Telegraph Creative on Monday announced that NBA legend, entrepreneur and philanthropist Dominique Wilkins will be one of the keynote speakers at the Alabama Economic Growth Summit, which is set to take place October 24-25 at the Renaissance Birmingham Ross Bridge Golf Resort and Spa.
The most celebrated player to ever put on an Atlanta Hawks uniform and represented in front of State Farm Arena by an 18,500-pound bronze statue, Wilkins is currently the Hawks’ vice president of basketball and special advisor to the CEO. He works in various management functions within the organization’s basketball and business areas. He is also the team’s analyst for the Hawks broadcasts on FOX Sports Southeast.
Additionally, Wilkins has embarked on an impressive entrepreneurial career.
In what Barron’s called a “full court press for tech,” Wilkins has partnered with consulting powerhouse 3Ci to “connect software developers and coders from underserved communities with start-ups.” Some of his other entrepreneurial endeavors include a collaboration with a craft brewing company and a high-end cigar line.
“I am passionate about creating economic opportunities in underserved communities and doing everything I can to make sure people who are willing to put in the work have a chance to succeed,” Wilkins said in a statement. “It’s great to see Alabamians coming together for this Summit around that very idea. I look forward to sharing my experiences and views with the people taking a leading role in pushing Alabama forward.”
Wilkins is also extremely active with local and national charity endeavors.
He has done work with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Special Olympics, Muscular Dystrophy Association and American Lung Association.
In July 2007, Wilkins launched “Nique and Newt’s Full-Court Press on Diabetes” with former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Newt Gingrich. In March 2010, Wilkins was honored by the Georgia state legislature as they presented a resolution naming him the diabetes ambassador for the State of Georgia. He is also a diabetes ambassador for Novo Nordisk, a world leader in diabetes care.
Cliff Sims, president of Telegraph Creative, expressed his enthusiasm at having Wilkins involved in the summit, which is being organized by Telegraph.
“Dominique is known for being world-class on the basketball court and in the boardroom, but he’s also a world-class person,” said Sims.
“Growth Summit attendees are going to get a ton of value out of hearing his perspective and insights into what it takes to succeed at the highest level,” he concluded.
Tickets and sponsorship packages for the Alabama Economic Growth Summit are currently available at ALGrowthSummit.com.
More details on the event:
Alabama Power is the title sponsor for the summit, which will bring together a diverse group of powerful and influential leaders in pursuit of four overall objectives:
1. Celebrate Alabama’s economic development successes,
2. Rally the state’s major economic development stakeholders around our common goals of job creation and increased prosperity,
3. Facilitate dialogue on the most important issues facing our economy,
4. Drive massive media coverage around Alabama’s commitment to attracting companies and creating an overall environment that’s conducive to growth.
U.S. Ambassador to Germany Richard A. Grenell, Deputy U.S. Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette and numerous members of Alabama’s congressional delegation will be among the senior federal government officials participating in the program, along with numerous high-ranking state-level officials from both the legislative and executive branches.
From the private sector, CEOs, venture capitalists, site selectors and economic developers from around the state and nation will be among the speakers and panelists.
Arthur C. Brooks, former president of the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), has already been announced as a featured speaker.
A major highlight of the summit will be national media personalities in attendance covering the event and guiding panel discussions. This will include Axios executive editor Mike Allen and Tuscaloosa native Elaina Plott, now White House correspondent for The Atlantic.
The event was first held by Yellowhammer in 2016 when Sims was the company’s CEO. Now president of Telegraph Creative, Sims is bringing the summit back this year.
“When we launched this event in 2016 at Yellowhammer, our goal was to bring together the state’s leaders around our shared goals of more jobs and increased prosperity for all Alabamians,” he explained to Yellowhammer News recently. “We’re going to continue that mission this year.”
“Alabama’s had some big economic development wins in recent years. This Summit is all about building on that momentum, and we’re thrilled to have buy-in from the state’s key leaders in both the public and private sectors,” Sims added.
Sims will be on the event’s host committee, which also includes Yellowhammer Multimedia publisher Allison Ross and a host of public and private sector titans, such as:
Will Ainsworth
Lieutenant governor
State of AlabamaKatie Britt
President
Business Council of AlabamaStephanie Bryan
Tribal chair and CEO
Poarch Band of Creek IndiansMark Crosswhite
Chairman, president and CEO
Alabama PowerDeontée Gordon
President
TechBirminghamJohnny Johns
Executive chairman
Protective Life CorporationMike Kemp
President and CEO
Kemp Management SolutionsJames K. Lyons
CEO
Alabama State Port AuthorityDel Marsh
President pro tem
Alabama SenateMac McCutcheon
Speaker of the House
Alabama House of RepresentativesJimmy Parnell
CEO
AlfaLiz Pharo
Managing partner
Featheringill CapitalJimmy Rane
President and CEO
Great Southern WoodJeana Ross
Secretary
Department of Early Childhood EducationFinis St. John
Chancellor
University of Alabama SystemLee Sentell
Director
Alabama Department of TourismGary Smith
President and CEO
PowerSouthFitzgerald Washington
Commissioner
Alabama Department of Labor
Sean Ross is the editor of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
