MONTGOMERY – Gov. Robert Bentley Wednesday announced the appointment of Greg Canfield as the new director of the Alabama Development Office. Current ADO Director Seth Hammett is returning to his position with PowerSouth Energy Cooperative.

Hammett, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, is the vice president for business development of PowerSouth. When he accepted Bentley’s appointment to ADO, he committed to manage the agency temporarily.

“While I have had the pleasure of working at ADO, we have successfully worked with  and announced numerous new and expanding companies in different parts of our state,” Hammett said. “We have also completed Memorandums of Understanding with the six different groups that are working in job creation so that we can operate more efficiently.

“Finally, we have initiated a strategic planning process that will be the first of its kind in Alabama,” he said.

“I want to thank Seth for his outstanding service,” Gov. Bentley said. “I asked him to join my administration to make sure we had a smooth transition on the economic development projects that were ongoing and to initiate a strategic planning process that will help guide our work in this area in the future. He has accomplished both goals and I look forward to working with him in the future as he returns to the private sector.”

Hammett said that at PowerSouth, he will remain heavily involved in economic development and spend a lot more time on his member services responsibilities.

Canfield currently represents Jefferson and Shelby counties in the Alabama House of Representatives. He has taken active roles in local and state economic development activities. His background is in the insurance and financial services fields.

Canfield is expected to begin his duties at ADO on or before Aug. 1.

-Michele Gerlach