Mid-FL Regional Manufacturers Association

Kathleen Betz is the Executive Director of Mid-FL Regional Manufacturers Association (MRMA) in Ocala, Florida. Kathleen joined the organization in the fall of 2018 after relocating from the Southern Indiana/Greater Louisville Region.

Kathleen is the former Sr. Director of Business Retention and Expansion for One Southern Indiana (1si), the economic development organization representing businesses in Clark and Floyd Counties. Kathleen had been with 1si since its inception in July 2006 and was charged with developing 1si’s award-winning Business Retention & Expansion (BRE) program which was awarded the International Economic Development Council’s Excellence in Economic Development Award in 2009.

Kathleen has a proven track record in exceptional experience in both Business Retention and Expansion as well as Entrepreneurship. Through her perseverance the results of the BRE program generated unparalleled results from July 2006 through June 2018 with over 117 growth and expansion projects; additional investment by existing companies totaled over $65 million; over 11,000 jobs created and retained by existing employers; and annual payroll on new jobs created totaling over $236 million. By getting to know these businesses, Kathleen was instrumental in the establishment of the Metro Manufacturer’s Alliance, which grew under her direction to 85 manufacturing companies ranging from small to large in size over a six county bi-state region.

The Metro Manufacturing Alliance over the years grew to include a 10+ peer group focused roundtable monthly discussion groups; annual Manufacturing Summits and annual National Manufacturing Day celebrations and tours, introducing over a 1,000 students a year to manufacturing career opportunities.

Kathleen also served as staff for the Horseshoe Foundation Small Business Revolving Loan Fund from its inception to over a million dollar fund as part of her BRE position. The loan fund was set up to assist Floyd county businesses and loans ranged up to $50,000.

From 2005-2006 she served as Executive Director for the Southern Indiana 2020 (SI 2020) organization which developed visioning ideas for Southern Indiana, including combining the two-county Chamber of Commerce and Regional Economic Development Council along with the visioning arm, SI 2020 into what is now known as One Southern Indiana, creating a model other agencies followed.

Kathleen was a Small Business Development Regional Director and received the Indiana SBDC Rising Star Award for her exceptional level of service. Previous to becoming SBDC Director, Kathleen had over 25 years of experience in manufacturing and service industries specializing in mergers and acquisitions as well as companies in bankruptcy and receivership in Kentucky, Indiana, Oregon and Connecticut.