce. In the latter role, he directed all aspects of the agency’s international efforts, including South Carolina’s then-four international offices in Delhi, Munich, Shanghai, and Tokyo, uncovering foreign direct investment opportunities and assisting South Carolina companies with exporting their products to the rest of the world. Before that, Graham worked as general counsel for a real estate development/investment firm and served as a judicial clerk in the 5th and 14th Judicial Circuits of South Carolina. Graham speaks Spanish and Portuguese, and served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala.
About the Site Selectors Guild
The Site Selectors Guild is the only association of the world’s foremost professional site selection consultants. Guild members provide location strategy to corporations across the globe and for every industry, sector, and function. Founded in 2010, the Site Selectors Guild is dedicated to advancing the profession of international corporate site selection by promoting integrity, objectivity, and professional development. Members are peer-nominated, vetted, and must demonstrate significant professional location advisory experience. In 2022, Guild members facilitated the announced creation of approximately 120,000 jobs and $268 billion in announced capital investment by corporate clients, which required location analysis across 81 countries. Guild membership is the highest standard in the site selection industry.
For more information, visit siteselectorsguild.com or follow @siteselectguild on Twitter.
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