(Seguin) — A woman who has helped steer economic development projects across Texas is now bringing that expertise to Seguin.
Stephanie Mazurkiewicz-Muehlstein, a former senior industry recruitment specialist with the Texas Governor’s Office of Economic Development and Tourism, has been named Assistant Director of Economic Development for the Seguin Economic Development Corporation (SEDC).
During her time with the state, city officials say she helped to manage incoming business project leads and assisted with projects representing more than $50 billion in new investment and more than 40,000 jobs across Texas.
SEDC Executive Director Alora Wachholz says her experience at the state level will bring a unique advantage to Seguin’s economic development efforts.
“She has a level of professionalism and a birth of experience that’s unique, having come from the governor’s office. Coming from that state level, there really are only a handful of people in Texas with that kind of experience. And so, for her to bring that to Seguin really is next level,” said Wachholz.
Wachholz says economic development often requires maintaining a constant pipeline of opportunities, and says Stephanie’s background gives Seguin direct access to valuable knowledge about where new projects originate.
“A big part of what we do in economic development is that we seek out leads and new projects. And the truth of the matter is that we work a lot on promoting ourselves to companies as a great place to do business.
And 9 times out of 10, those projects end up going nowhere, not coming to fruition or taking a long time. So, it’s really important that we have a constant stream of new projects and leads coming in. And anyone who’s worked at the Office of the Governor has specific experience in promoting not just one community or region but promoting the entire state, promoting the entire economy, and they know where leads are coming from. They know not just within the US, not just within Texas, but they know internationally where the hotspots are for new project development. And so, what I really hope, with this position, is that we are able to fine tune and really engage in our recruitment and lead generation activities, not just domestically, but internationally as well. And make sure that our messaging is clear that we are here and open for business in a way that will continue to bring in leads and promote the city in the future,” said Wachholz.
While recruitment will be a key focus, Wachholz says Mazurkiewicz-Muehlstein will also play an active role in supporting existing businesses throughout the community.
“I would add that we’re a very small but mighty team. Our entire economic development team is only four. And so because of that, we wear a lot of hats. And so I think people will also start to see Stephanie out in the community. She’s definitely going to have a lot of engagement with our existing businesses as well. She won’t just be on recruitment. She’ll also be on retention. And so, you know, people will see her happy smiling face out there. And she’s really going to be an advocate for the community. And so, I hope that people engage with her and we just continue to make Seguin the best place it is to do business,” said Wachholz.
Also excited about the newest member of the SEDC team is Seguin City Manager Steve Parker. Parker says the city attracted an impressive pool of applicants, but Mazurkiewicz-Muehlstein quickly distinguished herself during the selection process.
“We were so excited about the level of talent that applied for this position. We knew it would be a competitive position, but to see the level of candidates that we had apply for this position was incredible. But Stephanie stood out in her interview and I just can’t tell you, I think she’s a next level type hire. She’s going to do great things,” said Parker.
Parker says her reputation and connections throughout Texas economic development circles make her addition a significant asset for Seguin.
“When she was with the state of Texas, she was very well known throughout the entire state of Texas. She was a site selector for the governor’s office. She facilitated site selection in the state of Texas. So every economic development person in the region knows who Stephanie is. And so to be able to get her on our team is going to just be a game changer in so many ways. And so with the momentum that Alora’s created, adding her, adding Stephanie to the team with her, it’s going to be really, really great to land something with this caliber of talent in Seguin, Texas. It really says a lot about where our city’s come,” said Parker.
Mazurkiewicz-Muehlstein officially joined the SEDC team last month.