James is an award-winning economic development professional with more than a decade of experience, specializing in investment attraction and business retention and expansion.

He has held roles with the City of Vaughan, the County of Simcoe, the Greater Toronto Marketing Alliance (now Toronto Global), and the Southeastern Aurora Development Corporation.

Throughout his career, he has built a strong track record supporting domestic and international corporations through site selection, business development, workforce development, and other tailored aftercare services.

James holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts in Economics (Public Policy) from the University of Waterloo and has been a Certified Economic Developer (Ec.D.) through the Economic Developers Association of Canada (EDAC) since 2017.