Christine Mackay

Q: What most notably stands out about your leadership style or what is an example of leadership success you can share with our readers?

I work to lead with direction, perseverance and partnership. You build strong organizations when the team has a clear focus and the room to run. I set high expectations, but I lead by example and work alongside the team. I will never ask someone to do something that I would not do myself.

One example of my approach is our work to bolster Greater Phoenix’s position as a national leader in advanced industries. We aligned partners in economic development, workforce and education partners around this goal, targeting projects that have moved the needle to elevate Greater Phoenix into a region that every company must consider when looking for expansion opportunities. Through this, we must evaluate investments and relationships that are encompassing of the entire sphere of community building, ranging from investments in talent and infrastructure to relationships with CEOs of companies local and global. Over my time in Greater Phoenix, we have strengthened the economy, raised wages and created long-term career pathways for residents. These efforts worked because my teams have had a clear strategy and the authority to execute.

Q: What impact have any disruptions of the past 18 months had on you as a leader?

The past 18 months sharpened my focus. Disruptions happen, and this isn’t the first time in my career that things have felt uncertain, but we know how to make quick, precise decisions. People look for certainty when things feel uncertain. I made sure the team always knew the plan, the priorities and the why.

Markets will constantly shift. Some projects accelerated and some stalled. I had to adapt quickly and find creative solutions to some of the most challenging issues. I coached the team to do the same. Most importantly, the last 18 months reinforced my belief in developing people. When you invest in talent, the organization can weather any disruption. My job is to clear obstacles so the team can succeed. The past year reminded me that strong leadership comes down to staying steady, being decisive and keeping your people at the center of every major choice.

Q: What do you feel we can be doing as a business community to empower economic growth here?

Our communities have done an incredible job collaborating and being aligned in their work to empower equitable economic growth and to catalyze on new job opportunities. As a business community, we need to support the workforce pipeline to ensure companies can continue to meet their hiring needs in an increasingly advanced and competitive world. This means investing in universities, community colleges, vocational programs and other workforce pipeline programs, and coordinating curriculum to ensure that instruction remains up-to-date with technological advancements. Additionally, we need to strengthen our infrastructure programs to ensure we can meet the connectivity, reliability and service we have all come to expect and what businesses that create jobs require.

We also need to work together to convey the importance of smart economic growth and intentional city planning that works to create a quality, sustainable city at build-out. It is important to note that a region that does not grow will stagnate and eventually slide.

Q: What is new and notable for your company’s near future that will impact our economy?

We will be building off the success of SEMICON West as we work to attract companies from around the world into Greater Phoenix. Global firms saw first-hand in October what the region offers; over the coming months, we’ll take part in inbound and outbound delegations to showcase what makes the region unique.

One key initiative we’ve seen momentum in is a new way to tell the untold stories of Greater Phoenix, the stories about what makes this such a great region to live in and to operate a business. We have the honor of leading this effort on behalf of our partners who joined forces to work to tell the amazing story of Greater Phoenix. We will launch in 2026, and will be working to see impact to Greater Phoenix’s competitiveness at a global scale.

Our research team is also working to develop a new suite of products to inform communities, companies, utilities and investors using proprietary information unique to GPEC. Among our recent publications is the Economic Monitor 2.0 (www.gpec.org/monitor), an update to our tracker of economic health and trends at the local, state and national levels.