Best Practices of Small to Midsized Community Economic Development Organizations

1
Best Practices of Small to Midsized Community
Economic Development Organizations
Roy Hunter Executive Director Marshall-Saline
County Development Corporation Marshall, MO
Bob Henningsen Partner Smart Solutions Group West
Des Moines, IA
2
BEST PRACTICES OF SMALL TO MID-SIZED COMMUNITY
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS
3
SMART SOLUTIONS GROUP

• Midwest consulting firm specializing in the
  business of economic development...
• Strategic business planning
• Strategic brand-building marketing and sales
  plans
• Management and marketing implementation services
• Economic development best practices ... street
  smarts
• Over 100 clients ... Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska

4
(No Transcript)
5
SSG CONSULTING APPROACH

• Economic development is a business ... highly
  competitive
• Successful economic development organizations
  apply basic business principles ...
• Manage resources efficiently and effectively
• Market the product (the location) aggressively
• Continually innovate and engineer the product
  to stay ahead of the competition
• Generate Money needed to effectively implement
  strategic business and marketing plans ...
  demonstrate a ROI to investors and stakeholders

6
BENCHMARK STUDY
7
OBJECTIVES

• Many communities served by Aquila and Smart
  Solutions Group have populations of less than
  15,000.
• To better serve communities of this size, Aquila
  commissioned this benchmark study to identify
  economic development best practices and
  innovative trends in small to mid-sized
  communities.

8
ABOUT BEST PRACTICES

• Often, it's not clear what it means for some
  practice to be "best." Best at what? And by what
  standard?
• What works well for another organization doesn't
  necessarily mean it will work well for your
  organization.
• The objective was to identify best practices
  and innovations that are working and resulting
  in success for the organizations surveyed.
• These best practices offer sound advice and
  direction for similar sized communities.

9
PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS

• Ten pre-selected groups interviewed.
• Four county-wide organizations.
• Populations served ranged from a high of 33,400
  for a two county regional organization to a low
  of 2,510.

10
PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS

• On average the organizations in existence for
  about 30 years.
• Annual budgets range from a high of approximately
  200,000 to a low of approximately 20,000.
  (Average is 119,000.)
• Staffing levels range from 3 to zero (totally
  volunteer organization).
• On average, 10 of total budget allocated to
  marketing.

11
THE BUSINESS RATIONALE

• To increase business development activity ...
  retention, expansion and attraction.
• Some mentioned forming to attract a specific
  company to the community.
• To market the community/area.
• To secure land for business development.
• To address the out migration of youth.

12
BEST PRACTICES

• Building
• Evolving
• Studying
• Training

• Partnering
• Representing
• Assessing
• Communicating
• Targeting
• Involving
• Concentrating
• Endowing
• Servicing

13
BUILDING

• Successful communities are building on their
  strengths and leveraging their assets
  effectively.
• Focusing limited resources on core
  competencies... business retention, expansion
  and attraction.
• Increasingly directing resources toward the third
  leg of economic development stool ...
  entrepreneurial development.

14
EVOLVING

• Most of the organizations surveyed have been in
  business a long time ... but are continually
  evolving.
• Place a high priority on evaluating whats
  working and whats not working ... and
  refining strategies and reallocating resources
  accordingly to maximize results.

15
STUDYING

• Place high priority on studying the information
  needs of prospects (and consultants) and
  collecting accurate information/data to respond
  effectively and efficiently to prospects
  requests.
• Regularly update and (electronically) catalog
  information/data ... accessible via the Internet
  24/7.

16
TRAINING

• While many of the communities do not have formal
  leadership training or development programs ...
  do emphasize the importance of having
  programs/strategies in place to
• Orient new board members to the business of
  economic development and the organization.
• Motivate and mobilize volunteers, partners and
  public and private leaders/influencers to be
  involved and supportive of economic development
  programs and initiatives.
• Educate the residents of the community on the
  value and benefits of economic development.

17
PARTNERING

• Increasingly realizing the benefits of
  partnering.
• Forming mutually beneficial collaborative
  partnerships including county-wide and regional
  groups to
• Utilize and leverage resources to achieve
  efficiencies and increase effectiveness.
• Present and aggressively market the economic
  region as one product to compete more
  frequently and effectively.

18
REPRESENTING

• Identified ways to reach deeply into all segments
  of the business community to provide leadership
  and funding.
• Active involvement of a broad cross-section of
  community leaders representing public and private
  stakeholders, as well as the residents of the
  community.

19
ASSESSING

• Highly focused on continually assessing the
  location product.
• Realistic view of location strengths/assets,
  challenges/barriers to growth and opportunities.
• Develop a plan of action to continuously enhance
  the competitiveness and appeal of the location
  product to targeted businesses.

20
COMMUNICATING

• Great emphasis placed on communicating with
  investors, partners and stakeholders including
  the residents of the community.
• Strengthens relationships and support for the
  organization.
• Establish open, transparent communications
  processes ... communicate frequently through
  multiple channels to build and enhance trust and
  respect in the organization ... ongoing process.

21
TARGETING

• Online research and local marketing intelligence
  utilized for targeting prospective business
  location/expansion clients.
• Identify specific niche opportunities ...
  businesses ... good fit/good match for community.
• Identify businesses/decision-makers with a
  connection to the community and/or existing
  businesses.

22
INVOLVING

• Actively involving the business community in
  economic development efforts.
• Keep volunteers motivated by assigning manageable
  tasks with clear outcomes and deadlines.
• Get partners involved in the process of helping
  to focus, build and improve economic development
  strategy.

23
CONCENTRATING

• Do not try to be all things to all people!
• Concentrating efforts and resources on business
  retention, expansion, attraction and
  entrepreneurial development.
• Coordinate and collaborate with other
  organizations in the community and the region
  focusing on other aspects of community and
  economic development.

24
ENDOWING

• Promote the importance of endowing the economic
  development programs and initiatives ... as well
  as the value and benefits of economic
  development to the community.
• Funded by a variety of public and public sources.
• Demonstrate creative approaches to raising funds
  ... reflecting the unique personality of their
  community and leadership.

25
SERVICING

• Customer-centric organizations ... provide
  client-driven site location/expansion services.
• Understand delivering outstanding service is the
  key to sustainable differentiation in the
  competitive economic development marketplace ...
  particularly in competing with locations with
  similar features and benefits.

26
BEST PRACTICES

• Building
• Evolving
• Studying
• Training

• Partnering
• Representing
• Assessing
• Communicating
• Targeting
• Involving
• Concentrating
• Endowing
• Servicing

27
BEST PRACTICES

• A recent country song lament by Vince Gill says
  Everybodys Looking for The Next Big Thing.
• Today, everyone is looking for the next big thing
  to influence their economic development future.
• What these benchmarked successful communities
  have indicated is the next big thing is simply
  focusing on strategies that maximize and leverage
  resources and will generate the greatest return
  on investment for the community ... your
  stakeholders and investors.

28

• P.O. Box 65751
• West Des Moines, IA 50265
• 515.224.2033
• www.smartsolutionsgroup.net

29
MARSHALL SALINE DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

30
BEST PRACTICE
31
PLANNING

• Decide where you are and where you would like to
  go
• Build consensus on the concept
• Be realistic in setting goals

32
Consider all factions

• Type of businesses you can attract
• Available workforce
• Skill levels of workforce
• Infrastructure and affordable housing
• Impact on existing industries
• Other particular to your location

33
Ability to Implement

• Financial resources
• Participating partners
• Establish timeframe for each step
• Determine method of review

34
RESEARCH

• Who wants what you have?
• Type and size of companies
• Everyone offers a great quality of life
• Build a list of potential resources for contact
  information
• Track your graduates from both high school and
  college
• Family and friends of current residents
• Get list of class reunions

35
INTERNET

• Learn to use this tool
• Develop research techniques
• Dont waste time and money on cold calls
• With work you can find the name of the
  decision-maker with almost every company
• Be Creative
• Be original
• Be persistant

36
PERFECT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN

• Accepted and understood
• Focuses on Long Term Goals
• Has Measurable Steps
• Funding is in place
• Flexible