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 CDS – Charleston, SC

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

ljb@purdue.edu

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