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EDC: Development a process

• Through continuing education and program certification, economic development professionals work to a better position Albany and Dougherty County for growth.

Barbara Rivera Holmes

ALBANY — Albany and Dougherty County officials often say that economic development isn’t a thing; rather, that it’s a process. And as globalization and the rapidly evolving business landscape, best practices and priorities can quickly become outdated.

In an effort to be more progressive, two staff members of the Albany-Dougherty Economic Development Commission are on track to become certified economic developers.

EDC Vice President Andrea Schruijer and her director of special projects, Justin Strickland, are taking classes on everything from the basics of economic development to the details of business expansion and retention (BRE), all in effort to sustain existing industry and better attract appropriate new ones.

“(Economic development) is not what it was 10 years ago,” said Schruijer, who in late March, along with Strickland, took that economic development 101 course at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. “(The field) is constantly changing due to globalization and technology.”

That course was the first of many the pair will take during their four years to certification, which is granted by the Washington, D.C.-based International Economic Development Council.

According to the council’s Web site, the core values that guide its work and that of its certified economic developers include social responsibility and “building healthy, just and competitive communities;” the creation of wealth for individuals, businesses and communities; cooperation and collaboration; and diversity, tolerance and equity.

The program, Schruijer said, provides opportunities for making valuable contacts and “updates us as economic developers here on the different tools that are out there. ... It helps you stay in touch and further your knowledge so that you are not stuck in your realm of thinking.”

“It’s just understanding what economic development is, where it’s going and what we can do to advance Albany and Dougherty County,” added Strickland.

The instructors, Strickland said, are the “cream of the crop” of economic developers, “people from all over the Southeast who have been economic development practitioners for many years.”

In that initial course, he said, “We heard a lot of real world, relative examples.”

Identifying trends in the field will help the professionals to better position the community for where it needs to be tomorrow rather than today.

“Globalization and regionalism,” Strickland said of the trends. In reference to the latter, “How can we work together with our neighboring communities in recruiting business?”

As part of the certification process, Strickland will travel to Chicago later this month for a course on BRE.

“We’ve got to be the best with our existing industry,” he said, “because the majority (70 percent) of the growth will come from industry that already exists.”

Although BRE principles have been practiced at the EDC, Schruijer said the agency looks to take that up a notch by creating a staff position dedicated to business retention and expansion. That person, she said, will ensure that “our businesses have the resources that they need and so that they have somebody to call. ... To let them (business and industry) know that we are here.”

According to data presented at the Georgia Tech course, Strickland said, the cost to attract one employee is $10,000-$50,000 while the cost to retain one is $200-$400.

Schruijer said Albany and Dougherty County’s designation as an entrepreneurial-friendly city, bestowed about a year ago by Gov. Sonny Perdue, also aids in attracting and retaining industry.

The pair’s certification is paid by the EDC, which is largely funded through tax dollars.

After initial certification, recertification is every three years, according to the organization’s Web site.

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