ECONOMIC

Strategy 5:

Ensure

About The Objectives

The final strategy focuses on how businesses and organizations can be more prepared for economic and natural disruptions. This is incredibly important as local economies continue to face changing trends based on technology advancements and e-commerce, and the COVID-19 pandemic sent the nation into lockdown affecting local businesses and large industries and suppliers. This strategy has six objectives aimed at business recovery strategies and communications.

Governmental Communications

Government organizations have a responsibility to their community, residents, and businesses to support and help them through hard times. Individual sectors of the government, from elected officials to individuals working within a specific department have their own individual responsibilities. Collectively, these elected and appointed officials and other departments and staff members work together to share resources and information to avoid conflict.

To be a successful community, collectively, these groups must continue to communicate not only between each other but with residents and businesses. Part of the role is to help the public navigate through the bureaucratic parts of the government, cut through red tape, and simplify processes and procedures. The COVID-19 pandemic did not affect residents and businesses within the IND15RPC region the same way many communities across the state were affected. Many businesses were able to keep their operations running with only a small shift in loss of employment. While temporary unemployment increased, much of it was due to seasonal and tourism-related unemployment which has recovered. Throughout the pandemic, several industries were still hiring to meet the increased demand for goods and services which, even nationally, was not a common trend. Despite the region’s resiliency during this disturbance, the next disruption could be worse and be more disruptive to the local economy. Like many other regions, all the local governments in this region had to figure out how to work together. This process for this plan has brought many different groups together and will continue to allow these small groups to work together to be able to address economic trends that might negatively impact the residents and businesses of the region. It is also their responsibility to communicate with an appropriate amount of transparency about economic shifts such as loss of jobs and industries, national economic downturns, and possible negative impacts on severe natural disasters and where to go for resources and additional aid.

Proactive Approach

After the COVID-19 pandemic began, communities across the nation were forced to respond to the situation as it evolved, and business owners had to make decisions about how and if to continue their day-today operations. Since then, communities and businesses are working to shift their reactive responses to develop a more proactive strategy.

Unfortunately, not all future disasters and the outcomes of those disasters can be accounted for. Governments and businesses must still be able to respond to current events appropriately as information is relayed during those hard times. However, this does not mean that businesses and the government cannot account for a buffer period to allow for additional time to try and get back on track. There will always be highs and lows in the economy where businesses thrive, level out, or fall and have to determine how to maintain and improve their patterns. By accounting for additional time to address internal and external factors that may affect day-to-day operations, businesses may be able to better identify future recovery needs. Governments, in turn, would be able to prioritize which needs would be greater depending on the severity of damage brought on by disturbances proactively, while still being able to respond and help during those events.

Recovery Strategies

Rural communities typically have a harder time recovering economically than their more urban counterparts. This is due to an imbalance of diverse development opportunities, jobs, and housing availability comparatively between urban and rural communities. Simply put, communities that have more people, higher development densities, and a diversity of jobs available to people of all skill sets and educational backgrounds, the better positioned the local economy is to bounce back after experiencing a negative economic impact. A big component of recovery is focusing on local investment. Supporting local businesses and growing existing businesses with a strong foundation in the community are great assets that help boost the local economy. Businesses that see a constant stream of support and continue to grow can market themselves to other areas and even export goods and services to other communities that are underserved. Government resources, local organizations, and non-profits can help these businesses stay afloat and recover based on their contribution to the local economy, but also based on if the business is required to meet the demand for the product or service within the community.

Objective Priority Actions

A. Develop a business damage survey and assessment to help identify needs and shape community recovery strategies that could be used to apply for state and federal assistance.

B. Use relationships with established organizations such as local economic development officials, chambers of commerce, or other partners to communicate information before, during, and after disruptions.

C. Promote the availability of business counseling and recovery options through all community information channels.

1. Hire a consultant team to put together surveys and interviews with business owners and employees, analyze data, and create a damage assessment for the local government to use when applying for state and federal assistance to recover from the long-term effects of the pandemic.

2. Identify key organizations/businesses that will play a convening role in business recovery.

1. Encourage regular meetings to discuss current conditions of the economy and business trends the community is facing and create strategies to help prepare for sudden changes and respond to events as they occur.

1. Create a program for business counseling and recovery that is accessible and available locally to business owners and companies of any size to attend.

2. Develop a mentoring program for peer-to-peer business counseling.

1. Develop a communication plan for disruptions.

D. Work with businesses and economic development organizations to understand the communications plan [under governance] if a disruption occurs.

2. Ensure the communications plan outlines who to contact during economic disruptions and provide additional resources and tips in case of emergency.

3. Develop a basic template for social medial posts, press releases, and newsletter updates.

4. Identify and develop a contact list for media, including local bloggers and podcasters.

5. Continue to communicate regularly about pre- and post-disruptions, even as media attention wanes and the region seemingly returns to day-to-day activities.

Partners

• 4-H

• American Institute of Architects (AIA)

• Banks/Financial Institutions

• Businesses and Industries

• Career and Technical Education (CTE) Cooperatives

• Chambers of Commerce

• Community Foundations

• Education and Entrepreneurship in Dubois County (EEDC)

• Elected & Appointed Officials

• Elevate Ventures

• Emergency Management Associations (EMA)

• Energy Providers

• Google e-commerce

• Health Department

• Hub19

• Indiana 15 Regional Planning Commission (IND15RPC) Board of Directors

• Indiana 15 Regional Planning Commission (IND15RPC) Staff

• Indiana Economic Development Administration (EDA)

• Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC)

• Indiana First Region

• Indiana Municipal Power Agency (IMPA) & Hoosier Energy

• Indiana Network

• Indiana Small Business Development Center (ISBDC)

• IU Center for Rural Engagement

• K-12 Education Systems

• Local Businesses

• Local Economic Development Corporations (EDCs)

• Local Economic Development Organizations (LEDOs)

• Local Governments

• Local Media

• Local Tourism Industries

• Local Universities and Colleges

• Main Street Organizations

• NEXT Studios

• Non-Profits and Not-for-Profit Organizations

• Planning Departments

• Private Investors

• Purdue Extension

• Purdue University

• Radius

• Redevelop Old Jasper Action Coalition (ROJAC)

• Redevelopment Commission (RDC)

• Regional Opportunity Initiatives (ROI)

• Rural Electric Cooperative (REMC)

• Services Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE)

• Small Business Administration (SBA)

• Small Business Development Centers (SBDC)

• Southern Indiana Gateway (SIG)

• Southwestern Indiana Development Corporation (SWIDC)

• Sustainable Business Ventures Corporation (SBV)

• Technology Centers & Innovators

• Tourism Organizations

• Townary, LLC

• United States Chamber of Commerce

• United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development

• Visitors Bureaus

• Wealthy accredited investors to start Angel Investing Group

• Work One

Target Audience

• Angel Investors

• Developers

• Employees

• Entrepreneurs

• Local Businesses

• Local Government

• Mentors

• Public

• Regional Employers

• Regional Industries

• Startup Businesses