Each year, Site Selection ranks local economic development groups according to four objective categories: new jobs, new jobs per 10,000 residents, new investment amount and new investment per 10,000 residents. Groups are also judged on more subjective attributes including innovation, leadership and customer service.
Separately, in March, Site Selection ranked Chicago 2nd in the nation for direct investment in 2009. World Business Chicago identified 11.6 million square feet of economic development activity representing more than $1.5 billion in investments in the metro area last year --- accounting for 177 projects.
“We are pleased that our work to attract and retain companies in the Chicago-area has not gone unnoticed,” said Rita Athas, President of World Business Chicago. “Chicago’s success can be attributed to Mayor Daley and the business community’s tremendous efforts to assure that Chicago is a premier business destination. Even in tough economic times we continue to grow, which speaks to Chicago’s remarkable strengths as a location for business.”
WBC spearheaded many initiatives to bring business to Chicago in 2009. WBC projects, including its Ambassador Program, Business Advisory and University Initiative all relied on a strong collaboration with private and public organizations in order to market Chicago’s business advantages. Additionally, WBC utilized creative partnerships and ideas in order to promote the city’s assets via traditional and non-traditional media.
“Despite the economic slowdown, 2009 produced a bumper crop of high-performing economic development organizations,” said Ron Starner, general manager of Site Selection. “As we looked at locations producing the most jobs and securing the most capital investment, it became clear that the most competitive communities were not retreating. In fact, they did the opposite. They increased their marketing and promotional efforts and got even more aggressive in targeting and wooing business retention and expansion projects. Above all, they got creative and sought out new solutions while a lot of their competitors stuck with old strategies and tactics.”
Other economic development groups that topped 2009’s list include: Baldwin County Economic Development Alliance, Ala., Baton Rouge Area Chamber, La., Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, N.C., Charlotte Regional Partnership, N.C., Dallas Regional Chamber, Texas, Greater Houston Partnership, Texas, Kansas City Area Development Council, Kan.-Mo., Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, Tenn., Pittsburgh Regional Alliance, Pa., Select Greater Philadelphia, Pa.
The complete story can be found on Site Selection's website.
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World Business Chicago World Business Chicago (WBC) is the city’s public-private economic development office, coordinating business retention, attraction and expansion efforts in order to spur and accelerate economic growth. Chaired by Mayor Richard M. Daley, WBC strives to raise Chicago’s position as a premier global business destination. For more information, visit www.worldbusinesschicago.com.
