Stephen G. Stout is a Senior Associate with Competitive Strategies Group whose main area of focus for the firm is business development.  He brings a broad-based economic development background to CSG.  A Tennessee native, he has worked in economic development in both public and public/private organizations.  He began his career with the State of Tennessee in the Department of Economic and Community Development.  Subsequently, he headed up local economic development organizations in Dayton, TN, Athens, TN and most recently, Gastonia, NC, where he was President of the Greater Gastonia Development Corporation.  He also worked in the private sector as Director of Business Development for a construction company in Nashville, TN.

Stephen has participated in a wide variety of economic development activities throughout his career.  He has participated in business recruitment  efforts in both the United States and abroad and has developed several marketing campaigns for his economic development organizations.  Moreover, he has been involved in the development of industrial parks and coordinated two successful speculative building programs. 

Stephen graduated from the University of Tennessee with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.  He performed his graduate work there as well in the Master of Public Administration program.  He is active in a number of civic and professional organizations.  He currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Carolinas chapter of CORENET Global, the world’s premier corporate real estate/facilities planning organization.  He is also a licensed real estate broker in North Carolina and South Carolina with a concentration in commercial/industrial real estate brokerage.