Economic Outlook (E2202174)

Don is the chief marketing officer of the NJCPA, responsible for setting the vision, strategy and direction for the organization’s marketing, communications and membership campaigns and for driving the success of a deep and broad swath of organizational initiatives. Functional areas of accountability include digital assets (web, social media, email), content and news distribution (including the organization’s flagship publication, New Jersey CPA), membership, media relations, public relations, next generation recruitment, executive communications and internal communications. He also oversees graphic design, market research, and advocacy and legislative communications. Don came to the NJCPA from the Craft & Hobby Association, where he was director of marketing and public relations.

Nela Richardson joined ADP as Chief Economist in November of 2020. Nela is the co head of the ADP Research Institute and leads economic research for ADP. Previously she was Principal and Investment Strategist at Edward Jones, a financial services firm. In that role, Nela analyzed and interpreted economic trends and financial market conditions and recommended investment strategies. Nela is also the former chief economist at Redfin Corp., a national real estate brokerage and technology company, where she led a team of data scientists, economists and writers to track trends in the housing market. Nela also served as a senior economist for Bloomberg, L.P., covering housing and financial markets, and has held research positions at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies and Freddie Mac. She also worked as an adjunct finance professor at the Carey School of Business at John Hopkins University.

Nela earned a doctorate in economics from the University of Maryland College Park with concentrations in financial economics, international finance and economic development. She obtained a master’s degree in economics from the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University in Bloomington, where she was a triple major in mathematics, economics and philosophy.

Nela regularly provides insight on the economy, real estate trends and capital markets to policymakers, consumers and media. She is a regular contributor to Marketplace from American Public Media and has frequently appeared on CNBC, Bloomberg, Fox Business CNN, Yahoo Finance, the Wall Street Journal, FORTUNE magazine, The New York Times and other national and local media. Nela serves on the foundation board for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and is a member of the Conference of Business Economists.

Heather is vice president of Sales Operations for the ADP Accountant Channel. With a career spanning two decades, Heather steadily progressed through the global human resources and payroll company, moving from district sales manager and corporate sales trainer to her current position. Throughout her career with ADP, she has leveraged her expertise in roles that take advantage of her competencies in sales, human resources, benefits administration, talent management and talent acquisition. This encompasses internal associate and leader engagement to drive results, as well as well as a high level of interaction with the accountant community. Heather is sought after nationwide to lead speaking engagements such as interactive workshops to foster attendees’ personal and professional development. She has coached thousands of professionals on improving selling and overall communications skills. She is also a board member of the Hope for Children Foundation.