A Q&A with the Vice President of Frisco's Economic Development Corporation
Gloria Salinas serves as Vice President of the Frisco Economic Development Corporation.
What brought you to Frisco?
The exciting opportunity to serve as the Frisco Economic Development Corporation’s Vice President brought me to Frisco. My role in Frisco, at this point in time of its rapid growth, is truly a once-in-a-lifetime gift to grow alongside an innovative community and work on some of the Dallas-Fort Worth region’s most impactful developments. Frisco has been very welcoming, and I have enjoyed working with so many talented leaders and their teams that are making an impact daily throughout the community.
How did you get to be involved in the world of economic development?
After three years as a journalist with The Dallas Morning News, I pivoted a transferrable skillset of using complex data to tell a story into economic development. In my first economic development role in Irving, I had the great fortune of working with economic development legend John Bonnot. John quickly became a close friend and mentor throughout my career in economic development. He was really the person who encouraged me to continue pursuing opportunities in economic development and served as a mentor in each of my subsequent roles up until I was a finalist candidate for my role in Frisco. John knew economic development was about people, community and long-term planning, and he gave me a solid foundation to build upon in my career.
What should Frisco residents know about the Frisco EDC?
The Frisco EDC operates a holistic portfolio of economic development projects from real estate to attracting and scaling new and existing companies. Our mission is centered around our residents and providing them access to jobs of the future. The Frisco EDC is one of the state of Texas’ top economic development organizations, and we are often recognized for our breadth of work and its positive impact on our rapidly growing community, the region and the state of Texas.
Tell us about your role as Vice President of the Frisco EDC.
I began my role as Vice President of the Frisco Economic Development Corporation one year ago, on Oct. 11, 2021. This is a such a great question as I begin to reflect on the past year and look forward to the year ahead. In my role, I’m extremely lucky to work with an outstanding team of brilliant minds who carry a diverse background of experiences in economic development, marketing, international markets, urban and regional planning, tech and software development, journalism and consulting. I learn from my team every day, and they are the most valuable part of my role.
I work with Frisco EDC President Jason Ford and our Board of Directors to develop and implement policies and strategy to attract headquarters, corporate offices, and emerging tech industries to the city of Frisco. I work closely with our team to shape short-term and long-term strategies around research and innovation initiatives aimed at attracting the best companies to Frisco and helping our existing Frisco companies to continue to grow here.
What is a normal day like for you?