We hear repeatedly that attracting and retaining talent is a major issue for economic development organizations today. Often, the HR department is looked to as being the responsible entity for carrying out this task. However, it is more of a marketing assignment to...
Last month, Jami Gibson had an excellent article on how emergency preparedness is critical for individuals and families. It got me thinking about how important emergency preparedness is for economic development organizations (EDO’s). Over the past 15 years, Iowa has...
Seven years ago, I wrote an article for the Whittaker Report which outlined the summer internship goal of discovering a “Holy Grail Algorithm” which would presumably predict the future. While I remain naive regarding the scope of this goal, I acknowledge...
Artist and activist, Matthew Mazzotta, has been helping communities around the world create public art projects that bring together locals to address concerns specific to their town. In his TED talk, he showcases a few of his projects that transform public spaces into...
By Dean Whittaker Traditionally, economic development has been about jobs and investment through the expansion of existing firms and the attraction of new ones. The task is now expanding to include recruiting people to fill those jobs. Most workforce development...
