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Updated March 23, 2023

The Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness (CREC) is requesting proposals from interested parties to serve as a facilitator for team discussions in a Policy Academy over a period of ten months – April 1 to January 31. The selected facilitators will lead a core team (4 members) and a home team (up to 10 members) made up of state and regional (Economic Development District) representatives from a single state to drive strategic and programmatic alignment between the participating entities. CREC is seeking the services of two facilitators through this request for proposal (RFP).

Background

The Policy Academy process is a collaborative learning environment in which teams from a state come together to work on a problem with external facilitation support. The Academy is an opportunity for states, economic development districts and other key stakeholders to drive strategic alignment and improve respective returns on investment (ROI) with enhanced economic development outcomes and overall higher economic performance.

The teams work at their own pace with a facilitator and with teams from other states going through the same process, learning from peers and experts. Participants come together to examine state/local relationship opportunities, educate stakeholders on the value of strategic alignment, and receive technical assistance.

To achieve this performance level, the facilitator will work with a state’s team to customize the Policy Academy process for a state’s team and develop proposed outcomes that build upon current efforts by:

• Generating ideas about how to improve the impact of your existing collaborative approaches,
• Providing access to national subject matter experts; and,
• Creating a mechanism to deliberate on ideas with peers from other states.

The engagement will be multi-faceted with the facilitator leading several in-person and virtual meetings:

• Two in-person meetings in Arlington, VA and one virtual meeting with peers from other states and regions;
• Two site visits and occasional virtual visits to coordinate planning initiatives;
• Monthly facilitator conference calls with all team leaders to discuss progress and opportunities to learn from each other’s experiences; and
• Ongoing technical assistance such as webinars, consultations, and background research.

Each facilitator will complete preparation materials, work with CREC to provide technical assistance and research, and lead the in-person and virtual meetings. The expected time commitment is 125 – 150 hours over the ten-month period noted above

Required Expertise

Facilitators should have comprehensive understanding of state and local economic development and a demonstrated ability to bring together diverse clients and policymakers. Knowledge of economic development trends and related issues is important to provide context to the Academy.  Demonstrated skills in research and technical assistance are also fundamental to the role. Proven expertise in leadership, training and facilitation is essential for Academy success.

Proposal Scoring

Proposals will be evaluated using the following criteria as demonstrated in submitted materials:

• Comprehensive understanding of state and local economic development,
• Ability to bring together diverse clients and policymakers,
• Knowledge of economic development trends and related issues,
• Understanding of and experience with state and regional economic development planning, with emphasis on EDA-supported Comprehensive Economic Development Strategies,
• Comprehensive understanding of the Economic Development Administration (EDA) and the role EDA plays with the EDDs (see https://www.eda.gov/about/economic-development-glossary/edd for additional background),
• Experience in economic development research and technical assistance,
• Ability to lead, train and facilitate diverse policy leaders at the state and regional level, and
• Fee schedule.

Proposals

Interested individuals should submit a: (1) suggested scope of work, (2) statement of qualifications, (3) fee schedule, and (4) statement of interest to Bob Isaacson at bisaacson@crec.net by 5:00 pm (ET) on April 7, 2023. Written questions will be accepted if submitted to bisaacson@crec.net by March 31, 2023.

 

Download PDF Copy of RFQ

Small Manufacturing Enterprises (SMEs) fuel the U.S. economy. They compete through innovation, energy, and agility in response to rapidly changing global supply chain requirements and they take risks by introducing new processes and products. The vital role of SMEs, however, depends on a strong manufacturing workforce, and the challenges that SMEs face are particularly acute in finding, retaining, and skilling up workers. This working paper and accompanying presentation document how MEP Centers are well positioned to address a range of workforce challenges faced by SMEs and facilitate effective talent development. Produced by CREC for NIST MEP.

Workshop: Designing and Managing Business Incentive Compliance Efforts
November 9, 10, 16, 17, 2020
2:00 PM – 4:30 PM ET

This workshop provides state agency staff with the skills and insights to implement best practices in incentives monitoring and management. The workshop reviews common operating procedures, identifies critical issues, and explores options and tradeoffs to help staff make intentional choices to protect taxpayer investments in business incentives. Agency staff will be able to review and redesign operating procedures, confident their approach will be effective, but not overly burdensome, in leveraging reliable data for monitoring business compliance and program performance. More information.

Tuesday, August 11, 2020
11am‐noon EDT

The scale of the current pandemic‐driven economic crisis is unprecedented. What does the future hold for businesses, workers, and jobseekers as states move forward with reopening the economy? Can we expect a speedy recovery? The Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness (CREC) and its affiliated associations invite you to participate in a conversation with Tom Barkin, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, one of 12 regional Reserve Banks that are a part of the Federal Reserve System. In addition to its role in the nation’s monetary policy, the Richmond Fed works to strengthen the economy and communities in its district, which includes the Carolinas, Maryland, Virginia, most of West Virginia, and Washington, D.C. During this digital town hall, President Barkin will share his perspectives on the economy and prospects for recovery, followed by an opportunity for participants to ask questions and share assessments about their own regional challenges. This is a great opportunity to both get and share insights on the state of the economy in this pandemic crisis and beyond.

Our Featured Guest: Tom Barkin took office on January 1, 2018, as the eighth president and chief executive officer of the Fifth District, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. The Fifth District covers the states of Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina; 49 counties constituting most of West Virginia; and the District of Columbia. In 2020, he serves as an alternate voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee. Mr. Barkin was previously a senior partner and the chief risk officer at McKinsey & Company, a worldwide management consulting firm, and had served as the organization’s chief financial officer. He currently serves on the Emory University Board of Trustees. Prior to being named president and chief executive officer, Mr. Barkin served on the board of directors for the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta from 2009 to 2014, chairing the Reserve Bank’s board from 2013 to 2014. Mr. Barkin received his BA, MBA, and law degrees from Harvard University. He is married with two children.

CREC hosted the second webinar in its cybersecurity series to discuss the DoD’s effort to leverage the network of Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Centers to build awareness among defense suppliers about cybersecurity requirements and compliance. Through an inter-agency agreement (between NIST and DoD), the DoD’s Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSDR&E) provided over $1 million in special project award funding to the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center to develop use case scenarios, convene company representatives to discuss cybersecurity compliance requirements, and support implementation of the 110 NIST 800-171 security requirements in companies.

Join project lead Elliot Forsyth from the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center to learn about planned activities and how this effort presents opportunities for OEA Industry Resilience grantees to contribute to the success of this effort, while gaining access to technical resources and leveraging expertise to support and sustain ongoing OEA cybersecurity project activities.

Download the Presentation (PDF)

OEA engaged the Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness (CREC) and Entreworks Consulting to review various efforts funded by the OEA Industry Resilience program to strengthen the manufacturing supply chains and strengthen the defense industrial base in your regions and states. This webinar included a briefing on the paper developed outlining these activities, OEA Support for Defense Supply Chains: Many Successes and Lessons Learned, followed by an opportunity for discussion and comments.

IR grantees have undertaken a variety of Supply Chain activities, and we’ve organized them into three big categories: 1) developing market intelligence about your defense industry supply chain, 2) matching defense contracting needs with regional industrial capabilities, and 3) making the local defense industry ready for DOD contracting opportunities.

Presentation: OEA Support for Supply Chains Dec Webinar 12-19-2019

CREC hosted a webinar to discuss the National Defense Industry Association’s recent paper “Beyond Obfuscation: The Defense Industry’s Position within Federal Cybersecurity Policy” (https://www.ndia.org/policy/cyber/2019-cybersecurity-report). This report examines recent cyberbreaches, the evolving regulatory environment governing cybersecurity, and analyzes a survey of 300 defense suppliers and their experiences with cybersecurity. Furthermore, the report provides recommendations for government and industry based on their findings.

Download the Presentation (PDF)

As part of the OEA Industry Resilience Grants project (Formerly OEA – Defense Industry Adjustment), Cathy Katona and Mereb Hagos conducted a site visit to Fond de Lac and Oshkosh Wisconsin to meet with the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) and East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (ECWRPC) to close out their OEA grant. They discussed WEDC and ECWRPC’s several efforts to promote regional partnerships along the I-41 Corridor, increase capacity of local suppliers through supply chains, create an entrepreneurial ecosystem in the region, and increase awareness of career opportunities in the aerospace and aviation industries. The group also discussed how the grantee plans to sustain these efforts beyond the OEA grant.