Richard Mulligan – Biography #1
Richard Mulligan is a scholar, practitioner, leader with an extensive background in city management, economic development, intergovernmental relations, higher education, and nonprofit management. He currently serves as Director of Project Management, Goodyear Chiropractic, and Editor-in-Chief and Digital Marketing Strategist for The ED Advisor.
Before devoting his time to The ED Advisor, Richard served as an economic development consultant with AngelouEconomics (Austin, Texas) and prepared strategic economic development plans for the City of Dallas and Savannah Economic Development Authority (SEDA).
Previously, he served as Senior Academic Counselor / Faculty Member for the University of Phoenix; and UD LIFE Instructor for the University of Dubuque Learning Institute-Tempe, teaching undergraduate courses in economics. Both higher education institutions are regionally-accredited.
Prior to these engagements, he served as Economic Development Director, City of Chandler, Arizona (pop. 250,000); Economic Development Director / Executive Director, MEGACORP, City of Mesa, Arizona (pop. 450,000); Director of Economic Development, Cit of Peoria, Illinois (pop. 113,000); Assistant to the City Manager / Director of Community and Economic Development, City of Johnson City, Tennessee (pop. 50,000); and Assistant to the City Manager, City of Chandler, Arizona (pop. 92,000).
Other nonprofit organization and private sector experience includes Strategic Planning Consultant, Mili-Comm Aerospace, LLC (Corona, California); Field Representative, Arizona Farm Bureau Federation (Phoenix, Arizona); and Executive Assistant, Oshkosh Association of Manufacturers and Commerce (Oshkosh, Wisconsin).
His educational background includes: Ph.D. Candidate in Higher Education Administration at the University of Phoenix; Master in Public Administration from Arizona State University; and Bachelor of Science in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Richard successfully completed the Leading, Educating and Developing (LEAD) program at the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, University of Virginia; the Economic Development Institute (EDI), University of Oklahoma; and Basic Economic Development Course (BEDC), University of Portland. Previously, he completed the “Economic Development: Marketing for Success!” workshop, which is facilitated by Blane, Canada, Ltd.; and Institute for Organization Management (Year I), which is the professional development program of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.
Mulligan is SCRUM Master Certified, SCRUM Fundamentals Certified, Six Sigma Yellow Belt Professional Certified, and Substitute, PreK-12 Certified (Arizona Department of Education).
Richard Mulligan – Biography #2
Richard Mulligan was born in Sycamore, Illinois in 1957. He moved with his family to East Central Wisconsin, residing for one year in Green Lake; followed by seven years in Oshkosh; and another seven years in Fond du Lac. His father, Keith Mulligan, an editorial page editor/journalist, senior congressional staffer, and chamber executive, was a strong influence during his formative years.
At 19, he transferred to the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh after completing his freshman year at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh at Fond du Lac. A major accomplishment was Richard’s appointment as Resident Assistant, and later, promotion to Assistant Hall Director, while living in UWO residence halls. During his college career, he served as Student Intern, Department of Planning and Community Development, City of Oshkosh. Richard also completed an internship with Congressman William A. Steiger (R – 6th Congressional District). The internships coincided with his decision to switch majors from Accounting to Political Science. During his final semester, he landed his first professional job as Executive Assistant, Oshkosh Association of Manufacturers and Commerce (OAMC). He graduated from UW-Oshkosh in 1980.
A career highlight was chauffeuring President Gerald R. Ford — who was campaigning for the Reagan-Bush Presidential Ticket and other Republican candidates — to a local speaking engagement during the 1980 Presidential Election.
Impacted by urban economic and population change, a life-changing decision was made to relocate to the Sun Belt.
Arriving in Greater Phoenix, Richard worked for one year as Field Representative, Arizona Farm Bureau Federation, earning in-state residency status that made it affordable to enroll in the School of Public Affairs at Arizona State University. While a graduate student, he became a Charles Esser Memorial Scholarship recipient, which was awarded by the Arizona City/County Management Association in 1982. This raised his professional profile and he soon received an offer to serve as Administrative Intern, City Manager’s Office, City of Mesa.
After completing his internship, Richard was hired to serve as Administrative Assistant, City Manager’s Office, City of Chandler. This formalized his yearslong affiliation with municipal government. He spent time as the Intergovernmental Coordinator and Legislative Lobbyist to the Arizona State Legislature, moving into more progressively responsible positions. Richard was promoted to Assistant to the City Manager in 1988.
Following his passion for economic development, Richard began working for the City of Johnson City, Tennessee in 1991. As Assistant to the City Manager / Director of Community and Economic Development, Mulligan coordinated the preparation of “A Strategic Development Plan for a Regional Med-Tech Center” and a host of other community and economic development initiatives. Along the way, he authored “Location Decisions of High-Technology Companies in Maricopa County, Arizona,” a thesis required of graduates from the Economic Development Institute, University of Oklahoma (1992); earned the Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) designation (1993); and was honored with the “40 Under Forty: A Salute to Emerging Stars of the Business Community” award from The Business Journal of Tri-Cities Tennessee/Virginia (1993). Richard’s article, “Catalyst for Community Capacity-Building: A Role for Public Sector Practitioners,” which outlines his involvement in public-private partnerships, appeared in Economic Development Review (1995).
Beginning in the mid-1990s, Richard served as Director of Economic Development, City of Peoria, Illinois. He was responsible for oversight management of four Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Districts — most notably the Southtown TIF District — and improved its balance sheet from -$500,000 to $5 million. Other responsibilities included management of the Peoria Enterprise Zone, and Peoria Revolving Loan Fund. Richard coordinated preparation of “Fiscal and Economic Impacts of WeaverRidge/Retail Development at I-474,” “Economic and Tax Revenue Impact Analysis of Northwest Retail Quadrant,” and the “Darst Street Brownfield Strategy Plan.” He also participated in the Council for Urban Economic Development (CUED) Economic Study Tour of German Cities and European Conference (1997).
Starting in 1998, Richard became a CUED Boardmember.
Richard returned to the Valley of the Sun after being selected to serve as Economic Development Director / Executive Director, MEGACORP for the City of Mesa, Arizona in 1999. He led an economic development team that was responsible for assisted corporate locates (A. T. Still University, Bass Pro Shops, Cessna Citation, Trans-Matic, Inc., and US Positioning, LLC); and 250+ business visitations with local companies. He was responsible for oversight management of Foreign-Trade Zone #221, Military Reuse Zone, and creation of Mesa’s Enterprise Zone. Richard coordinated preparation of the “Mesa Economic Development Strategy: Mesa 2025,” ” Falcon Field Employment Center Strategy Plan,” “E-Streets: Connecting Mesa,” “Fiesta Mall Revitalization Strategy,” Labor Market Appraisal for Mesa Arizona,” and “Recruiting Retail Investment.” His team created Mesa’s Community Profile, “Moving Mesa Forward” quarterly newsletter, site selection data standards, and various website enhancements. He served as Ex-Officio Boardmember, Mesa Chamber of Commerce; and Member, ATSU Provost’s Advisory Council. Mulligan also served as Secretary to the 9-member Economic Development Advisory Board. He served as emcee for the Annual Economic Development Breakfast featuring national speakers (e.g., Joel Kotkin, President Fellow in Urban Futures, Chapman University; and Richard Florida, Director, Martin Prosperity Institute, University of Toronto and Global Research Professor, New York University.
During his tenure, Richard was recognized for “Outstanding Chairmanship” while coordinating regional activities of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC) Economic Development Director’s Team.
After completion of a merger between the American Economic Development Council (AEDC) and Council for Urban Economic Development), Richard served as Boardmember, International Economic Development Council (IEDC) for four years.
As Economic Development Director, City of Chandler, Arizona, Richard led an economic development team that was responsible for assisted corporate locates (e.g., Armorworks, Avnet, CDW, Chapman BMW, Covance, Creative Leather, Hensley, Intel Fab 32, Pearson Education, PGA SuperStore, and Qualcomm. He facilitated 80 visitations with local companies; and managed contracts with the Chandler Chamber of Commerce, consultants and developers. Richard had oversight management of the Commercial Reinvestment Program and Downtown Incentive Program, and served as Ex-Officio Member of the Downtown Chandler Partnership. He coordinated preparation of the “Annual Marketing Strategy & Action Plan,” “Chandler Conference Center Feasibility Study,” “Chandler Life Science and Technology Incubator Feasibility Study/Operating Plan,” and “Williams Gateway Airport Authority Cost/Benefit Analysis,” and sponsored the Annual Small Business Development Workshop. Mulligan was a member of the ASU Technopolis Board of Advisors and Secretary to a 15-member Economic Development Advisory Board. He was also active in High Performance Organization activities.
Becoming more involved in neurodiversity issues with his oldest son, Richard’s attention turned to the University of Phoenix, the world’s largest private, for-profit university. He assumed responsibility for a $15 million student investment portfolio for the Fortune 500 company. Simultaneously, he served as Strategic Planning Consultant,Mili-Comm Aerospace, LLC (Corona, California), helping to acquire their manufacturing operations and decrease annual operating expenditures by $1 million — without a reduction in workforce and without a reduction in product quality. He also served as Adjunct Online Instructor for Principles of Economics (ECO/212), facilitating 41 classes for University of Phoenix Online starting in 2008.
Four years after enrolling in the Doctor of Philosophy in Higher Education Administration (Ph.D./HEA) program at the University of Phoenix, Richard prepared “Managing Expectations: The University of Wisconsin System and Its Role in Economic Development: A Case Study” (Chapters 1-3, Unpublished manuscript). He simultaneously began teaching Principles of Macroeconomics (BAC/120) and Principles of Microeconomics (BAC/160) at University of Dubuque Learning Institute-Tempe.
In 2018, he served as Senior Project Manager, AngelouEconomics, one of the nation’s premier economic development, economic impact, and site selection consulting firms. In this role, he was responsible for integrating stakeholder engagement, market assessment, target industry analysis, strategic recommendations, implementation matrices, and performance metrics for strategic economic development plans.
He became Editor-in-Chief and Digital Marketing Strategist for The ED Advisor in 2020.
Later that year, Richard began serving as Director of Project Management for Goodyear Chiropractic. In this role, he is responsible for coordinating programs and projects that align with the strategy, commitment, and goals of a multi-million-dollar corporation. Included is the delivery of finance, human resource, and information technology projects to employees, directors, managers and supervisors, ensuring the company upholds best practices, remains legislatively compliant, and works with others to create a cohesive, productive, and positive work environment and strong team culture. He also facilitates corporate training — Medicare compliance, HIPAA compliance, employer handbook, and employee policy manual — and related workforce development across the company’s business footprint in Arizona.
In a complementary role, Richard serves on the Program Advisory Board for UEI College-Phoenix.
Mulligan is a strong advocate for persons with developmental disabilities. His presentation, “The Devin Factor,” explores the dynamics of parenting a neurodiverse child, the challenges faced by adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and how this connects to inclusive, equitable, and sustainable economic development.
Richard lives in Goodyear, Arizona with Devin; his youngest son, Tomas, and granddaughter, Avery Marie Mulligan.
