HOW CORPORATIONS ARE CHANGING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PRACTICES
HOW CORPORATIONS ARE CHANGING
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PRACTICES
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PRACTICES
Changing corporate management structures and other organizational advances have also influenced economic development organizations, particularly those that are directly linked to corporations. A summary of these changes, in terms of impacts on workforce attraction campaigns, is presented.
Nothing is certain but death, taxes, and a corporate role in economic development, begging Mr. Franklin's pardon. This industry today finds that sentiment no less true after decades of practice, even with the acceleration of organizational and administrative changes that have overhauled U.S. corporations and even with the rising criticality of technology industries and leaders in what noted economist Lester Thurow has termed the "Third Industrial Revolution: the knowledge revolution" (AMA 1999a).
Where are these trends having the greatest impact in economic development practices? What has been the impact of these corporate changes on economic development, in terms of how both address issues crucial to both entities, such as the workforce attraction campaigns necessary to augment economic development efforts?
Neither streamlined processes, staff, resources, nor larger market areas have reduced corporate commitment to economic development at the community level. For example, the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce surveyed its 9,000 members to determine why companies join the chamber and their ranking of services. The majority. (from 68 percent of the smaller companies and 84 percent of larger companies) agreed that their chamber should work to recruit domestic and international businesses to the region (Q.W. Avers and Associates 1997).
With their continued commitment come management trends that are changing economic development practices. Agencies that perform economic development activities--chambers of commerce, public/private organizations, and state and regional governmental departments and commissions-are also changing in response to these corporate commitments, especially when corporations are in the position of financing these organizations. For example, in the corporate world, mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring and reengineering, Total Quality Management and its sister standardization movement ISO, and performance standards are just a few of the last decade's practices embraced by corporations and then introduced to economic development organizations.
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Nothing is certain but death, taxes, and a corporate role in economic development, begging Mr. Franklin's pardon. This industry today finds that sentiment no less true after decades of practice, even with the acceleration of organizational and administrative changes that have overhauled U.S. corporations and even with the rising criticality of technology industries and leaders in what noted economist Lester Thurow has termed the "Third Industrial Revolution: the knowledge revolution" (AMA 1999a).
Where are these trends having the greatest impact in economic development practices? What has been the impact of these corporate changes on economic development, in terms of how both address issues crucial to both entities, such as the workforce attraction campaigns necessary to augment economic development efforts?
Neither streamlined processes, staff, resources, nor larger market areas have reduced corporate commitment to economic development at the community level. For example, the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce surveyed its 9,000 members to determine why companies join the chamber and their ranking of services. The majority. (from 68 percent of the smaller companies and 84 percent of larger companies) agreed that their chamber should work to recruit domestic and international businesses to the region (Q.W. Avers and Associates 1997).
With their continued commitment come management trends that are changing economic development practices. Agencies that perform economic development activities--chambers of commerce, public/private organizations, and state and regional governmental departments and commissions-are also changing in response to these corporate commitments, especially when corporations are in the position of financing these organizations. For example, in the corporate world, mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring and reengineering, Total Quality Management and its sister standardization movement ISO, and performance standards are just a few of the last decade's practices embraced by corporations and then introduced to economic development organizations.
Download pdf full text
