LVEDC President & CEO Don Cunningham interviewing Steph Raymond, President of PPL Electric Utilities, for the executive video interview series. (photo courtesy Caitlin Brady, PPL Electric Utilities)

The Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC) is launching its new series of video interviews this month with new corporate leaders in the region, including leaders from such companies as Mack Trucks, Olympus, PPL Electric Utilities, Victaulic, and more.

The first interview will be released on Thursday, Sept. 23, at 11 a.m., featuring Steph Raymond, President of PPL Electric Utilities. The videos will be free to view on LVEDC’s Facebook page.

Subsequent video interviews will be released weekly each Thursday. Six more interviews will be shown between September and November, highlighting new leaders at some of the largest and most prestigious companies and employers in the Lehigh Valley.

Last year, LVEDC released a series of video interviews featuring regional executives. The series was so well-received by the community, with more than 5,000 total views, and there have been so many new leaders named in the past 18 to 24 months, that LVEDC decided to produce and release additional videos.

“Our series sought to introduce the region’s new corporate leaders to the broader community, who were unable to meet or network with them in traditional settings due to COVID-19 restrictions,” said LVEDC President & CEO Don Cunningham. “Our viewers so enjoyed having direct access to these leaders and hearing their thoughts and visions for the Lehigh Valley that we immediately started making plans for another series of interviews.”

After the original broadcasts, the interviews will be available for later viewing released weekly starting in September on LVEDC’s Facebook page, website, and YouTube channel. The new videos, as well those from last year, are also available on the LVEDC blog.

In addition to Raymond, interview subjects in the new series include:

• Gunnar Brunius, Vice President & General Manager Lehigh Valley Operations of Mack Trucks
• Rick Bucher, Chief Executive Officer of Victaulic
• Shelly McWilliams, President of Lehigh Valley Plastics
• Sarah Santos, President of Cigars International
• Julien Sauvagnargues, President of Olympus Corporation of the Americas
• Angelo Valetta, President & Chief Executive Officer of Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania

The previous series included interviews with leaders from such companies as B. Braun, Capital BlueCross, Crayola, FL Smidth, Follett, Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network, PPL Corporation, and Sharp Packaging Solutions, among others.

Each video interview is a 30-minute, one-on-one conversation between Cunningham and the executives about who they are, their thoughts on leadership, the companies they lead, and doing business in the Lehigh Valley.

The series is being recorded and produced by Countess Communications, a Lehigh Valley video and media firm. There will be no in-person audience for the interviews, and the videos were made in adherence to public health and social distancing standards.

Sponsorships are still available for the executive video interview series. For more information about sponsorships, contact LVEDC Program Administrator Stephanie Wean at swean@lehighvalley.org.

Sponsors for the series include:

• Lehigh Valley Health Network – Presenting Sponsor
• Capital BlueCross – Premier Sponsor
• Fitzpatrick Lentz & Bubba – Gold Sponsor
• Boyle Construction – Event Sponsor
• Klunk & Millan Advertising – Event Sponsor
• Olympus Corporation of the Americas – Event Sponsor
• Countess Communications – Production Sponsor
• Victaulic – Interview Sponsor