James Edward “Ted” Townsend III

Ted Townsend helps clients work through the overlap between government and private investment, providing strategic advocacy and guidance on economic development incentives, public funding strategies, government relations, and public-private partnerships. He brings 20 years of leadership across state government, federal boards, national policy institutions, and private-sector organizations.

Prior to joining the firm, Ted spent nearly seven years in the Governor’s administration at the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. He was promoted three times, rising to Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer. During his time there, the department announced more than 1,100 projects that committed 155,000 new jobs and more than $32 billion in capital investment, and Tennessee was named State of the Year for economic development in back-to-back years. The Governor also made Ted his proxy to the Tennessee State Workforce Development Board, the Delta Regional Authority, and the Appalachian Regional Commission. He voted on grant allocations and policy priorities across eight southeastern states.

Most recently, Ted served as President and CEO of the Greater Memphis Chamber. There he led the team that won a $389 million Federal Highway Administration grant for the I-55 bridge, the largest infrastructure grant in Tennessee history. He also helped unlock more than $400 million in public funding. He led the recruitment of Ford's $5.6 billion BlueOval City project and xAI's $12 billion Gigafactory of Compute, and in 2025 the Chamber was named “Chamber of the Year” by the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives. Before that, he was the University of Memphis' first Chief Economic Development and Government Relations Officer and helped secure nearly $90 million in public funding.

• Board Member, New Memphis, Nov 2022 - Present
• Member, Board of Directors, University of Tennessee Research Foundation, Jan 2022 – Apr 2026
• Member, Board of Directors, Memphis Tourism, Nov 2022 – Apr 2026
• Board Member, Memphis in May International Festival (Feb 2023 - Apr 2026)
• Board Member, Memphis Tomorrow Dec 2022 – Apr 2026
• Board Member, Junior Achievement of Memphis and the Mid-South (Jul 2020 – Jan 2026)
• Board Member, YMCA of Memphis and the Mid-South (Jan 2019 – Dec 2025)
• Board Member and Executive Committee Member, Leadership Memphis (May 2018 – Oct 2025)
• Public Policy Committee Member, Seeding Success (2023-2024)