The chief executive officer of an agency funded by Lambton County to attract industry and jobs to the Sarnia area has resigned.
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The chief executive officer of an agency funded by Lambton County to attract industry and jobs to the Sarnia area has resigned.
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The Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership said Friday Stephen Thompson, who has headed the agency since 2017, will officially step down on Jan. 4.
Katherine Walker, chair of the partnership’s 13-member board, said it’s her understanding Thompson had accepted another job.
“We thank Stephen very much for his hard work and his commitment and service to our community, and wish him every success in his future endeavors,” Walker said in a news release.
The agency’s board said in a statement: “We are very grateful for the valuable guidance, insight and leadership Mr. Thompson has provided in that role, in which he has been instrumental in driving economic development across Lambton County for the past four years.”
Judy Morris, who served on the board while she was president of Lambton College, will fill in until a new chief executive officer can be hired.
Walker said she is “very pleased” Morris, who retired recently from the college, agreed to step in as interim chief executive officer.
“She remains very active in the community and she’s always had a passion for innovation,” Walker said.
Walker said she wasn’t certain how long it will take to hire a new chief executive officer because the pandemic has made that process a “greater challenge, but we’re going to put every effort to attract a highly qualified individual to step into Stephen’s shoes, ”Walker said.
Thompson, who are born and raised in London, was working in San Francisco as Ontario’s senior trade and investment representative in the western US when he was hired to lead the partnership.
“It was crazy times the last couple of years and I think the (economic partnership) organization did a fantastic job,” Walker said.
She said the agency has recently opened an “unprecedented” number of files on potential business attraction.
“There is still a massive amount of economic development happening that Stephen certainly was instrumental in,” Walker said. “We think Sarnia-Lambton is in a really good position to continue on the traction that has been started under his leadership.”