Sending Love to Some of Our Region's Favorite Economic Development Entities
Earlier this week, our firm had a client in from out of town for two full days of meetings. The first was focused on their issues, and for the second, we took them around to meet some of our favorite people in the local economic development scene. Because of our client's interest in workforce development and business attraction, we introduced them to the following institutions: Community College of Philadelphia, Select Greater Philadelphia, World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia, the City of Philadelphia Department of Commerce, and the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation.
All of our colleagues were exceedingly gracious with their time and forthcoming with their insights, and our clients found the meet-ups highly stimulating, as did I. I am thankful for each of our friends and partners, and for the ways they work so ingeniously and collaboratively for the benefit of our regional economy.
Whether providing educational services, championing the region as a business location of choice, supporting import/export efforts, facilitating business relocation, or providing land and financing assistance, these organizations play roles that are vital to a region's success. We still have our work cut out for us, but we have a lot of good going for us as well; and for that I say kudos to these and other institutions for doing what they do.
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I think I see my current personal mission coming into greater and greater focus- I want help knit neighborhoods together in new ways, that are empowering to the neighbors. Starting with my own neighborhood, of course. But to be strong neighborhoods, they need to receive lifeblood from the global economy, and there will need to be orgs that serve as regional nodes that connect the neighborhoods of the region to each other and to the world outside our region.