International Economic Development Council Leadership Summit

The International Economic Development Council (IEDC) held it's 2008 Leadership Summit this past week in Orlando. The Conference was well worth the investment for many reasons. First, the number of attendees is much less than the the Annual Conference which make for a more intimate experience. Next, those who do attend are normally the more experienced and senior ED's and more often than not are in Leadership positions of their respective organizations. The fact that the Conference was held in Orlando where the weather was just about perfect made for a great three days.

The most compelling part of the conference for me was my participation in a Economic Development Research Partners Program (EDRP)focusing on Globalization. The project's title is " Road map to Globalization". The stated objective of the project is as follows:

• Identify the core components of Globalization through an economic development lens
• Provide core facts and figures that demonstrate the urgency of this challenge
• Highlight the opportunities and challenges that Globalization poses to EDO's

The participants in the EDRP are all highly experienced and skilled ED professionals whose communities are highly sensitive to the Globalization phenomenon. More importantly ,they are committed to positioning their EDO's to benefit from the dramatic changes they believe will impact the way all of us do business in a global marketplace.

I look forward to my ongoing participation in the EDRP and when possible I will share details of our findings and recommendations.