770.333.6343 kate@katemcenroe.com

My Point of View

For many years I’ve been on the receiving end of the analysis and the outreach that economic developers pour their hearts and souls into for the betterment of their communities.  I take that investment seriously, and my experience has given me an informed point of view on what works and what doesn’t.  I have also  had a bird’s eye view of how hard it can be to step back and find the time, the resources, and the collective will to understand that sometimes the “best practice” isn’t something you should aspire to emulate but something you should aspire to create.  I don’t want to be the person that delivers a study that needs to be updated in a couple of years, I want to be the person that collaborates with you and helps you leverage and amplify your resources, whatever size place you call home, and whatever budget you have to work with.

These are my Suites of Services for Places

Explore a little, and let’s talk!

Economic Development Organizations should have the capability to create and maintain their own workforce stories.  Whether you’re almost a pro, just starting to pull it all together, or somewhere in between, I can help you understand your audience and your assets, put in place a framework and a narrative, and design a cost effective system that will always be up to date.
Is your data complete and impactful or cluttered and forgettable?  Do you want to now how your visuals can leave a lasting, clear impression, event when you aren’t there to explain them? I can teach your to take your data from a jumble to clear, concise and visually ready for your next project.
Economic Developers work hard for funding to market and respond to prospects.  I’ve been privileged to be on the receiving end of those efforts for many years.  My goal is that you use your resources in the most impactful way possible.  Sometimes that means giving you insight into how site selectors work and think, sometimes it means telling you what you should stop doing, and sometimes it means reflecting back to you the strongest advantages your community has that you may take for granted.
We’ve all seen it – the strategic action items that never seem to move forward because today’s emergencies use up all of your time, or maybe you’ve formed committees to tackle issues, but they generate more ideas than results. Big visions and big plans are great but to get stuff done you have to harness your distinctive resources and networks to commit to tackling high impact, highly “doable” projects right now.  Small successes, one after the other, will get you exactly where you want to be.