Memphis Shelby Growth Alliance
Good jobs, strong businesses and a growing tax base are the foundation of community prosperity and quality of life.
The new Memphis Shelby Growth Alliance is a diverse, volunteer alliance of some 50+ public and private economic development, business and government leaders who agree to collaborate around specific strategies to expand job growth. It is the successor to the MemphisED initiative and will build on the successes of MemphisED to accelerate continued short and long-term jobs growth.
The MemphisED initiative, which wraps up in June of 2012, is comprised of a very ambitious and wide-ranging set of 5 goals and 15 strategies. The five goals are: A) Create a Culture of Innovation and Entrepreneurialism, B) Market Memphis/Shelby County, C) Pursue Key Target Industries -- Logistics, Biosciences, Tourism, Music/Film, D) Grow Existing Firms, E) Make Memphis a Place of Choice for Knowledge Workers. Below are the fifteen strategies.
Below are the fifteen strategies.
One: High-Growth Start-Ups
Drive the creation of new high value ventures and jobs by establishing a national entrepreneurship ‘center of excellence’.
Two: Strong Tech Transfer
Strengthen the Technology Transfer operations at University of Memphis.
Three: Minority Entrepreneurship
Grow market share of minority-owned businesses through an incubator and targeted loan fund.
Four: Marketing Memphis to Memphis
Improve local perceptions of Memphis as a great place to live, work, and visit through an internal marketing campaign.
Five: Marketing Memphis to the World
Create an external marketing campaign and support business recruitment activities
Six: Business-Friendly Tax Climate
Improve job creation by aligning tax and incentive structure to better support MemphisED goals and priorities.
Seven: Aerotropolis and Logistics
Create and retain jobs by establishing Memphis as an Aerotropolis and executing a comprehensive logistics strategy.
Eight: Biosciences
Expand business and job growth in the bioscience industries – including Biomedical, BioAgricultureand Biologistics.
Nine: Music
Grow Memphis' already vibrant Music industry, focusing on its identity as a hub for independent music and musicians.
Ten: Film and TV
Grow the economic impact of film and television production to secure it a robust industry segment for Memphis/Shelby County.
Eleven: Conventions and Tourism
Grow the economic impact of convention and tourism business to further capitalize on the industry as a major tax revenue generator for Memphis/Shelby County.
Twelve: Business Retention and Expansion
Grow local businesses and new jobs by developing a best-in-class business retention and expansion initiative that includes an expanded minority business supplier diversity component. .
Thirteen: Downtown Development
Increase Memphis/Shelby County’s appeal to knowledge workers by continuing to invigorate Downtown and the Mississippi Riverfront, expanding on the work underway by the Center City Commission and Riverfront Development Corporation.
Fourteen: Growing our Greenprint
Increase Memphis/Shelby County’s appeal to knowledge workers by developing our park system into one of the premier in the country, beginning with Shelby Farms Park.
Fifteen: Talent Attraction and Retention
Expand programming that supports the recruitment and retention of knowledge workers.