CAMDEN By BRADLY GILL
Staff writer
The Ouachita Partnership for Economic Development took the first steps in earning the “Competitive Community” designation.
At the beginning of the meeting of the OPED board of directors on Wednesday, Mike Shelton, Jerry West, Karmen House and Reese Broadnax were welcomed to the board to new positions for 2019.
The board then unanimously approved starting the process for gaining the Competitive Community Initiative designation.
In a November meeting, Arkansas Economic Development Commission Senor Manager for Community Development Matt Twyford explained to the board that the Competitive Initiative program was “a program that we rolled out this past March to use as a tool to evaluate communities and their competitiveness as it relates to economic and community development.”
Twyford said, “There’s four pillars that we focus on; the economic development organization, the economic development funding, your workforce narrative and your product readiness, which is essentially the sites and buildings that you have to attract companies to your community.”
The site http://info.arkansasedc.com/cci states:
“The goal of the initiative is to ensure that all communities in the state are fully prepared to successfully compete for jobs and investment.”
The site listed the following as ways the initiative helps the community:
• Better understand their strengths and weaknesses through third-party evaluation.
• Learn from best practices and receive guidance from seasoned economic development professionals.
• Educate community leaders on their competitive standing and readiness.
• Utilize the outcome of the evaluation in improving their success in attracting investments and jobs.
The initiative will help the state and utilities to:
• Provide focused review and constructive feedback.
• Increase the competitive viability of sites and buildings.
• Better articulate Arkansas’ workforce as ‘product.’
• Better focus state and utility resources in the communities.
• Attract more jobs and investments.”
James Nixon gave the board an update about the future funding of OPED and thanked the Ouachita County Quorum Court and City of Camden for including line items in their respective budgets dedicated to economic development.
Office Manager Dotty Harris updated the board about upcoming events and training, and included in the information packages were events for February.
A handout stated, “NEW! Roundtable: The Path to Festivals Vendor fairs street fairs, summer festivals, non-profit events, and business expos are all great opportunities to reach a large audience and rare brand awareness. Figuring out what you need to have successful booth at a festival-style event can be overwhelming We can help. We have gathered the pros to guide you on your path to festival-vendor success From those interested in entering the world of festivals to seasoned vendors ready to grow their small businesses, we invite you to join the conversation.”
This program will beheld from 10:00 a.m. until noon on Tuesday, Feb. 5.
“New! Make Your Website Work for You (WEBINAR)Make this your best year ever? If you’re launching a new business website (or sprung up an existing site), this webinar is for you Learn how to create a search-friendly website that’s useful for customers and supports your business goals. In this webinar we’ll offer tips for creating useful content for your audience, ensuring your site is useful for visitors on any and every device, and increasing visibility with search engine optimization (SEO). Led by Pamela Starr, one of Google’s professional national trainers, this is a can’t miss webinar for every small business owner Register online for the link : https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/8187183877909438210.”
This workshop will be held from 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 13.