One-on-one with Mark Roper

Most people who end up in economic development didn’t start there. The head of the New Mexico Economic Development Department said he was no different.

Mark Roper swapped broadcasting at his father’s radio station for economic development early in his professional life. Now, he’s about four months into serving as acting secretary for the state’s economic development agency.

“I really discovered a passion and a desire to improve the lives of New Mexicans,” Roper said.

Roper said he moved up in the state economic department, originally serving as a regional rep to becoming a division director for the last five years. Then, he said, when Jon Clark moved over to lead the State Investment Council, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham tapped Roper to be acting secretary.

“So I’m very familiar with the department. I know New Mexico’s economic development assets — our programs, our projects — extremely well,” he said.

Some recent accomplishments at the department include Intel getting more federal money to expand its Rio Rancho facility, Maxeon Solar coming to New Mexico and the Meta facility, formerly Facebook Data Center, in Los Lunas.

Those projects made headlines, Roper said, but some of the moments he takes the most pride in were smaller projects that didn’t necessarily make the news, like the expansion of a small cheese plant in Tucumcari that helped the facility double their employment.

How have your first few months as secretary gone?

“Busy.

Starting just before the legislative session, the first 45 days was very much budget, working on legislation that was key and critical to us through the legislative session. We came out of the session with a very good budget for the Economic Development Department, and we’re very happy to be part of the omnibus tax package with the advanced energy tax credit, which is going to make projects such as Maxeon and others in that energy sector much more likely to come to New Mexico.

Since the session, I’ve been focusing on some of our key projects in the border region, the infrastructure development in the border region — I just spent nearly a week down in the border area — and working on the film and media academy, trying to get it to the point where it’s actually completed and operational.”

What does economic development mean to you?

“To me, economic development is the growth in the economy to create opportunities for New Mexicans to improve their career paths and their livelihood.”

What’s been the most interesting part of being secretary?

“It’s just been the interaction with the rest of the Cabinet secretaries, and understanding that we’re all in this boat together, trying to throw it in the same direction.”

What are your hobbies?

“Golf. Enjoying time with my wife. Traveling.”

Any pet peeves?

“Left-lane drivers. (Can we put that in bold print?) It’s the passing lane, not the cruising lane.”

What’s something you think New Mexicans should know about the Economic Development Department?

“We don’t have enough space.” (Laughs.)

“But what they should know about the Economic Development Department is that no matter how small their operation is, there’s most likely an opportunity or a program that’s designed to assist them. From Main Street to outdoor recreation to the film industry to JTIP (Job Training Incentive Program), LEDA (Local Economic Development Act) and the other traditional economic development tools that we have, there’s multiple opportunities for us to be able to help business grow and expand, which, alternatively, goes back to the key component of creating career opportunities, career paths for New Mexicans and improving their economic position.

You’ll notice on my signature line it says generating wealth in New Mexico. That’s what we’re here to do.”

Are there any challenges at the department you’d like to overcome?

“Every job has challenges. There’s nothing in this world that’s so easy that there’s not challenges within it.

I think New Mexico in itself is in a really key place in life, where we have some economic opportunities, thanks to the oil and gas industry, to put us in a position to diversify and continue our economic prosperity into the future.

And I think the biggest challenge right now is to make sure we focus those revenues in areas that will help us grow and expand, specifically infrastructure, to make this attractive to business industry as well as people, to have the infrastructure in place, to have good, sustainable growth and lifestyle.”

Have you had to overcome any personal challenges getting to this point in your life?

“My mom was tragically killed when I was 11 years old. That was a hurdle to overcome. I went through a divorce, which is never easy, even if it’s amicable. Those things are not easy. I’ve changed careers three times now. So it’s always a challenge.

Probably the hardest thing I ever had to do from a professional standpoint was to tell my dad I was leaving the radio business to get into economic development, but it’s proven to be a good decision for me.”

Looking ahead, what goals do you have for the Economic Development Department?

“Helping New Mexico get in a position of creating the infrastructure necessary for growth and expansion. That’s one of my key goals.

Helping the governor’s position of diversification — focusing on the nine key industry sectors to allow us to continue to be a very prosperous state.

And then, beyond that, to make sure that I have a department and all of its divisions that have people that look forward to coming to work every day.”