Strategies for state associations Friday, September 12, 2003 Mark James and I are participating in a workshop on strategies for state ED organizations. The workshop happens Sunday at the IEDC meeting in Cincinnati. Mark and I have been consulting with the Kentucky Industrial Development Council (KIDC) to develop their strategy as a state association. Frank Salisbury, past president of KIDC, has kindly given us permission to share what we have learned with others in our profession. Several facts are clear. First, state associations are the pivot points around which the economic development profession turns. They play a key role in connecting EDPros to both education opportunities and policy influence. (In education, state associations share this role with basic courses.) Second, state associations have significant opportunities to work together with shared development of continuing education. EDPros want and need higher level training. Developing these opportunities may be outside the scope of any one association, but two or more can work together to deliver this content. Third, the business models for state associations need to rely increasingly on the Internet to create and deliver value to members. The key here is to figure out ways to reduce upfront costs of development. You can view our presentation on line. Go. Alternatively, you can download it as a pdf file. Go. Today in our history of innovation... In 1956, engineers completed construction of the first U.S. commercial coal pipeline. posted by Ed Morrison |		This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. links Some Background on EDPro Weblog The purpose of this weblog is to help economic development professionals -- EDPros -- keep up with the changes sweeping our profession. Strap on your goggles. It's a whole new game. There are no experts any more. The only place to learn about economic development is from other EDPros who are doing it. One other point: the prevaling approach (paradigm, if you like) in economic development is shifting from competition to collaboration. There are a lot of reaasons underlying this shift, but here's the important insight: You, your community, and your region will do better by collaborating and sharing information. So, spread the word...Share the knowledge. Tell a friend about EDPro Weblog. If you are using a news reader, here is the link to syndicate this site: Here's the link if you are a bloglines subscriber: Speaking and workshops on Open Source Economic Development As the idea of Open Source Economic Development starts spreading, more people are asking about it. Visit the I-Open web site to learn more. My colleagues and I are happy to explain the basic concepts in a talk or a workshop. E-mail Susan Alshuler if you'd like to learn more about workshops and speaking. Background on Ed Morrison Download some background information on me here.

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