Kwame Reed

WDB BOARD MEMBER KWAME REED EXPANDING ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ROLE

Kwame Reed, Economic Development Director for the City of Antioch, joined the WDB Board last summer to support the workforce and help bring greater recognition to East Contra Costa County. 

“I wanted to take it upon myself to really try to bring emphasis to our region, not just Antioch but to East Contra Costa County,” he said.

To his role on the board, Reed brings a career’s worth of economic development experience, which helps as he works to ensure that employers and employees are getting the right information they need, whether a company is preparing for a hiring surge or preparing to downsize – or close their doors. Important to Reed is that the Contra Costa County workforce knows that the WDB offers readily available information – often for free – to help meet their needs.

Having worked in the public sector for most of his career, Reed said transitioning to the WDB to work with private-sector businesses took some transitioning. Through his economic development work, he had become familiar with smaller businesses and their needs and being in his current role on the board has allowed him to expand and learn more about the needs of larger enterprises.

“It’s really interesting to learn, being in my role, how I can support the private industry,” he said. “As working for the city, we do work with the private companies, but seeing the makeup of the people who are on the workforce development board, I’m getting an understanding of how we can support the larger aspects of a company, whether a company is retracting or expanding on a much larger scale.” 

When he isn’t working or serving on the board, Reed, a husband and father of three, enjoys time with family and playing the role of “Dad Chauffeur,” with the family’s Giant Schnauzer, Abena, in tow.

Man and woman shaking hands across a desk
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