Shaping Our Region’s Future

Indy Chamber News Archives

The Indianapolis region has been referred to as “punching above its weight” in metro GDP, population growth quality of life improvements. At a pivotal point in the Indianapolis region’s history, the Indy Chamber is stepping into its role as the leading economic development entity in the region. As a result, the Indy Chamber is engaging regional partners to set forth a visionary work plan to strategize programming for the coming years. 

This week, the Indy Chamber kicks off a nine-month process of engaging business and community leaders to develop a Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS), a region-wide approach aimed at increasing development and talent attraction as well as improving quality of life throughout the nine-county Indianapolis region. 

The CEDS process takes a strategic look at metro regions to determine areas of focus and resources. By completing the CEDS process, the Indy Chamber’s economic development teams in partnership with the Central Indiana Conference of Elected Officials, regional communities, economic development groups, and cities will be able to steer the region toward economic prosperity.

Beginning this month, a Steering Committee consisting of over 40 business and community leaders and elected officials will begin the research phase of the process and will help guide the process from start to finish. They will begin by completing a competitive assessment of the region by asking the question, “How is the Indianapolis region doing” in three areas of impact including:

1. People (talent attraction and retention, workforce, education)
2. Prosperity (per capita income, buying power, cost of living)
3. Place (quality of life, cultural destinations, livability)

Each of these areas will undergo benchmarking of the region’s performance to peer metros, the state, and the nation. Stakeholder input sessions will augment the perspectives brought by the Steering Committee and serve as an opportunity for diverse constituents to offer solutions and innovative ideas for the CEDS.

Learn more at www.indychamber.com/ceds

SURVEY: Let Your Voice Be Heard

Tell us what it’s like to live, work, and do business in the Indianapolis region. Now through October 15, you can take our online survey covering various aspects of development, quality of life and education throughout the region. Your opinion matters and will be used to develop our CEDS plan that will lay the groundwork for programming and initiatives for our future.

The survey will take about 15 minutes of your time – and as a thank you, enter to win two tickets to an upcoming Indiana Pacers game just for sharing your opinion! Take the survey now: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/IndyCEDS