PTP’S NEW DIRECTION
The Piedmont Triad Partnership recently re-organized and hired David M. Powell as its new CEO. The announced changes by PTP impact other economic development efforts in the region and perhaps give reason to reflect on the moves.
The Piedmont Triad Partnership purports to be the “region’s primary economic development organization.” They have been marketing this concept for years. In fact, that is what PTP is – a marketing organization. Their primary function has never been to manage projects or work deals; that has been the responsibility of the local economic development professionals – many of whom have been regularly recognized by Site Selection Magazine and other groups for their accomplishments.
In fact, when the PTP Board leadership met with these same economic developers, the overwhelming consensus among them was – though skeptical – to accede to the suggested changes in PTP’s organization, provided that the new leader fit the proposed description – that of a person who was not an economic developer, but someone who had both fundraising experience and open corporate boardroom access because of his or her corporate leadership profile. With that assurance, they went along with the program.
But the job advertisements and the personal profile that the Board announced do not fit that bill. What resulted was the description of another economic developer, duplicating the efforts of the local ED practitioners. Trust violated, many of them now feel the double hit of money stripped from corporate contributions to their local communities’ economic development efforts in order to pay for a new, additional executive salary at PTP projected to be in the $300,000 per year range.
The Board of PTP that made these decisions about personnel and direction are trying to do the right thing. They really are. But the thinking pattern in this area is the same groupthink very reminiscent of the heyday of industrial plant operation and profitability. This group, a virtual mirror of the same old white men who sat in similar seats over fifty years ago, is coming up with the same type of economic plan as their predecessors did when Eisenhower was President. The new rainmaker from afar story has played itself out countless times with few successes.
History has shown us that many of the PTP Board members – though supportive of the organization and the region – if pressed on where to locate an industrial project, would fight tooth and nail to locate it in his home territory. Individual markets within the region have done that in the past – even luring companies in member jurisdictions to move within the same region. Regionalism is happy talk and feels nice; adding local jobs and expanding the tax base is real. Real gets the nod.
Successful regions almost universally have successful cities as their lead. With the notable exceptions of Silicon Valley and Research Triangle Park, very few regions stand above their principal city. The Piedmont Triad Partnership, contrarily, has been adamant that it is regions, not cities, that are central to economic development success. In a world that is largely unaware of Greensboro – and to a similar degree Winston-Salem and High Point – getting others to acknowledge the existence of the Piedmont Triad (Partnership) has proven to be expensive and futile.
To this point: Market Street Services performed a Community Image Survey of Greensboro for the Greensboro Economic Development Partnership and presented the results on May 21, 2003. The report was divided into two parts – a survey of site selection professionals and a survey of business executives from across the country.
The business executives showed an incredible lack of knowledge of Greensboro. Only 29% could affirm that it is in the piedmont triad; only 68% knew it had an airport. 15% didn’t know what state it is in. Report summaries of sections of the report concluded with terms like: “shallow knowledge of the area”, “alarmingly high rate of unfamiliarity”, and “does not speak well of Greensboro’s level of name recognition”.
Greensboro clearly did not stand out among the corporate executives in the survey. Since 2003, Greensboro’s image may have been lifted a bit by some events – most notably HondaJet and the FedEx hub; otherwise, Greensboro’s standing as a top of mind community likely has not appreciably changed.
With that said, the question arises: If Greensboro, which shows up on a real map, has an airport, is the largest city in the 36th largest MSA in America, has a coliseum that routinely gets big-time acts and regularly hosts the televised ACC Men’s Basketball (and other) tournament(s), is home of the International Civil Rights Museum and the historic 1960 sit-ins, is known among golfers as a host city of a PGA Tour stop, and is the home to five colleges and universities and a law school can’t get enough name recognition to move the meter, how in the world can skipping a step of identity to promote a blandly-titled, geographically-marginally matched region have a chance in this world of gaining meaningful attention and developing national/international name recognition?
CLOSING THOUGHTS
There are many things the area can do better regionally. Hopefully we will take advantage of our natural assets to increase the area’s flagging per capita income. But, let’s get real. When it makes sense (or desperation sinks in) the triad communities will work regionally. Until then, post-marking the area’s letters with Piedmont Triad, calling the airport Piedmont Triad International, and proclaiming the PGA tour stop as a regional tournament hosted in “the Piedmont Triad” doesn’t really offer any value. Most locals – and maybe most of the people in North Carolina and southern Virginia – know what the word “triad” means geographically. There’s not enough money to teach the rest of the world.
The final question is the hardest to answer. Other issues may be resolved more easily, but this is the question I have asked boards when they seemed to be straying from their mission or spending more time reorganizing and doing strategic plans than making an impact:
If the Piedmont Triad Partnership went away, who would miss it?
It sounds harsh, but it is a very real question. The immediate answer is that the current Board wouldn’t be too happy about it. Certainly not the staff. And most of the local economic developers – especially the more rural areas – find benefit in traveling to meet site consultants that they wouldn’t ordinarily see through trips organized by PTP. Marketing organization and specialized travel agent? Worth the expense?
As it will undoubtedly continue to operate, perhaps the Piedmont Triad Partnership should focus its efforts on real entrepreneurial development, venture capital enhancement, incubator support, and expanding business opportunities in growth areas (like the early business cycle in green industries). This would be much more productive than a change in focus with an expensive new hire with messianic expectations that merely duplicates the recruitment efforts of area economic development professionals.
Rob Bencini, MBA, CEcD is a strategic foresight consultant for business development, strategic planning and governmental policy. He may be reached at rbencini@earthlink.net. His website is www.robbencini.com
