MCEDA hires new COO

The Madison County Economic Development Authority (MCEDA) has hired Stacy Lester to serve as new Chief Operating Officer. Lester will begin her new position in September.

Lester brings with her over thirteen years of economic development experience. Previous roles include project management for the Mississippi Development Authority and most recently a focus on industrial growth initiatives for Mississippi Power. Lester holds a Bachelor's in Polymer Science and a Masters in Economic Development from the University of Southern Mississippi.

Prior to joining MCEDA, Lester served as an Industrial Strategist at Mississippi Power.  In this role, she provided guidance on initiatives that influenced the economic development department’s industrial recruitment strategy. Her responsibilities included gathering market intelligence, generating workforce data and developing an industrial lead generation program that aligned with the company’s target market sectors. Throughout her career, she has assisted many companies in their site selection needs including General Dynamics, GE Aviation, and McKesson. Joey Deason, Executive Director of MCEDA, said “Stacy’s in-depth Project Management experience combined with her Industrial Strategist background will be utilized extensively in her new role and we are very excited she has joined the MCEDA Team”.