James Barrood sits down with Evan Weiss, the chief executive officer of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, to discuss his path to leading one of the state’s most influential economic agencies.
Weiss shares how his career began in public service, from working on the 2008 campaign of Barack Obama to roles in municipal finance and government operations alongside Cory Booker.
He later worked on economic development initiatives for the Phil Murphy administration before serving as CEO of the Newark Alliance, experiences that helped shape his approach to economic policy and community development.
During the conversation, Weiss outlines his vision for the EDA as it continues to expand beyond its traditional role as a lending institution to support workforce development, innovation and small businesses across the state.
He discusses priorities such as improving access to EDA programs, cutting through regulatory bottlenecks that slow development projects, and strengthening New Jersey’s innovation economy so startups grow and remain in the state rather than relocating to hubs like Silicon Valley or Cambridge.
The discussion also touches on housing affordability, clean energy financing and the rise of AI and data centers, while Weiss emphasizes the importance of direct feedback from the business community to help shape policies that make New Jersey more competitive.
