Taking the CEDS to the Next Level Through the Content Guidelines
- 1. Taking the CEDS to the Next Level Through Content Guidelines Nathan Ohle September 9, 2017
- 2. Agenda What are CEDS? Changes to CEDS – Updates and General Guidelines Requirements of what should be within the CEDS Creating Economic Opportunity Creating a Successful CEDS Outreach/Engagement/Promotion SWOT analysis overview Performance Metrics Resources for Communities – Tools and Data
- 3. What are CEDS? Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy. Strategy-driven plan for regional economic development. Regionally-owned planning process designed to build capacity and guide economic growth and resiliency of a region. Simply put, it is a roadmap.
- 4. What makes a successful CEDS? Understanding what your region’s strengths and weaknesses are, and how you can drive towards growth. Identifies your region’s competitive advantages. Putting together a plan with buy-in from partners. Tells a compelling story A plan that others want to implement. Motivates others to act. Collective impact, ensuring that the EDD is not the only one responsible for implementing the plan. Commits to measurable success.
- 5. Changes to CEDS – Updates and General Guidelines Two years ago, EDA provided updated CEDS guidelines, meant to help regional planning organizations create more effective CEDS. The updated guidelines provide more information on what should be included, as well as tools to utilize when crafting your CEDS. Focused almost exclusively on content, not process. Guidelines available at www.eda.gov/CEDS
- 7. Who should be at the table? Private sector Local government Economic development leaders Workforce development partners Philanthropy (when possible)
- 8. Activity
- 10. What creates economic opportunity? Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy. Strategy-driven plan for regional economic development. Regionally-owned planning process designed to build capacity and guide economic growth and resiliency of a region. Simply put, you need a vision, roadmap and easily measurable outcomes for driving opportunity. Helps communities become: Resilient Agile Economically stable
- 11. Investments, Tools and Connections Inputs Construction Planning Special Initiatives Technical Assistance Outputs Facilities Programs Plans Strategies Infrastructure Capacity Outcomes Community Capacity Firm and Industry Capacity New Firm Formation Innovative Infrastructure Realized Outcomes New Business Creation Jobs Created Innovation Earnings Exports Business Growth Wealth Creation Vision Prosperity Quality of Life
- 13. Culture and People Matter Culture is the glue that brings communities together and ensures economic opportunity Critical elements of culture include: Openness Diversity Trust Mentors/role models Feedback Innovation
- 14. Creating the conditions for economic growth Regional approach allows you to address unique needs Invest in ecosystem builders Focus on capacity building Look for catalytic investments Walk before you run
- 15. Entrepreneurial Resources ECOYSTEM Talent • Entrepreneurs and Small Business Owners • Workforce • Mentors • Pipeline Innovation • Community Colleges • Private Industry R&D • Individuals Support • Technology and Facilities • Programs and Services • Policies • Mentoring Capital • Loans • Grants • Investors • Customers
- 17. What makes a successful economic CEDS? Understanding what your region’s strengths and weaknesses are, and how you can drive towards growth. Identifies your region’s competitive advantages. Putting together a plan with buy-in from partners. Tells a compelling story A plan that others want to implement. Motivates others to act. Collective impact, ensuring that the EDD is not the only one responsible for implementing the plan. Commits to measurable success.
- 18. What should be within your economic development plan? Why Vision statement Call to action – SWOT Analysis What SMART goals – evaluation framework How Strategies and actions – strategic direction and action steps SMART Goals • S – specific • M – measurable • A – achievable • R – relevant • T – time-bound
- 19. What should be included in your CEDS? Natural flow that results in a simply outlined, coherent strategy that shows the measurable impact expected. A robust SWOT Analysis that includes elements from a wide range of attributes, including workforce, global competitiveness, etc. An emphasis on measurable goals, objectives and strategies rather than a list of potential projects. Ways to integrate other planning programs. Economic resiliency.
- 20. What Does Strategy Mean? Strategy requires making difficult trade-offs Choosing what not to do is often more important that what to do You have to establish a UNIQUE position What makes you unique in a global environment?
- 21. Strategy What is going to make your region shine? Firms and talent that will spur a cycle of growth in certain industries/sectors Everything you do as an EDD should align to ensure that businesses in a certain industry cluster HAVE to be in your region. Choosing an un-realistic amount of “target” industries can undermine your ability to act strategically.
- 22. Common Mistakes Avoid making difficult decisions Try to be everyone’s friend Rely on consultants instead of your stakeholders Think only locally, not regionally Not getting buy-in on implementation Only meet once a year, or worse, once every few
- 24. Outreach/Engagement/Promotion Remember, this is NOT your plan Regional assets and resources include PARTNERS Regions must grow together, not leave one another behind Think outside the box Private, public and non-profit partners Don’t just meet around the plan Create a stakeholder group that meets regularly
- 25. Outreach/Engagement/Promotion Tell your story Make a clear call to action Coalitions have not only the right, but the responsibility to tell a community’s story Each individual story should reinforce one overarching theme STORY + DATA + CALL TO ACTION = IMPACT
- 26. Tell Your Story Each community is unique, tell us why you stand out Why is what you do important? Tell compelling stories Credibility – data and outcomes Engagement – call to action Trust The ultimate purpose is to inspire a specific individual to take a specific action. The ultimate goal is that the sum of specific individual actions adds up to great positive impact.
- 27. Tell Your Story Clear and concise Emotion Meaning Communicate an experience of who you are All individual stories should reinforce one consistent larger narrative
- 29. SWOT Analysis An in-depth analysis of a region’s resources, opportunities and pain points. Where are we now? Where do we want to go? By using the relevant data and background information, a region can identify the critical factors that represent unique assets and competitive positioning. A strategic planning tool used by planning organizations to establish a clear objective. Make sure that the plan is inclusive, a balance of EDD research and stakeholder input.
- 30. SWOT Analysis Strengths are a region’s competitive advantages (e.g., industry supply chains and clusters, extensive port, rail, and broadband assets, specialized workforce skills, higher education levels, collaboration among stakeholders). Weaknesses are a region’s competitive disadvantages (e.g., a risk-averse or change-resistant regional culture). Opportunities are opportunities for regional improvement or progress (e.g., expansion of a biosciences research lab in the region). Threats are potential negative impacts on the region or regional decline (e.g., several companies in the region considering moving to lower-cost areas of the state).
- 31. SWOT Analysis The SWOT section of your plan recommends assessing a wide variety of regional attributes, including: Strength of the regional economy Industry clusters and supply chains Global competitiveness, export opportunities Workforce/Skills training Broadband accessibility Sustainability Resiliency
- 32. Performance Metrics What are performance metrics used for? To evaluate the progress and impact of activities in achieving the vision, goals and objectives of your CEDS. What types of performance metrics should be used? Traditional (e.g., jobs created and/or retained, private investment) Non-traditional (e.g., wealth creation such as GDP per capita, household income, per capita income, wages, net worth) What is important to measure? Not a one-size-fits-all. What is important to your region, what conditions your region needs to reverse or create, and what regional assets can be leveraged. In effect, the measures should reinforce the theories and principals in your CEDS.
- 33. Performance Metrics Shouldn’t you just measure jobs created and private sector investment leveraged? These are crucial measures in economic development, but are not the end-all, be-all approach. These measures need to be linked to the ecosystems being created by your CEDS, including access to broadband, innovation and entrepreneurial activity, skills and talent retention and creation, per capita income, or other areas of interest for your region. Wealth building can be a critical indicator of success. Regional wealth creation can be tied to resiliency and long- term sustainability for a region.
- 34. Performance Metrics Key attributes of effective performance metrics: Evaluated in an objective, timely, and cost-effective fashion Focused on an outcome or result (i.e., data and information on the success of a specific process or engagement) rather than an output or activity (i.e., data or information on activities to help achieve an outcome) Clear about the results expected Support your region’s goals Challenging but attainable What constitutes satisfactory performance? Do they track trends that are within the region’s control or will national or global developments impact performance?
- 36. Case Studies
- 37. Buckeye Hills Regional Council- Ohio Great experience and aptitude working with statistics, GIS, and other data to help paint a picture of conditions in the region. Created two sections dedicated to resilience. Physical disaster resilience Created a general natural disaster risk rating criteria (a scale from 1 to 5) using GIS and some widely available data in Ohio including; ODNR wildfire risk rating, FEMA flood plain locations, and the presence of high value public locations (EMS, fire, police, schools) in floodplain areas. Economic disaster resilience Economic diversification, and the reality that the region is really not prepared or focused on these threats
- 39. New River Valley Regional Commission Cluster analysis trends and project identification. Closely aligned CEDS with the NRV Livability Initiative (Sustainable Communities plan). The four major themes of Livability became the four theme areas of the CEDS. Enhancing Living and Working Environments Preserving Rural Heritage and Community Character Making the Business Environment Productive and Resilient Building Healthy Communities All projects identified must have a direct tie back into the Livability Initiative goals.
- 41. Northeast Georgia Regional Commission Sought input from more than 365 local public and private stakeholders. Variety of public and private sector representatives on the CEDS Committee Created an inventory of regional assets from local comprehensive plans and county and municipal work programs. Created an action plan to guide economic development activities Develop and implement public information and marketing for region Support and encourage local entrepreneurs and artists Public-private partnerships to address local weaknesses and threats Foster a skilled and dedicated workforce Establish information systems and partnerships
- 44. Resources to put your plan together US Cluster Mapping Tool: http://www.clustermapping.us/ Regional Innovation Accelerator Network (RIAN): www.regionalinnovation.org/assets/cfm US Export Assistance Centers: http://export.gov/eac/index.asp Measuring Distress: http://statsamerica.org/ Partnership for Sustainable Communities: http://www.sustainablecommunities.gov/ Broadband: www.ntia.doc.gov/broadbandusa Innovation Capacity: http://www.statsamerica.org/ii2/overview.aspx