Award Recognizes O’Malley’s Contributions to the City of Dublin and Economic Development
DUBLIN, Ohio, (October 27, 2021) – The Ohio Economic Development Association (OEDA) named Sara O’Malley, Economic Development Administrator for the City of Dublin, the Rookie of the Year at the organization’s Annual Excellence Awards ceremony held today during the organization’s summit in Dublin. O’Malley received this honor for her accomplishments and contributions to the Economic Development profession in the two years that she has been a part of the City’s Economic Development Team.
The OEDA Rookie of the Year Award identifies someone who has “hit the ground running” and made extraordinary contributions to local or state workforce and economic development in their career. It encourages, recognizes and celebrates one who has met the challenges of providing economic development early in their career and who demonstrates the ability and commitment to positively impact the state’s economic growth.
“Although Sara joined our team just two years ago, she has been a passionate advocate for the City of Dublin for more than 10 years,” said City of Dublin Economic Development Director Colleen Gilger. “Her background in relationship management and brand marketing is a winning combination for the businesses that call Dublin home. In addition, she has elevated our brand among the industry through storytelling that demonstrates how businesses and the workforce find success in Dublin.”
In 2019, O’Malley quickly immersed herself into the Economic Development field, mastering the City’s business retention and expansion strategy, elevating branding during networking events and getting to know the small businesses in downtown Dublin. All while meeting with Fortune 500 companies like Wendy’s, regional recruits like Hagerty and IT headquarter companies like T-Cetra.
“Sara personifies the hospitality of Dublin,” said Laura Charney, Vice President of Operations for Hagerty. “As a new company and employee to the Columbus region, we rely on Sara to connect Hagerty staff with City resources, workforce support and partnership opportunities that contribute directly to our success.”
O’Malley completed the OEDA Basic Course, an intensive training experience for economic development practitioners, community leaders and local government officials committed to building healthy economies for their communities, during a global pandemic and additional coursework through OEDA and International Economic Development Council (IEDC) in pursuit of not only CEcD certification, but overall industry expertise. O’Malley graduated from Bowling Green State University, Class of 2005, where she majored in Public Relations and earned her Bachelor of Science in Journalism. She is a professional member of NAIOP, OEDA, IEDC and the American Marketing Association (AMA).
In addition, O’Malley has spearheaded efforts that have resulted in the City of Dublin Division of Economic Development winning more than 10 industry awards. This year alone, the team won two GOLD awards at the 2021 International Economic Development Council (IEDC) Excellence and Leadership in Economic Development Awards ceremony: Best Special Event and Best Public/Private Partnership. The City of Dublin was also named the Economic Development Organization of the Year in 2021.
Prior to joining the economic development team, O’Malley served as an Events Specialist in the City’s Division of Community Events focused on corporate sponsorship, brand marketing and social media strategy. She helped engage and recruit the National Hockey League’s Centennial Fan Arena, a touring mobile museum for the league’s 100-year anniversary, earmarking the display’s only Ohio stop during the 2016 Dublin Irish Festival. A flagship community event, the festival attracts more than 100,000 guests to the City of Dublin every year with a recorded $8.5 million economic impact to the Central Ohio region.
The City of Dublin Division of Economic Development provides world-class, tailored business services and resources to ensure the City offers the best possible environment for businesses to recruit talent and thrive. Because of this strategic focus, the team has recently become the first city and only accredited Economic Development Organization in the State of Ohio.
The City of Dublin has been voted the “Best Suburb for Doing Business” 11 years in a row by the readers of Columbus CEO. For more information on the City of Dublin’s Division of Economic Development, please visit https://www.econdev.dublinohiousa.gov/.
# # #
About the City of Dublin, Ohio, USA
Dublin is a city of more than 50,000 residents located just northwest of Columbus, Ohio. It offers residents and corporate citizens responsive services, attractive housing, superior public education, direct regional highway access, abundant park space, thoughtful and strategic planning, innovative ideas and technology and a dynamic community life. Dublin is consistently ranked one of the safest cities in the nation. It is home to more than 20 corporate headquarters, an entrepreneurial center, 4,300+ businesses, world-class events and the urban, walkable Bridge Street District. For more information, visit DublinOhioUSA.gov or call 614.410.4400.
#
Media Contact:
Lindsay Weisenauer
Director of Communications & Public Information
614.704.9742 – Cell
lweisenauer@dublin.oh.us
Newsroom: http://dublinohiousa.gov/newsroom/
Comments are closed.