Goals & Achievements

Partnership 2012 Campaign
We are proud to recognize and thank the investors in the Partnership’s 2012 Investment Campaign. Please see our complete list of 250 investors.

Mid-Year Report
by Steve Lacy, 2008 Partnership Chair

The Partnership Board of Directors identified four community priorities for our organization’s work in 2008. These are: economic development,
workforce attraction and retention, a vibrant downtown business core, and affiliate/regional business development.

These priorities make up the major work platforms for the year with set goals and measurements. Each month I have used this column to spotlight how we are delivering on these goals and how each priority meets our overall mission.
We’ve reached mid-year, so in theory we should be at least half way to accomplishing our goals. In reality, many programs are well ahead of that. Of course, some work plan strategies are tied to the calendar and are just getting underway. Overall, I’m pleased with the progress we’ve seen so far this year. We’re on track to deliver on each of our strategic priorities.

One of our most aggressive goals of the year relates to you. Whether you’re an investor or a member of the Partnership via your local chamber, we vowed to show you more value in 2008. To accomplish that, we:

• Developed a new organizational model which connects our regional affiliate chambers to the Partnership with dual memberships at no additional cost
• Implemented a customer relationship management system to improve our service to you and to the region as a whole; and € Created a weekly online newsletter to keep you up to date on our activity and progress.

With these changes in place, the Partnership now represents a regional business community of 4,000.
Only you can gauge whether or not these strategies have added value to you and your business, and only you can assure we are successful by providing input on how we are doing and how we can do better. We’d like to hear from you. Watch for a member survey coming soon and offer us your candid and prompt reply. I’ll share the response in an upcoming column.

Second, we need to develop a talented pool of workers large enough to accommodate existing and potential new businesses. Attracting and retaining qualified employees will be a major priority. We will enhance work force attraction initiatives with a goal of increasing the pool of workers at a pace faster than the national rate. To accomplish this, we will focus on attracting younger and more diverse workers. This is essential to meet the needs of our growing economy.

Third, a thriving metropolitan region requires a thriving business core. Downtown should serve as an economic engine that helps drive growth across the region. Office vacancies downtown are a growing concern, and we will devote appropriate efforts toward this important issue.

And finally, regional cooperation and affiliate relations need continual improvement. We want to develop the new dual membership model to its maximum potential. We need to show our support for the regional chambers and affiliate boards that have done such an outstanding job of promoting economic development across our region.

Des Moines is a gem with strong and involved corporations, diverse retail businesses, great restaurants, a vibrant art scene, and extensive recreation and trails. Our community has evolved dramatically over the last 10 years. Let’s make the next 10 years just as exciting.