Over the past months, as the economy has begun to recover, a fog has slowly gathered over the issues of education, skills and employment. Some have begun to question the value of education and the connection of education to employment. They ask, for example, Why are our college graduates underemployed? Others point to the growing [...]
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Are metropolitan business plans really a new path to economic growth?
Brookings has discovered a new path to economic growth. Or have they? Their new tool: Metropolitan business plans. (Download a briefing paper.) Unfortunately, creating business plans for metropolitan regions is not all that new. In the spirit of sharing what we know, here is my take on metropolitan business plans. First, some background. In 1983, I [...]
The power of connecting assets | A story of sustainable manufacturing
In 2007, a small group of no more than 12 people met in the basement of the White County courthouse, just north of Purdue. We came to explore what steps they could do to move their region of 14 counties toward a sustainable economy in energy efficiency and renewable energy. We started out with the first [...]
Thoughts on developing regional innovation clusters
Federal officials are increasingly interested in leveraging the value of universities and other economic development partners in regional growth. At the same time, regions are exploring ways to transform economies made less competitive by global competition. Strategically focused regional innovation clusters can accelerate regional transformation. They promote transformation by “linking and leveraging” existing assets — [...]
What is the future for regional strategy?
Summary In this post, I explore how we could design the next generation of regional strategies using a set of interlocking tools and disciplines. These new approaches embrace the realities of continuous change and open networks. Unlike traditional approaches to strategy, this new approach is more agile, resilient and low-cost. Background Imagine the situation. You [...]
Defining investment priorities for regional innovation clusters
One of the major challenges in developing regional innovation clusters comes in defining and setting priorities for collaborative investments. Here’s a simple solution. Have participants in the cluster rank investment options according to two dimensions: one on return, one on risk. For each investment option, ask participants two questions: First, how big an impact is [...]
No room for compromise…When ideologues eat our politics
We are seeing what happens when ideologues chew up and spit out our politics: 24/7/365 electioneering has virtually destroyed our federal government’s ability to govern. (C-SPAN last week launched its Road to the White House 2016.) In a democratic system, the politics of governance — as distinct from the politics of elections — really matters. Through [...]
Comparing Strategic Planning and Strategic Doing
Strategic Doing represents an agile strategy discipline that is distinctly different from how most of us learned the basics of strategy. Traditionally, strategy in organizations depends on a mechanistic, linear process which we have come to call “strategic planning”. This approach does not work very well in complex environments that are continuously shifting. Strategic Doing [...]
Leadership skills for guiding regional innovation clusters
Over the weekend, I began thinking about the new skills that civic leaders need to guide regional innovation clusters. Here’s my list so far. Crossing boundaries and integrating diverse people and activities in a team.– On a personal level, the skill involves thinking outside your box and working in a team with people from other [...]
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Strategy Map
Developing a prosperous economy is challenging...and can be very confusing. A strategy map helps. The basic idea behind this strategy map is that a competitive economy is built on a portfolio of investments.
We need
1) brainpower with 21st Century skills, because brainpower is the core competitive asset that drives most markets;
2) innovation and entrepreneurship networks to convert brainpower into wealth;
3) quality, connected places, because both smart people and innovative companies are mobile; they will only be attracted to quality, connected places;
4) new narratives to guide people and resources toward new opportunities; and
5) collaborative skills that can be learned through Strategic Doing.
Using this map as a starting point can guide the development an effective strategy for a neighborhood, community or region. The content on this site aligns closely with this map.
