This document discusses the key elements necessary for successful economic development projects. It identifies the "five Ms" - materials, manpower, markets, management, and money. Materials refer to natural and built resources in an area. Manpower is the available labor force and their skills. Markets are potential customers and demand. Management combines the other elements successfully. Money provides the necessary financing. All five elements must be present and considered in developing an economic development plan for a community.

1. PLANNING LED – EDWARD J. BLAKELY, TED K. BRADSHAW
Community Improvement
Development planning is not merely (or solely) a business development activity. Culture, recreation,
community appearance, and related factors are integral to development planning. As a result, each
project should be measured for its contributions in these areas in addition to the areas of direct
employment and economic development. For examples, project that build the self esteem and
identity of youth can significantly alter a community's social and economic climate. these aspects of
a project, which enhance the total live ability of an area, should be documented under the heading
community development, to reiterate, the specification of outputs for purposed project forms the
definition and guide for the entire development process. one cannot determine other project
requirement without discussing with knowledgeable people the full potential for success and failure.
similarly, platitudes about job creation or improving the overall economy are meaningless. the real
focus for economic development comes from trying to work through specific activities that improve
actual situations using known or attainable resources.
specifying strategic resources : the five ms
economic growth and development can be seen as analogous to a living plant's growth and
development : the key elements heat, light, water, and other nutrients must be present in proper
amounts for a plant growth. if one key elements is missing, growth will not occur, even if other
elements are present in abundance. Similarly, five key elements, termed the five ms, must be
present for economic development to occur. these elements are material, (hu)manpower, market,
management, and money. each must be considered by communities in developing an economic
development plan. this section defines these elements and discuss their importance to economic
development programs.
1. materials may be thought of as all existing physical resources, including both natural resources
and human made facilities or infrastructures, such as roads, port, electric power distribution systems
and buildings. natural resources, of course, encompass all useful, naturaly existing materials and
conditions in such form as soil, terrain, minerals, climate, water resources, plant, and animal life, and
geografic locations. a community should understand might be combined in any number of ways to
produce a wide variety of products and services. because absence of materials can restrict the types
of goods that may be produced in an area, however, the existence of these resources should be
investigated before attention is given to potential products and their production in the effort to
provide jobs.
2. (HU)manpower represents the labor used to create a product or service for sale. for example,
labor includes the person operating a machine, repairing a machine, supervising the process, or
delivery the final goods produced. specific skills may be needed for different stages of a process, and
those skills may be acquired through experience or training. these skills amount to an inveestment
that has a clear "payoff" in the form of improved productivity. a trained and experienced person will
be more disciplined, make fewer mistakes, and be more innovative. the skilled person is therefore,
an asset and cann be thought of as human capital within the economic development process.
the amount of human capital available for work in an area depends on the size of working
population and people's willingness and ability to work. willingness to work depends on the
sociocultural background of the individuals, the type of work available, and the prevailing wage rate.
ability to work depends on the age of the population and the level of education and training. existing
(hu)manpower in an area is a significant resource.
3. markets are the places where there is demand for certain products or services. demand size
depend on the number of people or organizations desiring the product, the qualities of the product,

2. the price at which it is offered, and the availability. the market area for a product is not fixed. a
change in population characteristics, the local or international economy, or simply a change in
general social values and attitudes may create potential customers. similarly, new methods of
communicating price and product characteristics create the potential for new demands. new
markets may be created through better product pricing, superior transportation, better production
techniques and/or penetration of more local or overseas markets. the point is that markets are
normally very flexible and can be axpanded through imagination and hard work. identifying potential
customers, knowing what kind of product they want and at what price, and being able to inform
them of the product's availability are examples of using a market area to maximum effec.
4. management is a special type of human capital. a good manager is the person able to combine
materials, money, and personnel to produce and market a product or service successfully. effective
management is the catalyst without which economic development cannot occur. the most effective
managers also tend to be visioneries, risk takers, and innovators, as well as motivators and
coordinators.
economic development is a multifaceted process and, for it to be successful, there must be effective
coordination between government and industry as well as between various agencies and levels of
government. most important, the local community must provide support and involvement.
successful links among these diverse groups require top management talent in both the public and
the private sectors of the economy. local government or other initiatorsor of economic development
programs designed to stimulate employment may have to be especially creative in finding ways to
contribute to the availability an duse of effective management talent.
5. money is the financing directly involved in establishing and operating a proposed project. money
is required to initiate an economic development project in in order to provide necessary facilities, to
hire and train staff, to pay for materials if a product is to be manufactured, to transport the product,
and to market the product or service.
when there is a need to provide missing elements or components for a successful project, money
must be found to purchase, hire, organize, or in some other way make these elements available. for
example, funds may have to be found to acquire the use of buildings, hire accountants or
management consultants, train workers in specific skills, or extend sewer lines and roads. funds for
necessary project components may come from private or public sources, and the components
themselves may be provided by public or private agencies. in the next section, we will describe a
variety of alternative approaches to finance