Volunteers needed to conduct a study of area businesses
Between 2008 and 2010, the Sheboygan County Chamber of Commerce and the Sheboygan County Economic Development Corporation (SCEDC) have completed retention visits with approximately 100 area companies. A new effort planned for Fall 2010 will effectively double the productivity of the county’s business retention and expansion call program, in a proactive and coordinated outreach effort over a condensed 45-day timeframe.
The SCEDC is seeking up to 50 volunteers to help with the Business Retention Survey Blitz. The effort will include scheduling targeted business visits with the county’s largest employers, and companies in the county’s leading industry sectors. Volunteers will schedule meetings with company executives and conduct a detailed survey regarding local business issues and opportunities.
The SCEDC will provide volunteer training in August, and the business visits will be conducted from September 1 through October 15. Summary results will be shared publicly at a future SCEDC event, planned for November.
According to the SCEDC’s Executive Director Patrick Drinan, the program is designed to emphasize the importance of local business retention and to establish communications with area companies. “Business retention activities tend to achieve high returns on investment,” said Drinan. “The vast majority of job growth is derived from the expansion of small, medium and large enterprises. Our coordinated outreach program is the first step in an effort to identify business issues, identify growth and employment opportunities, and provide valuable resources to existing companies in Sheboygan County to help them achieve success.”
Anyone interested in volunteering to help the SCEDC effort to survey local companies about their business conditions, is invited to call (920) 452-2479 or e-mail the SCEDC at info@sheboygancountyedc.com.
For additional information, contact Patrick Drinan, executive director, Sheboygan County Economic Development Corporation at (920) 452-2350
The Sheboygan County Economic Development Corporation is a countywide private/public partnership, leading economic development efforts to improve the economic well-being and long-term prosperity of the businesses, residents, and communities of Sheboygan County, through collaborative retention, expansion, and attraction efforts for business and employment development.
