Virginia Economic Review

Tamara Fields is the national U.S. public service industry lead at Accenture, and managing director of the company’s Austin, Texas office.

Virginia’s long-held reputation as a top state for business is based on its strong economy, robust infrastructure, innovative incentives and programming, and, increasingly, its highly skilled workforce.

When Julia Boas and her husband, Patrick, have an errand to run or a friend to visit in their hometown of Roanoke, they rarely go by car. Instead, they hop on their e-bikes.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch published an op-ed by Rupa Murthy, CEO of YWCA Richmond, on December 11, 2025, titled “Is Affordable, Accessible Child Care the Hidden Barrier to Virginia’s Growth?”

Are you a transplant, a boomerang, or a lifelong Virginian? What brought you to the Commonwealth in the first place? I’m a transplant — I was born in Missouri, then lived in Ohio, Georgia, and South Carolina. I attended Clemson University and, after earning my Ph.D.

As Virginia celebrates the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Army, Navy, and Marine Corps, there's no better time to highlight the Commonwealth's unwavering commitment to those who have served our nation.

Sam Northington doesn’t want any military veteran to struggle like his dad did. After 20 years in the U.S. Air Force, his father retired as a master sergeant and went back to college to get his teaching credentials. “That didn’t really fit him. He never really taught,” Northington recalled.

For years, the Roanoke Region faced a familiar challenge: young professionals saw it as a place to leave, not a destination to build a career. Nestled in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains but often overshadowed by Northern Virginia's proximity to D.C.

The Virginian-Pilot published an op-ed on July 5, 2025, by Kirk Cox, former speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates and president of the Virginia Business Higher Education Council, and Cathie Vick, former president and CEO of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, titled “Virginia Is America’s Top State for Talent.

Michelle Williams is the new talent and digital strategies program manager at the Roanoke Regional Partnership (RRP). Julia Boas headed up the RRP’s talent strategies until recently taking over as director of business investment.

A former Kmart on the outskirts of the southwestern Virginia town of Abingdon has become a proving ground for a concept that its backers hope will revolutionize talent attraction.

As Virginia recognizes April as Second Chances Month, it's time for the business community to examine a largely untapped talent pool that could help address our workforce challenges. Second chance hiring isn't about charity — it's a business proposition with measurable returns.

VEDP Vice President of Knowledge Work Meghan Welch spoke with Steven Chen, the founder of PFP Cybersecurity, about the cybersecurity funding environment in Virginia.

VEDP Vice President of Knowledge Work Meghan Welch spoke with Steven Chen, the founder of PFP Cybersecurity, about the cybersecurity funding environment in Virginia.

Candice Ling is a senior vice president at Microsoft and head of the company’s federal government business unit. Previously, she served as the company’s government industry lead in Asia.

Brad Medairy is executive vice president at Booz Allen Hamilton, a Virginia-based Fortune 500 company where he leads the national cyber account and focuses on the cyber missions of national-level clients like the FBI, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), the U.S.

Cybersecurity attacks are evolving at rapid speed, and the U.S. lacks sufficient professionals to address them.

Recently, an Air Force research agency reached out to George Mason University (GMU) with a pressing issue. Drones were attacking Air Force facilities around the globe.