Conducting Applied Research

IDM Researchers Will Provide...

  •  Customized Targeting for Business Attraction
  •  Regional Workforce Assessment and Planning
  •  Economic Impact Analysis of Current or Potential Businesses
  •  Analysis of Buyer-Supplier Linkages Among Local/Regional Companies
  •  Benchmarking or Metrics Detailing Economic Growth
  •  Membership Surveys
  •  Targeting Based on Regional Cluster Analysis


IDM’s Target Industry Analysis (TIA) assists you in better focusing your business attraction efforts. Targeting identifies specific industries or industry clusters that best match the competitive advantages of your community. IDM analyzes your labor force, existing economic base, supplier linkages, infrastructure, transportation and available sites and buildings

IDM can conduct a regional workforce assessment which will help you gain a better understanding of current and future needs of employers in your region. IDM’s experienced staff can also guide you and your team with valuable technical assistance, resulting in an innovative workforce plan that will help position your region for economic growth.

While economic impact analysis is often used to measure the impact of a new company in your community, it can also be used to show the impact of an existing company. These impact studies can be used as part of your Business Retention and Expansion programs or business recognition events. You can see a sample of a business impact analysis HERE.

IDM's Regional Cluster Analysis identifies your value-chain clusters (buyer-supplier linkages), technology clusters and labor clusters, and offers recommendations on industry targets. 

Benefits:

  • Focusing efforts to recruit companies that best match your community’s assets
  • Determining your  community’s competitive advantages
  • Gaining insight into your workforce needs & determining strategies to address those needs
  • Understanding buyer-supplier relationships among companies
  • Developing dashboards or metrics to measure the progress being made in economic development efforts
  • Obtaining basic company information and/or impact analysis reports within 48 hours
  • Taking advantage of multiple resources and databases available to the university