Ft Smith confronts slow implementation Monday, July 31, 2006 The region around Ft. Smith, Arkansas is trying to move to a new model of economic development. last year, a consultant outlined the strategy in a report, "The River Valley: At the Tipping Point". A year later, the consultant was back to warn that the region is "on the tipping point". Read more. The region has been slow to implement, and now the civic leaders are entertaining the idea of bringing the consultant back to help with moving ideas into action. The article underscores the challenge of moving in a new direction. People need to see action, but managing expectations is equally important. In my experience, you need to accomplish three steps to get people to move on in a new direction. First, they need to recognize the need for change. Second, they need to see a practical pathway from "here" to "there". Finally, they need to be convinced that if they move in this new direction, they will experience some success. Why change if you you are confident of failure? So, planning small victories is very important. From this perspective, the consultant's framing the issue of a "change or perish" choice is, in my view, not all that helpful. At the same time, the recognition by some that the old "top down" model doesn't work is a good sign: A recognition of the need to change. You can download the Ft. Smith plan here. 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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