7 ra annual conference presentation
DESCRIPTION
7 Rivers Alliance Annual Meeting Presentation 2011TRANSCRIPT
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Welcome
7 Rivers Alliance Annual Conference
“Looking Forward”
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Compact SignersEconomic Development Partners Government• Allamakee County Economic Development • Town of Holland• Community and Economic Development Associates • Town of Onalaska • La Crosse Area Chamber of Commerce • Town of Shelby• La Crosse Area Development Corporation • Town of Washington• La Crosse County Economic Development Fund • Village of Bangor• La Crosse Medical Health Science Consortium • Village of Holmen• Juneau County Economic Development Corp. • Village of Rockland• Mississippi River Regional Planning Commission • Village of Trempealeau
• Village of West Salem• City of Onalaska (finalizing)• City of Sparta• City of Tomah
Non-Profit Organizations Private Businesses• CouleeCap • Coulee Bank• Family and Children’s Center • Credit Bureau Data, Inc.• Franciscan Skemp Medical Center • Johns, Flaherty and Collins• Gundersen Lutheran • Kwik Trip• La Crosse Area Builder’s Association • New Albin Savings Bank• Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical • Synergy Leadership Group• Riverland Energy Cooperative • Wieser Brothers General Contractor• School District of La Crosse • Xcel Energy• Western Technical College
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Regional Conference
Minnesota66%
Wisconsin34%
80 Attendees
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Thank You
• Event Sponsors– AgStar
– Coulee Bank
– Minnesota State College –Southeast Technical
– Synergy Leadership Group
– Western Technical College
– Western Wisconsin Workforce Development Board & Workforce Connections
• Promotional Partners– Allamakee County
Economic Development
– La Crosse Area Development Corp.
– UW-La Crosse Small Business Development Center
– Western Wisconsin Workforce Development Board
– Winona State University
– Workforce Connections
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Thank You
• Cornerstone Sponsors • Corporate Sponsors
– Festival Foods
– Franciscan Skemp
– Minnesota State College – Southeast Technical
– Organic Valley
– AT & T
• Members
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Let’s Celebrate 2010
• Connecting Businesses
– 300+ Attendees
• Government Contracting
• Impact of Globalization Conference
• Counties Collaboration Conference
– Cluster Development
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Let’s Celebrate 2010
• Connecting Businesses
• Strengthening the Region
– Federal Application
– Economic Development Professionals Meetings
– Regional Connections
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Let’s Celebrate 2010
• Connecting Businesses
• Strengthening the Region
• Inspiring Innovation
– I & E Rendezvous
– Video
– $200,000 Marketing Campaign
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Marketing
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Marketing
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Marketing
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Board Honors
• Outgoing
– Dan Braund
– Christina Friederichs
– Jim Johnson
• New
– Mike KroeningMinnesota State College – Southeast Technical
– Steve BowenPlastiComp
– Rich MikrutMikrut Properties
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Other Board Members
• Terry WhippleJuneau County Economic Development
• Lee RaschWestern Technical College
• Joyce IversonRushford Institute of Nanotechnology
• Jerry ArndtGundersen Lutheran
• Gary EvansHiawatha Broadband Communications
• Joe GowUW-La Crosse
• John McHughKwik Trip
• Joan MuellerFranciscan Skemp
• Judith RamaleyWinona State University
• Brent SmithJohns, Flaherty & Collins
• Teresa WiemerslageIowa State University Extension
• Cecil WrightOrganic Valley
• Ron ZieglerCommunity Economic Development Associates
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LOOKING FORWARD TO 2011
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PAST PRESIDENT
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BUILDING OFF WHAT WE KNOWLooking Forward
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What We Know
• What Business Leaders Told Us
– Grow Within/Emotional Connection
– Receptive to partnerships and collaboration
– Biggest Impact
• B2B Partnership – Leverage Assets
• Add jobs
• Education Partnerships
• Vendors in the Region
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What You Told Us
• What do you think is our region’s unique selling proposition?
• Scenic beauty and recreation 45 responses
• Strong education system 18 responses
• Available and qualified workforce 16 responses
• Location of the region 11 responses
• High quality of life 11 responses
• Friendly people and strong communities 10 responses
• Low cost of living 9 responses
• Arts and Culture 8 responses
• Concentration of the healthcare industry 7 responses
• Transportation and infrastructure 4 responses
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Cost of Healthcare -
Lack of funding for capital improvements and/or research -
Finding and/or retaining a skilled workforce -
Cost of labor and materials-
Lack of proximity to a major metro area-
Energy cost and policies-
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Spotlight success stories in the region -
Host regional conferences with keynote speakers and a roll-up-your sleeves session-
Promote funding resources for start-ups-
Attend industry specific trade shows and promote regional assets -
Other -
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Positioning
• Strengths that differentiate:– Natural beauty and recreational opportunities
– Strong network of higher education
– World-class medical and research
– Major food processing center
– Organic farming
– Strong high school graduation rates
– Dynamic corporate presence
– Commitment to innovation development
– Strengths in welding, soldering, brazing occupations
– Historically and geographically strong in ag
– Advanced manufacturing
– Cluster of computer and software engineering
– Will support knowledge-based industry clusters
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Positioning
• Weaknesses
– Low rate of college grads
– Limited venture capital funding
– High taxes
– Semi-rural setting can impede access to employees and resources
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So Who Are We
• 7 Rivers Region is a vigorous region whose people are connected through a shared love of the magnificent landscape, a passion for excellenceand a commitment to each other—all of which support a way of living without boundaries.
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Marketing
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Looking Forward 2011: Short Term
What We Heard
• Help Companies Get into New Markets
• Use Local Vendors
• Grow Within
• Promote Beauty
• Innovation
What We’re Doing
• Tri-State Exports Conference
• Supply Chain Management Training & Regional Tool
• Continued marketing that benefits both internally & externally
• Creative Class Attraction
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Looking Forward: Short Term
What We Heard
• Government to collaborate, especially on infrastructure & remove duplication
What We’re Doing
• Eco Devo
• Regional Council of Government
• Sending Message to State Governments to Work Together
• Compact Signing – Engaging
• Changing the Mindset: Community Presentations
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WHAT ELSE WE KNOWThe Long Term
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It’s Global
The world has 20x the population of the U.S.•New markets•High Competition
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Situation
• Can’t compete
– on price: Other countries have that “advantage”
• Can compete on innovation
= Brainpower to create and sustain our competitive advantage over the long run
– Focus on high-skill, high-value products
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MTop Factors to Competitiveness
(manufacturing)
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Exports: High Skill, High Wage
ExportingCompanies
Local SalesCompanies
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Our Economy
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Regionalism
• High-skill, high-wage (high-value products)
• Regionalism =
– long range use of assets
– to enhance global competitiveness.
• Porter: Rarely to regions lack assets, rather the ability to think, act & plan regionally.
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Path
1 Develop a new approach mindset
2 Use new tools to create a regional strategy
3 Focus investment priorities that put regional strategies into action quickly
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The Mindset
• Blur Borders
• Think Win-Win
• Tasks that do both are key!– Lean Training Example
– Kwik Trip-Organic Valley
• Builds Trust
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Strategic Innovation
• Build an Innovation Eco SystemFrom Silos … (industries, funding, programming, jurisdictional)
… to Collaboration & “Cooptition”.
Economic and Industry Policy: maintaining a robust economy in
which innovative activity thrives and supporting industry development.
Education Policy: identifying skill shortages and
training needs for re-skilling or up-
skilling and investing in skill
development programs.
Science and technology policy: supporting collaborative research involving networks with industry
and stimulating the commercialization of research.
Regional Policy: building
competitive regions by
developing skills and initiatives
that boost local economic activity
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Effective Regions
• Link innovation assets – people, institutions, capital and infrastructure – to generate robust, localized ecosystems that turbo-charge a region’s economy.
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Use Tools as Base for Strategies
• Industry Clusters– Business linked in production, process, similar technology,
infrastructure needs & shared labor
• Occupational Clusters– Education linkages that make us adaptable
• Innovation Index– Measures our capacity to turn our unique knowledge/human
capital into innovation.– Ability to exploit new and emerging markets
• Regional Strategy & Investment Framework – Use all this information to move leaders forward toward a
regional strategy & action– Help prioritize investments aligned with the region’s strategies
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The Innovation Platform
Input
• Assets
• Networks
• Culture
Output
• Innovation
• Productivity
• Prosperity
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OutputP
rosp
erit
y Higher Standard of Living
As measured by:
• Per capita income
• Median household income
• Poverty levels
Pro
du
ctiv
ity Output per Unit
of Input
Value of product per labor and capital employed to make it
Determines the level of wages
Inn
ova
tio
n Skill level is not enough.
We must be Innovative to develop products lower wage areas/countries cannot yet offer and maintain the productivity advantage that supports their higher wage.
Goal
• Not High Research Rankings
• Not New Business Creation
• Not Jobs
Increase the prosperity of the region’s citizens.
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How Do We Start?
• Identify Assets
• Evaluate our Assets
• Act
Input
•Assets
•Networks
•Culture
Output
• Innovation
•Productivity
•Prosperity
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3 Critical Outcomes
• Open, Resilient Regional Partnership
– Compact
• Flexible Strategic Action Plan
• Shared Set of Investment Priorities
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Create Metrics
– What we want to change
– Create a metric
– Base decisions on what will change that metric
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See the Benefits
Leverage
critical
resources
Broaden
set of
assets
Expand
recognition in
the
marketplace
Increase
competitiveness
to attract, retain,
and expand
industries
BENEFITSREGIONALISM OPPORTUNITIES
Locality
WorkforceIndustries
Region
Quality jobs and
pipeline of talent
Increased productivity
Expanded tax base
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What Can You Do
• Sign the compact
• Join as a member (+)
• People-power
• Open doors
• Seek out & encourage collaboration
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Words to Remember
• There’s a reason this region has a lower than national average unemployment rate. It’s because people are committed to hard work. It’s not about the hours, it’s about results.”
Don Weber, owner, Logistics Health
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Words of Inspiration
• When you live in a northern environment it takes a certain amount of craziness and robustness to live and work here. The ability to work hard and play hard is definitely here.
• Kevin Stay, Matthews Bows/NoVoc Solutions
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Words of Inspiration
• For More than 40 years the Mississippi has served as an inspiration and helped us develop countless design ideas. We have a passion for creating high performance canoes from high tech materials, and this region supports our values and passion.
• Mike Cichanowski, Wenonah Canoe
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Words of Inspiration
• We feel blessed to live where we live. We say at Kwik Trip our biggest resource is our people. If we work on training to make them productive, they will do so. We have the lowest turnover in our industry.
• Steve Loehr, Kwik Trip
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Word of Inspiration
• This region attracts people to organic farming because there is quite a bit of infrastructure here. If you were to move to the area and you were interested in organic agriculture, you absolutely would have support for your business. There are hotbeds of organic opportunities in the 7 Rivers Region.
• Louise Hemstead, Organic Valley
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Words of Inspiration
• The 7 Rivers Region is ahead of the game. You have the assets – healthcare, education, skilled workforce. You are asking all the right questions. You are doing this on a regional basis. You have a lock on the future. You see the pathway. You’re moving in the right direction.
Richard C. Longworth
Author, “Caught in the Middle”
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Pyramid Award
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THANK YOU!