Message from the Memphis Regional Executive
I’m Douglas Scarboro, regional executive, vice president for the Memphis Branch of the St. Louis Federal Reserve.
The importance of Federal Reserve conducting outreach, what it means to me, is the exchange of economic information. When I’m talking to people in my role, one of the biggest things they think about is the information that the Federal Reserve has and the research that has been done.
But it’s not only that, it’s the exchange, because there’s so much information that you get from—whether I’m talking to a farmer that’s in rural Mississippi to a banker that’s in metropolitan Memphis, they are providing information the same way that we’re giving them information, updating them on things that we’ve seen in the economy, they’re telling us on the ground that view and that voice from Main Street about what’s happening, what they are seeing. And that, ultimately, helps us with the anecdotal data to be able to inform monetary policy, as well.
My vision for reaching out to key audiences in the Memphis zone is based on a background history I have in working with audiences focused around talent and also human capital, specifically in the areas of entrepreneurship and also post-secondary attainment. As I think about specific groups and those two groups of talent audiences, thinking about what’s the information they need, what do they need at that period of time, what kind of research will particularly help them, what kind of resources from the Fed will help them at that point in time—and making sure that you’re meeting people where they are and giving them the information that they need, the amount of information they need at a particular time.
I think the general public views the Fed right now largely from the standpoint of focusing on interest rates. While that is extremely important, there are so many more parts to the Federal Reserve, and there’s so many more parts to monetary policy, as well, not only from the outreach and public affairs, a function of the Federal Reserve, to the work that’s done with a number of other federal agencies, including the Department of Treasury to the branch work that’s done by the Memphis zone and also the other zones of the St. Louis Federal Reserve.
Well, my previous career experience that helped prepare me for the regional executive vice president role with the Federal Reserve, I worked with city government before. I worked with the university, and I also worked with a non-profit focused on community capacity-building for the city of Memphis. So all of those areas, if you bottle it up, were really around the areas of human capital development. If you as an economic term, you look at human capital, and it is production by individuals for the economy and what, the resources they provide.
What enticed me to come work at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis was the depth and type of resources they have, the information that is produced by the economists, to the data, to FRED—it was information that I had seen in some places before, was applicable in prior work environments. And it was something I was very intrigued about coming and being able to not only access the data but being able to share the data with others.
Memphis has a tremendous asset in that it has a very young population, almost 20 points younger than the rest of the nation. So that has a tremendous, tremendous potential for the future of the region, including individuals that will be trained in any number of knowledge jobs, but then also individuals that will be able to expand and go throughout the region and make our economy a lot stronger. So I’m extremely excited, and always have been, about the potential of Memphis and the surrounding area, because of its people.
Douglas Scarboro
Senior Vice President
Regional Executive
Memphis Branch
Welcome to the Memphis Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, serving western Tennessee, eastern Arkansas and northern Mississippi. The 85-plus members of our staff supervise banks, offer cash services for such institutions, participate in community development efforts and provide economic education, among other duties.
In 2018, the Memphis Branch celebrated 100 years of serving the people of our region. The Branch first opened in 1918, starting on a seasonal basis with the facilitation of cotton receipts as collateral to notes tendered at the discount window. We opened our first permanent building merely months before the Wall Street crash of 1929. We then moved to our current location at 200 North Main Street in 1972. I echo the thoughts of former St. Louis Fed President Delos C. Johns when I say that I see the future of the Memphis zone being one where we continue to build slowly, have great timing in meeting the needs of our current economic environment, and work towards a more prosperous future.
One of my top priorities is to gather information on the economy in this area and pass it on to those in our St. Louis office who are involved in monetary policymaking and related research. Gathering such information is also a major role of the Branch’s board of directors. Representing all parts of the Memphis zone, the seven members of our board help us monitor the economic pulse of this part of the Midsouth. Similarly, we have business leaders from throughout the zone who sit on the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis’ Industry Councils, which keep the St. Louis Fed president up to date on four industries that are especially key to the economic health of the Eighth Federal Reserve District: agribusiness, health care, real estate and transportation. Each of the four councils is supported by one of the four offices of the St. Louis Fed. The Memphis Branch supports the Transportation Council because of the large transportation-focused businesses located here.
The sharing of economic information isn’t a one-way street. What our president and his staff of economists learn about the economy is shared, whenever possible, with us on “Main Street,” by which I mean not only the staff in this office, but business and other civic leaders across the District, as well as the general public. This knowledge is conveyed in a variety of ways—in one-on-one meetings and speeches open to all, over the internet in webinars and videos, in print publications and in the classroom. And the information isn’t just about what’s happening at the District, national or global level; it’s often specific to the Memphis zone, examples of which can be seen by going to Economic Reports.
Although I joined the St. Louis Fed in 2015, I’ve long known about this office’s commitment to the community well before that, having worked in other capacities in Memphis for years. The Branch has continued this tradition of community commitment. My staff and I have been, and will continue to be, actively involved with community boards and organizations throughout the area.
I am available if you have questions or need additional information.
-Douglas G. Scarboro, Senior Vice President and Regional Executive, Memphis
douglas.g.scarboro@stls.frb.org
