The document provides information about a case study of the Model Community Initiative in Holland-Zeeland, Michigan. It discusses bringing together community leaders to discuss economic development opportunities to help businesses in the area innovate and grow. The initiative included forming strategic focus areas, pre-workshop activities, and a workshop to identify ways to support business expansion, attract new businesses, develop talent, and build infrastructure. The overall goal was to create sustainable economic growth and jobs for the community.

1. Case Study
Model Community Initiative
Holland-Zeeland, Michigan
Business Growth through Innovation

2. Population ~45,000
www.hollandzeeland.us
or
www.zeelandholland.us

3. Background
The overarching question for the area and region was:
“How do we work together, to identify and pursue
economic development opportunities that will enable
the Holland/Zeeland area to innovate, move up the
value chain, increase business revenues and
profits, grow jobs and generate community resources
at the fastest and most sustainable rate possible?”
A planning team of community leaders was formed in
order to begin the dialogue around this question and Ed
Morrison/PCRD were called into action.

4. Their Work to Date
“White paper in a brown wrapper”
…has enjoyed a successful past, a strong local
economy and a uniquely desirable quality of
life. A combination of global forces has
fundamentally changed the effectiveness of
area business models and the way we must
approach our future, both nationally and
locally…

5. Supporting Data
The next economy must have four characteristics:
• higher exports, to take advantage of rising global demand
• low carbon technology, to lead the clean-energy revolution
• innovation, to spur growth through ideas and their deployment
• greater opportunity, to reverse the troubling, decades-long rise in inequality.

6. Pre Workshop Activities
Analysis of their current situation
Multiple conference calls with key civic leaders to
determine what success looks like
Custom PowerPoint presentation prepared
Pre workshop training held with table guides
Customized Strategic Doing packs prepared

7. Ed’s presentation

8. Holland/Zeeland Strategic Doing Workshop
Strategic Focus Areas, Table Guides and
Framing Questions
Strategic Focus Framing Question
Activation of clusters involves a focused economic development strategy.
Economic Clusters Cluster strategies depend on building complex, innovative collaborations
(Tim Hemingway) quickly. What can be done to develop a repeatable process that allows for
the successful creation of new, purposeful economic cluster networks?
Business The strength of any regional economy depends on its existing businesses.
How do we develop a support system to accelerate their growth? What
Expansion and
could we do to align, link and leverage our resources to support existing
Attraction companies? How do we develop a reputation for speed, innovation, and
(Garth Deur) responsiveness that would make us attractive to outside companies?
We need new businesses that can leverage the assets we have in our
Innovation and region. How do we build a dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystem to support
Entrepreneurship new and innovative companies? How do we engage young people in
(Mark DeWitt) building businesses in our region? How do we create thick networks of
support?

9. Strategic Focus Framing Question
How do we build a region that fully embraces lifelong talent
Talent Development development? Where do we start? What initiatives appear most
(Janet DeYoung) promising and how do we effectively support and leverage them
for area--‐wide success and sustainability?
Creating quality physical connections requires us to think in new
ways about our investments in infrastructure. We also need quality,
Infrastructure connected places to attract and keep young people. Chances are
(Dan Bourbon) traditional approaches to infrastructure planning will not meet our
needs going forward. How do we develop new practices to guide
our infrastructure investments?
The Midwest suffers from the legacy Rust Belt image. How do we
set ourselves apart? What differentiates us from the competition?
New Narrative
What are the unique, compelling reasons for companies to choose
(Bob Ellis) the Lakeshore to grow, launch or locate? How do we “face
forward” and tell the stories of our promising future?

10. Custom SD Packs

11. Follow up and Outcomes
100% of all respondents expressed an interest to stay involved in
action and implementation of outcomes.