Cornerstone Alliance unveiled its five-year Strategic Plan this evening to its investors and other stakeholders at the Celebrating Cornerstone Alliance Investor event at the Inn at Harbor Shores. The 2017-2021 Cornerstone Alliance Strategic Plan is focused on business attraction, expansion and small business enterprise while engaging the support of the community who shares Cornerstone Alliance’s commitment of bringing economic vibrancy to Berrien County.
Cornerstone Alliance President Rob Cleveland addressed the more than 150 investors, community stakeholders and economic development partners, detailing how the economic development organization will use the Plan to guide its work over the next five years and beyond.
“There are so many wonderful things happening in Berrien County,” said Cleveland. “We have strong, growing companies that are recruiting new, diverse talent to our region. We have world-class events like the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship that brings new visitors to our great community. The Strategic Plan will leverage these assets to strengthen economic opportunities in Michigan’s Great Southwest
The four centerpieces of the Cornerstone Alliance 2017-2021 Strategic Plan are:
- Changing Our Economic Future
- Enhancing Our Assets
- Sharing Our Secret With The World
- Investing in Berrien County’s Next Chapter
According to Cleveland, economic development is as competitive as it has ever been. Cornerstone Alliance is one of 23,000 economic development organizations throughout the country selling its regional business assets to companies, real estate advisors and site consultants. “It is the responsibility of Cornerstone Alliance to do the work needed to make Berrien County a top contender for new jobs and investments, providing new opportunities for our children, neighbors and friends, not only for the next five years, but for generations to come,” said Cleveland.
The timing of the Plan is relevant, as Berrien County was recently ranked as one of the Top 15 Leading Locations in the United States for new and expanding businesses by Area Development Magazine. For the last six years, the publication has studied and ranked more than 385 regions across the country, using four significant criteria: Prime Workforce; Economic Strength; Year-Over-Year Growth and Five-Year Growth.
“We couldn’t be better positioned to deliver positive economic development outcomes to Berrien County,” said Cleveland. “This ranking proves that Berrien County is viewed by the site selection experts as a leading venue for new and expanding industry and is an ideal place for a business to locate and be successful.”