
We’re really lucky to have an amazing guest today, and I’m going to give you a little bit of background on Ross DeVol.
He is the president and CEO of Heartland Forward. Heartland Forward’s goal is to promote regional innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems that foster job creation, wage gains and economic growth in the American heartland. And they pursue a variety of different activities through independent data-driven research and action oriented convenings, like the Heartland summit, which was really a big deal here in Northwest Arkansas this past year, impactful recommendations on policy. They engage with all different members of the community, policymakers, philanthropy. And in addition, for about 20 years, Ross was the chief research officer at the Milken Institute. The Milken Institute did some really seminal work for Arkansas more than 20 years ago that set the stage for many of the things that are happening in the innovation entrepreneurial ecosystem in the state today. He has been ranked as one of the superstars in think tank scholars, and he’s just a fantastic guy that we’re so lucky to have with us today.