Twenty five years ago, if you asked an average person what an Economic Developer is, they would have probably looked confused and said, "huh?" Today, if you ask an average person what an Economic Developer is, most will still respond puzzled and confused. This is because Economic Developers are not average people and Economic Development is not an average task. More often than not, the role of Economic Development professionals is misunderstood or not known at all. Nobody understands this better than the members of the California Association for Local Economic Development (CALED).
Over the last few decades, CALED has been waging a war that few people are aware of, but nevertheless, affects each and every one of us. Unlike President Bush, CALED's war is not against terror. However, its enemy is just as unpredictable and illusive--CALED's enemy is a turbulent economy. In a recent article, Lisa Deines, Vice President of Information Systems for CALED wrote, "We [Economic Developers] evaluate the situation, rally our resources, and go out to battle the dragons of unemployment, workers' compensation and land use, never loosing sight of the end goal: a better quality of life for our communities through maximum employment." While some would see this goal as lofty and romantic, CALED along with its members are moving forward in a struggle that only a dedicated few choose to take on.
You may ask yourself, how did it come about that only a few people are informed on something so important. To answer this question, you must first understand the path that CALED took in order to become the thriving, seven-hundred-member-plus organization it is now. In 1979, Wayne Schell (Director, State Office of Local Economic Development), Mark Buell (City Manager, City of Emeryville), and Jim Hankla (Director of Community Development, City of Long Beach) began to discuss the need for a state-wide association to aide California's Economic Development professionals by giving them an outlet to share their experiences, challenges, and successes. The original group of three grew to include Dick Beyer (Executive Director for the Pittsburgh Economic and Housing Development Corporation), Kay Reynolds (head of an Economic Development project for the League of California Cities), Walter Cohen (City of Emeryville), and Steve Giacomi (Deputy Director under Beyer).
Sean Quinn, former intern for the Pittsburgh Economic and Housing Development Corporation (currently, Director of Planning and Development for the City of Fairfield and recognized as a leading professional in the ED field) jokes that, " the biggest challenge we faced was finding twenty-five people to be on the board." Nevertheless, in 1980, CALED debuted--complete with a diverse board of members (including members from state, city, rural, urban, private, and non-profit organizations), some state funding (thanks to Wayne Schell, President and CEO, CALED), and a small-yet-mighty volunteer base. In 1981, CALED already had 152 members. By 1983, Kay Reynolds was hired as CALED's Director thanks to a grant from the State Office of Local Economic Development.
CALED was on the move--in more ways then one. In 1984, the office moved from Pittsburgh to Sacramento, and later, the association's mission moved forward as well. As Bill Davis, CALED's Vice President of Facilitation and Training, wrote last year, "A quarter century ago economic development meant industrial recruitment…Today's, economic developer is involved in a holistic approach to economic development." This is just the tip of the iceberg. In November of 2002, at CALED's Orange County Chapter Meeting, twenty-five local economic developers came together to tackle the question of how to define their job and what distinguishes them from other professionals. After facilitating this meeting of CALED, Bill has focused his definition of an Economic Developer even more. He states, "Economic developers are a catalyst...They are politically astute strategists who establish relationships, build networks, and generate resources to meet the needs of businesses. Their goal is to increase economic viability in their community."
As this suggests, the role of an Economic Developer is a progressive one that must change with the times. CALED has taken the lead in keeping up with this need. The original by-laws spell out CALED's role in field of Economic Development as follows: "The general function of the Corporation shall be to encourage and assist community economic development in California with the primary emphasis being to foster a public/private partnership to promote economic development that maximizes the public good." In November 2002, CALED revised its mission statement in order to reflect its current position:
CALED is team of service-oriented professionals committed to excellence in supplying members with the tools necessary to develop their local economies. Our objectives are:
Use our collective wisdom to educate members on ways to retain, attract, and create business.
Be a resource for economic developers by customizing data to suit their needs.
Enable our members to use their time more effectively and efficiently by researching, sorting, and distributing pertinent information.
Remain a thriving statewide organization comprised of economic leaders that are dedicated to maintaining the vitality of their economy.
However, as Kay Reynolds, CALED's Vice President of Special Projects points out, "It's what we do that matters--the programs and services are what's important." Reynolds's goes on to state that "CALED has always been about making Economic Development happen in California, and the programs and services are what we change to keep up with the times." The services CALED offers today certainly reflect the times. Under Education and Professional Development, CALED holds workshops, training sessions, and an Annual Conference that typically draws around 500 attendees and is a key benefit of membership in CALED. When member John Prentiss (Specialist of Education Services and Economic Development, Chancellor's Office of California Community Colleges) was asked to justify the cost for attending the conference he replied that, "If I were not to participate, [I] feel that I will be severely handicapped in my professional currency and the currency of the contacts I need to successfully complete my economic development responsibilities for the Chancellor's Office."
In the same vein, CALED offers a variety of other educational services for Economic Developers by providing on-site technical assistance:
Professional Advisory Service (PAS) is a team of Economic Development professionals that are educated on a situation and brought in for a one day assessment, analysis and community presentation
Local Elected Officials Training (LEO) prepares a presentation for the local elected officials in a community, giving them an outside voice regarding the workings of Economic Development
Frontline Training educates the staff members that come into contact with businesses first
Facilitations designed to help organizations have productive retreats and meeting that result in an action plan
CALED is also actively involved with legislative and policy advocacy by following important legislation and sharing it with the members. For many, this is what CALED is all about--INFORMATION. CALED works to keep its members on the cutting edge of Economic Development while helping them fight information overload. It does this by scanning Economic Development and business publications and distributing the pertinent information to its members via the CALED monthly bulletin, an electronic newsletter called the Edlert, and through the CALED web site. These services are the core of CALED today.
For the people that do business with CALED--whether they are members or are not --the CALED staff is one the top reasons this association has maintained such a strong presence in California's Economic Development field. Schell (CALED's current President and CEO) has been involved with Local Economic Development since the beginning. Sean Quinn reflects that "It's one thing to be a struggling professional, but it's another thing to be a struggling professional in a struggling field." He goes on to credit Schell with getting the word out about the importance of Economic Development. Schell, seen by many as the modern-day John Wayne of Economic Development, happily recalls that, "Armed with our copy of Bringing In The Sheaves [John F. Fernstrom] as our bible, we learned as much as we could about Economic Development [in order] to stay ahead of the curve. Then, we went out in to communities and educated people on how to attract and retain businesses."
The struggle that Schell and the CALED staff engaged almost three decades ago continues today. However, now, Economic Development is recognized as an important field, having tremendous impact on local economies and it is seen as a valid profession to pursue. As Quinn stated, when CALED first started, there weren't enough Economic Developers to form a board. Currently, there are hundreds of state funded Economic Development agencies and departments just in California. Not everyone may know what an Economic Developer is or how essential their role is in local development, but CALED is not done yet--the battle has just begun.
CALED Events Calendar
Keys to Successful
Economic Development
February 3-6, 2009
Sacramento, CA
