Empire State Development (ESD), New York’s chief economic-development agency, on Wednesday announced a new vice president of business services.

Chelsea Rao will serve as a liaison to the digital and technology industries to help attract and grow technology firms across New York, ESD said in a news release.

New York is proving to be “fertile ground” for technology companies to “grow and prosper,” Kenneth Adams, president and CEO of ESD, said in the news release.

“I am pleased to welcome Chelsea Rao to the team, and look forward to her help in continuing to attract the world’s greatest technology firms and start-ups to New York,” Adams said.

As vice president of business services, Rao is expected to connect new media and digital-technology companies to existing initiatives across New York, ESD said.

She will also look at opportunities to further engage the technology sector, and develop programs and policies to attract more companies and talent from the industry to New York, the agency added.

Rao will also work with the post-production sector to promote and build on the post-production tax credit that Gov. Andrew Cuomo believes has “significantly” increased the amount of post-production work happening in the state, according to ESD.

The digital sector has grown into a “significant” part of the state’s economy, Rao said in the release.

“I’m excited to promote the governor’s groundbreaking initiatives and work with the private sector to make sure New York is the number one choice for technology companies,” she said.

Prior to joining ESD, Rao served as assistant director of the Center for Economic Transformation, which is part of the New York City Economic Development Corporation, the economic-development agency said.

In that role, she oversaw media and technology-sector programs, developed programs to expand the availability and transparency of broadband infrastructure, and launched initiatives to grow the health-care technology sector, according to ESD.

Besides its role as New York’s primary economic-development agency, ESD is also the primary administrative agency overseeing Gov. Cuomo’s Regional Economic Development Councils and the marketing of “I Love NY,” the state’s tourism brand, the agency said.

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