Dr. Wallace Walrod - Chief Economic Adviser of Orange County Business Council

Dr. Wallace Walrod is currently the Chief Economic Adviser for the Orange County Business Council and he’s led research there for over 20 years. During that time he has done strategic projects with most of the biggest companies and cities here, such as Toshiba America, Irvine Company, First American, as well as the cities of Anaheim and Santa Ana.

Wallace is also the Founding President of the Center for a New California, which plays a key role in shaping the state’s economic future by focusing on Workforce Development, Economic Development, Infrastructure, and emerging trends in corporate social responsibility.  He develops programs, strategies, and policies across companies, government and foundations, and we talked about some of that work.

He is at the forefront of the demographic and economic changes underway in Orange County, and publishes regular reports that highlight those changes, as well as ideas for positively addressing challenges the changes pose.

Wallace is also one of the smart guys educated right here in OC. He earned his Ph.D. in Regional Economics from UC Irvine.