At a time of financial crisis, Gov. Martin O'Malley has chosen as the state's new economic development chief a thirtysomething Baltimorean whose private-sector experience includes a failed dot-com, two companies based out of his mother's home and a year at a consulting firm.
O'Malley's choice of Christian S. Johansson to lead the state Department of Business and Economic Development might seem risky for a Cabinet post recently held by men decades his senior with far more experience in business and government.
But Johansson's boosters say the 36-year-old is precisely the person to complete the state's transition from an industrial past to a future in biotech and finance and health. They contend that his resume, which also includes five years leading a public-private development partnership, shows an entrepreneurial spirit that might not have created huge profits but could serve him well in the state position.
"These are challenging times in economic development, and fresh thinking is going to be important," said C. William Struever, a prominent developer in the state. He said Johansson comes to the post from a "somewhat unconventional route" but is a "great choice."
Johansson takes over the 280-employee agency - charged with creating jobs, stimulating investment and training workers - at a critical time. Not only is the recession dragging down Maryland's economy, but the agency faces a 10 percent budget cut.
Johansson, whose appointment is subject to approval by the Maryland Senate, has long had ties to the Democratic governor's inner circle. He recently chose Dominick E. Murray, who worked in city government when O'Malley was mayor and sang with O'Malley's Irish rock band, as his deputy.
Regarded as a wunderkind by some in Baltimore business circles, Johansson most recently started a private equity firm to invest in minority-owned companies. The firm, Continental Equity, got financial backing from Whiting Turner Contracting Co., one of the state's largest construction companies, and sought to acquire one company. But the firm was out-bid, and Johansson left after six months before any deals were done.
O'Malley is "supremely confident" in Johansson's abilities and picked him in part because he believes he'll be successful in luring international companies to Maryland because he's "cultured in such a way that he can represent Maryland well," spokesman Shaun Adamec said. Johansson grew up in Sweden; his American mother was a foreign exchange student who met his father while studying abroad.
