1. Develop a statewide strategic matrix for economic development (including bringing in new businesses and growing existing businesses)
Which challenges does this action plan address?
- Brings perspective to the visions for economic development in South Carolina
- Provides consistent messages across the state relative to economic development – ones that survive election cycles
- Opens the door for more collaboration among organizations and less fragmentation
- Provides a stage for highlighting the state’s bright spots and opportunities
- Strengthens the state’s incentives to collaborate to recruit businesses
- Reduces redundancies among organizations and lessens competition within the state
What are some potential action steps to take?
- Poll existing businesses in South Carolina to understand what they need to fuel growth
- Bring together the economic development stakeholders in a discussion forum where they can discuss recruitment and incentives and ultimately craft the statewide vision for economic development in a short, usable format
- Perform SWOT analysis – identify the state’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats – and use as a basis for formulating South Carolina’s economic development vision
- Examine best practices in other states that have shown great economic development progress – use this data to help develop South Carolina’s guiding strategy
- Inventory all of the economic development organizations in the state – specifying responsibilities and strategies
2. Initiate a statewide public/private economic development alliance as a central point of coordination/collaboration for South Carolina’s economic development efforts.
Which challenges does this action plan address?
- Provides a sustainable portal for economic development in South Carolina
- Improves communication and collaboration among economic development stakeholders
What are some potential action steps to take?
- Review best practices in other states where a public/private alliance is the central economic development organization
- Form a solutions team
- Inventory South Carolina’s bright spots
3. Develop a single, statewide website for industry/academic partnerships
Which challenges does this action plan address?
- Provides resources for small businesses
- Addresses the need for skilled workforce
- Creates a central point of reference for businesses and academic institutions
What are some potential action steps to take?
- Review best practice models in other states with websites for industry/academic partnerships
- Analyze programs such as “Dream it. Do it.” as possible models to build upon
- Contact organizations in the state already working on subsets of this initiative – New Carolina, large industries with programs in place, etc.
4. Develop a statewide marketing effort to promote economic development in South Carolina
Which challenges does this action plan address?
- Highlights the state’s bright spots and reasons to do business here
- Clarifies the vision for economic development in South Carolina – provides a consistent message
- Prevents the brain drain – encourages recent graduates to stay in South Carolina by highlighting the state’s successes
What are some potential action steps to take?
- Convene a forum to identify key issues to promote, key issues to dispel and key strategies for doing so
- Create an integrated marketing plan
- In the plan, include elements that are aimed at attracting and retaining talent in South Carolina
