Consulting, Economic and Target Industry Analysis Services

The Vendor is required to provide consulting, economic and target industry analysis services for include:
1. Economic and market assessment
•    Analyze current economic trends, labor market data, and industry performance at the local, regional, state and national levels.
•    Evaluate workforce demographics, workforce capabilities, including underemployment, and educational assets relevant to industry growth.
•    Identify emerging sectors and innovation-driven opportunities aligned with city economic strengths.
•    Evaluate location quotients for the city, county, and region.
•    Assess the relevance and evaluate the performance of the five industry clusters identified in the 2014 grow smarter initiative.
2. Stakeholder engagement
•    Conduct interviews, focus groups, and surveys with key stakeholders, including but not limited to the following: large employers; small businesses; business associations; social service and healthcare providers; educational institutions; and public sector partners.
•    Incorporate a wide variety of community input to ensure inclusive and equitable economic development priorities.
3. Benchmarking and best practices
•    City industry focus with peer cities and national benchmarks.
•    Identify successful strategies and models that could guide the city’s updated approach.
•    Identify competitive advantages and barriers to industry cluster development.
4. Recommendations and strategic framework
•    Determine which industry clusters identified in 2014 remain viable or require refinement.
•    Deliver new recommended targeted industry clusters based on data, stakeholder input, and strategic alignment.
•    Provide actionable guidance for implementation, including policy considerations, public and private partnership opportunities, investment priorities, and workforce development strategies.