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How are we doing?

It’s been 18 months since we unveiled the GREDF Strategic Plan. The plan is a guide for the Board of Directors, staff, committees and stakeholders and serves as a blueprint for Board policy decisions, guiding the organization’s investment in economic development initiatives, programs and projects. The plan also provides direction by anticipating and responding to changes in the local and national economy.

At this week’s quarterly board meeting, GREDF staff gave a mid-year progress report of the organization’s 2015 activities and goals as they relate to the Strategic Plan. We’d like to take this opportunity to share portions of that report with you, our stakeholders. 

Here’s our six goals and a quick overview of the progress we’re making: 

1. Business Retention & Expansion (BRE)

Goal: Conduct one official retention visit per week and record the data in BRE software so that we may track and respond to opportunities and threats. 

Progress: To date, we have conducted 16 BRE visits (31% of our annual goal) and assisted a number of companies with site-selection, workforce issues and referrals to our partner organizations.

2. Workforce Development 

Goal: Facilitate a coordinated workforce initiative to align activities of Adams County area organizations, and coordinate projects that directly connect local businesses with educators to help grow a well-educated and informed future workforce. 

Progress: To date we have coordinated 7 workforce team meetings with 31 participating entities. Our workforce coordinator, Angela Caldwell, has also facilitated 3 separate sector meetings involving representatives from manufacturing, healthcare and staffing agencies, and she has presented the Essential Workplace Skills initiative to TRiO students at John Wood Community College. 

3. Business Attraction 

Goal: Promote the Quincy/Adams County region to national and regional site consultants and individual companies who may have an interest in relocating or expanding. 

Progress: To date, we have met one-on-one with 18 consultants and communicated electronically with 104 national consultants on a monthly basis. We have responded to four Request for Proposals from companies looking to grow or expand, and are following up on 4 different leads as a result of our membership in the Community Venture Network partnership.    

4. Marketing/Branding

Goal: Design and implement a program to market, promote and brand the Quincy/Adams County region. 

Progress: Over 2,000 Quincy and Adams County residents participated in an online community survey conducted by North Star Destination Strategies. The survey is one component of the research North Star is conducting in order to develop a meaningful and competitive brand for our region. Next steps include a presentation on the research findings and then creative development. GREDF is taking the lead on this community-wide branding effort. 

5. Entrepreneurship Development

Goal: Nurture and encourage entrepreneurship in the Quincy/Adams County region by making information and assistance more readily accessible. 

Progress: To date, our Entrepreneurship Specialist Charles Bell has met one-on-one with prospective and new business owners conducting 12 start-up/financing meetings, 5 business expansion meetings, 7 business planning meetings and 1 market analysis meeting. Save the Date for the 3rd Annual Entrepreneurship Expo at the Quincy Mall on August 15th.    

6. Membership

Goal: Maintain and increase GREDF’s private membership investment by developing a clear rationale for support, restructuring member investment levels and defining management of the membership program.

Progress: As a result of the new Investor Program introduced last year, GREDF members increased their level of investment by 40% between 2014 and 2015. Of our members who have renewed so far this year, 60% have increased their level of giving and nearly 40% have maintained their membership level. Investing in GREDF helps us attract future investment, grow jobs and increase the competitive advantage of the entire region. THANK YOU for your support.

We invite you to view our Strategic Plan and the 2015 Mid-Year Performance Report in its entirety (some information, including business names, specific assistance and project details, has been removed to maintain confidentiality). 

We want to hear from you! Please tell us how you think we are doing by emailing gredf@gredf.org or calling 217.223.4313. Contact us today if we can assist you or your business. 

[share]The GREDF Strategic Planning Committee met this week to review the strategic plan adopted by GREDF’s Board of Directors in December of last year. The plan serves as a blueprint for Board policy decisions, guiding the organization’s investment in economic development initiatives, programs and projects.

In today’s eDevelopments, we’d like to share our progress on our top priority: Business Retention & Expansion. The ultimate aim of BRE is to stimulate local economic development by helping existing businesses increase their sales and employment through a combination of programs that not only increase these firms’ competitiveness, but also improve the community’s quality of life.

Our BRE goal for 2014 is to make one official BRE visit per week. An official retention visit is different than more frequent need- and project-based outreach with businesses. A retention visit is defined as a targeted, data-gathering meeting initiated by GREDF with five goals in mind:

1. Identify businesses with plans to expand.
2. Identify businesses at risk of leaving or downsizing.
3. Identify business and community problems.
4. Provide assistance.
5. Build relationships.

GREDF uses a BRE software called Synchronist to collect, analyze and report the aggregate data collected during BRE visits. We are pleased to report that we have surpassed our goal during the first five months of the year, conducting 28 official BRE visits ytd. 

Through these confidential visits, we have identified and addressed existing projects and issues, and are servicing the capital, workforce and infrastructure needs of our area businesses as a result. We have identified trends and opportunities and look forward to ongoing dialogue with our region’s business community.

We look forward to sharing our 6-month Strategic Plan update in June. Until then, we’ll be busy furthering our mission: to maintain and and improve the economic vitality of the Quincy and Adams County, Illinois, region through the retention and expansion of existing businesses and the attraction of new businesses to our entire region.