building a regional economic development blueprint: challenges, strategies and impacts of the set...
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Building a Regional Economic Development Blueprint:
Challenges, Strategies and Impacts of the SET Program
Bo Beaulieu -- Purdue Center for Regional Development
2013 Annual Meeting of the Community Development Society– Charleston, SCJuly 2013
Rural America - - A Challenging Environment
An Important Decision
“Let’s work together to make things better.”
“Get out of my sandbox. I’m not playing with you.”
SET: Working to Add Value toLocal Economic Development Activities
Local Economic Develop
ment Activities
Regional Economic Developm
ent Strategies
What is SET Trying to Do?
Help rural communities/counties work together as a regional team in
developing and implementing
A High Quality Regional Economic Development Plan
that builds on the current and emerging
economic strengths of their region.
The SET Support Systemo USDA Rural Development
• Federal• State
o Southern Rural Development Center & its sister Regional RD Centers
o Purdue Center for Regional Development
o Extension Service – State Land-Grant Universities
Several Components to SET
Data
The TeamVision & Goals
Assets
ARegional
Plan
Building a Regional Team:A Focus on Inclusion
Regional Team
Members
Business & Industry
LEDOs
Local & Regional
Government
Education Health
Nonprofit, Voluntary & Faith-Based
Groups
Local Residents
1,7
464 Initial Participants
(Phases I & II)
SET . . . Expanding Engagement
Beginning of SET By the End of SET
1,679 Participants (+362%)
Carefully Studying Pertinent Data
Demographic & Economic Information
Exploring Regional Industry Clusters
Groups of similar and related firms in a defined geographic area that share common markets, technologies, worker skill needs, and that are often linked by buyer-seller relationships
State-Level Clusters: 2001-2012An Example
Finding Ways to Plug the Leaks
Regional
Demand
Regional
Supplier
Outside Supplie
r
Looking at Regional Expenditures
C.A.R.E for the Cluster
Strengthening Your
Cluster(s)
Creation
Attraction Retention
Expansion
Source: Barta, et al (2010) CARE Model
What We Do Next? Help Teams . . .
o Develop vision and goal statements
o Examine their assets
o Coach them on building a regional plan
o Help them select measures to track progress and determine success or impacts
The Ultimate GOAL of SET:Develop and Implement a High Quality Plan
Evidence-Based
Focused on Regional Economic
Development
Aligned with Vision &
Goals
Broadly Supported
Practical
Team’sRegional
Plan
Some of the Good Things Happening
o 28 state are now part of the SET program
o About 60 regions being reached
o Approximately $6.2 million captured by SET regions to date (3:1 ratio)
o New and lasting relationships being built
States Currently Part of SET
The Challenges
o Getting traditional players to let more people in
o Getting leaders to embrace regional strategies
o Having both RD and Extension at the table
o Finding people with the right skills to do the
training & coaching
o Getting people engaged and committed
o Producing a solid regional econ development plan
o Securing the data to document impacts
For More Information
Introductory Overview of SET: http://srdc.msstate.edu/set/files/overview_p3_11_2012.pdf
Contact Information
Bo Beaulieu, PhD
Director
Purdue Center for Regional Development
765-494-7273
The Response by Local Leaders?
Don’t go to the next county. They won’t take care of you as well as we will.
Big Auto Company: PLEASE come to our city/county !!
We have the best football team in the area.
We want jobs. . . Any job will do.
A Recent SET Meeting in Colorado
“It was interesting to list the places where we have commonalities and the places we have vast differences. I think coming together on things that benefit not just communities but the entire region is going to be a great part of the process.”
Christina Oxley, Executive Director
Craig, CO Chamber of Commerce
Comment about May 1, 2013 SET meeting
The Raton Range Newspaper
“Each of those groups was formed under the Stronger Economies Together program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The federal government has been encouraging regional economic development in hopes that federal dollars awarded for economic development efforts will be used more efficiently.”
What SET Provides Regional Teams
35-40 hours of on-site coaching
Hands on step- by-
step process for building
or enhancing regional
plans
Detailed demographic
& socio-economic
information
Data and analysis on current and emerging clusters
Guidance in implementing the plan
Access to individuals with special
expertise
More-in-depth cluster
analysis
Monthly calls with State
Partner and/or
Coaching Team
Members
Webinars on key topics of relevance to
multiple regions
Coaching Data & Analysis
Technical Assistanc
e
Peer-to-Peer
Networking
Why ?
Helps Determine Whose Voices Need to be at the
Table