Hometown Competitiveness – Creating Collaboration Among

Local Foundations, Nonprofits & Local Governments

Iowa Community Philanthropy Academy

April 22, 2005

Craig Hertel

Reaction Panel: Rand Fisher & Mark Snell

Hometown Competitiveness – Creating Collaboration Among Local Foundations, Nonprofits

& Local Governments Topics:

• A Model called Hometown Competitiveness

• An instrument: Youth as Partners

• A reaction panel of experienced community & economic developers

Hometown Competitiveness – Creating Collaboration Among Local Foundations, Nonprofits

& Local Governments My objective:

To illustrate how our work on community philanthropy & community foundations fits into the larger, more integrated picture of community & economic development

Hometown Competitiveness – Creating Collaboration Among

Local Foundations, Nonprofits & Local Governments

Collaboration – the process of organizations sharing information and resources to achieve common goals.

Hometown Competitiveness – Creating Collaboration Among

Local Foundations, Nonprofits & Local Governments

• PM 1486 series on “How to Build Coalitions” • Collaboration, Turf Issues, Planning, Facilitator

Roles, Mobilization • Go to: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/pubs/

Masterlist3.html#1400

Home Town Competitiveness

A story illustrating the Hometown Competitiveness

concept in action.

Hometown Competitiveness Field Day

on Thursday, May 13, 2004

Windmill: A Symbol of the Nebraska Community Foundation

Home Town Competitiveness:A Come-Back/Give-Back Approach

to Rural Community Building

Sponsored by:

• The Nebraska Community Foundation

• The Heartland Center for Leadership Development

• Center for Rural Entrepreneurship

Welcome to Atkinson, Nebraska

• One of the reasons for the field day was to showcase an actual community, it’s physical and human attributes.

• This community sign is the first thing you see driving into town.

About Atkinson, Nebraska

• Located in Northern NE, Holt County, is a geographically oversized county, about 50 miles by 50 miles. Population 11,500.

• O’Neill is county seat, with 3,500+ people.

• Atkinson, population 1,244 is 18 miles from O’Neill.

Down the road ¼ mile…

• Further into town, I saw another sign that jumped out and caught my eye

• Little did I know how important it was to the HTC model…

The Home Town Competitiveness (HTC) model encourages action…

1. Mobilize Local Leaders

2. Energize Entrepreneurship

3. Capture Wealth Transfer

4. Attract Young People

1. Mobilizing Local Leaders

a. Communities must be intentional about recruiting and nurturing an increasing number women, minorities and young people into decision-making roles

b. Tap into everyone’s potential, knowledge, talent & aspirations

c. Reject outdated notion of relying on “the usual suspects” to get things done

d. On-going leadership training programs

2. Capturing Wealth Transfer

a. Rural residents do not always recognize local wealth, because so much of it is held through land ownership.

b. Most people are at first shocked, and then highly motivated, once they understand the enormous amount of local wealth that will possibly transfer out of the area to heirs who have migrated.

c. Planned gifts need to be cultivated now!

3. Energizing entrepreneurship

The Nebraska Center for Rural Entrepreneurship focuses on:

1.Saving Mainstreet through planned ownership succession

2.Creating new wealth and good jobs by helping entrepreneurial companies that have potential to break through to a broader product-line and/or larger market

3. Using local charitable assets to support entrepreneurial development

4. Attracting Young People

HTC teaches:

• How to target and attract youth

• Create career opportunities

• Nurture a sense of ownership and vested interest in the community’s future leaders

Conference – reinforced the 4 Pillars of HTC

• Most sessions had panel discussion – Each time all 4 pillars were highlighted– Community spokesman seemed very clear on

the need for the 4 pillars– For a relatively new model, people seemed to

easily grasp terms, reasons and approach – Many of the community examples were just

getting off the ground – therefore, immediate reflections of getting started (and motivation to perform since they had to report!)

Panelist comments…• The Sandhills 3 County group – residents

appeared afraid of “here we go again” – efforts that come and go.

• Valley observation – “youth had more profound comments than adults”

• “Think about strategically about succession of the home owned business.”

• “The 4 pillars may not all happen at once, or at the same speed. Adjust…”

• “Think regionally…”

Youth component….• Very visible (presence, tour leaders, signage)• “Youth NOT the future–they are the present!”• Strategy to personally connect with H.S.

students and finding people to come back home

• Goal: 11-14% of graduating class to return• Goal is being monitored• Personal mentoring and encouragement• Want them to leave – BUT come back!• Early in their life: connections “to stay”

Leadership has progressed…

• Used to be leaders had to know the right answer

• Then, leaders had to know the right question

• Now, leaders need to know who to go to!

Observations

• Significant number of young adults in the audience from across Nebraska and border states.

• In visiting, enthusiasm and interest in making a difference!

• Same exact comments of community challenges as we hear in Iowa!

Potpourri • Importance of Entrepreneurial Skills I.D.• Key is what community leaders say & do,

and setting a good example• Old challenge of how to get the Old Guard

to buy-in, always an issue• Need rural (out of town) participation to

balance out city resident needs • Use Chamber list serve for outreach• Build hope

Philanthropy pillar…

• Example: City of Ord & Valley County -- $1.2 million gift via a will leveraged other giving of $5.2 million in “expectancies”

• 5% Nebraska target of capturing wealth transfer was an often stated goal

Downtown Attractiveness & Pride

• The flags were out!• A main intersection

had a message board, with attractive landscaping

• Streets were kept up• All field day

participants were bused downtown for a 5-stop walking tour.

Surprised that…

The importance of retail business in the model – caught me off guard

1. “New business” tied to retail

2. Efforts put in by community facilitators to encourage retail

3. Importance to community image was retail establishments

4. Number of retail places in town of 1,244

5. Retail seemed to attract youth

…more on Retail

6. Retail places visited all had their nitch market that covered a wider area

-- IGA locker seasoning mail

-- Ogden Hardware Dish

-- Something Special asks wholesalers if anyone has this merchandise w/in 100miles

-- Old fashion soda fountain

-- Clothing – jeans outlet

Cautions

• Can that much retail hold on?

• Surprised that I heard retail business, but not manufacturing or other businesses

• Fear expressed of Wal-Mart by participants of conference & retails

• Holt County – early pioneer of crops irrigation in Midwest, therefore, lots of money made in late 1960’s, early 1970’s

The Sign…

• “It changed the Youth’s Attitude!”

• Developed by the youth

• They “owned” the sign, and had tremendous pride in it

• Prominent!

High School Youth Engagement

• The High School youth were not only the tour guides, but clearly actively involved in framing the enthusiasm and future community plans.

• Encouraging youth to return was one of the 4 pillars of HTC.

Town of 1,244 – 3 Hardware stores

• Ogden Hardware owned & operated by a young adult.

• One line of merchandise, dish network, with a service area of about 100 miles.

Gift Items EVERYWHERE!• “Something Special by

Marilyn” is indeed a special store

• Very large, two story retail store full of gifts galore for any occasion

• Business started about 11 years ago by two local women.

• Would be a draw for women everywhere!

On the community center wall…

Were four wall hangings, strategically placed by the restrooms

Each one was a positive quote that left a great impression

Question?

• “Can this Hometown Competiveness Model be implemented without cash incentive and grant money?” Answer: Perhaps – if there is strong

community leadership that is present and training to act. If no $ at the beginning to hire human resources, then it is up to the community to rally, see the benefits, and fund appropriately

The Home Town Competitiveness (HTC) model encourages action…

1. Mobilize Local Leaders

2. Energize Entrepreneurship

3. Capture Wealth Transfer

4. Attract Young People

Let’s focus on one of the HTC pillars

Attract Young People

Reaction Panel: How might this model really work?

Mr. Rand Fisher

Iowa Area Development Group

Mr. Mark Snell

MHS Management Services