Projects:

• Sustainable
  Regional
  Development
  • Fellowship for Regional Sustainable Development (Rd I)
  • Greater Boston Economic Development Strategy
  • Portland (OR) Economic Development Strategy
  • Economic Development Toolbox Envision Utah
  • Regional Business Civic Initiative (Minding Their Civic Business)
  • Double Bottom Line Handbook
  • MetroBusinessNet
  • Economic Development Strategy for Northern Pennsylvania
  • Northern New England Family Economic Success
  • Other ED Projects & Initiatives
• Workforce Development & Postsecondary Education
  • Wine Industry Skills Assessment
  • Building a 21st Century Community College (Indiana)
  • Seattle Regional Skill Building Collaborative
  • Greater Washington DC Health Care Assessment
  • CSH Employment Toolkit
  • High Skills for High Growth Careers
  • Pathways to Advancement
  • Other WD Projects and Initiatives

MetroBusinessNet

MetroBusinessNet is an information resource for building regional business-civic capacity. It articulates and demonstrates how business leaders can work collaboratively through civic institutions to develop and implement business practices and public policies that support sustainable and inclusive economic development on a metropolitan scale.

Through a series of national convenings and publications, MetroBusinessNet defined a market-driven action agenda for business-civic organizations working to promote sustainable and inclusive regional development. Business-civic organizations can play a critical role in:

• Supporting member companies to invest core operating resources in business activities that address regional disparities;
• Designing and advocating for public policies that promote sustainable development goals and outcomes;
• Anchoring industry growth clusters in the urban core; and
• Building long-term coalitions among business, government and nonprofits.

With support from the Ford Foundation, MetroBusinessNet functioned as an active network of regional business leadership organizations from 2001-2005. Today, drawing from the learning and experimentation of the original MetroBusinessNet program, FutureWorks designs and delivers customized presentations and workshops to business-civic leadership groups across the country. These focus on how business-civic leadership groups are engaging in regional development strategies that simultaneously improve the business-operating environment, foster greater regional coordination and address socio-economic disparities.

For more information on the original MetroBusinessNet program and its goals, please view the MetroBusinessNet PowerPoint presentation (PDF, 21MB) and accompanying Script (PDF, 88KB) which describe the network and provide examples of business-led regional development strategies from participating regions. Resources developed by national experts in support of MetroBusinessNet as well as MetroBusinessNet publications can be viewed by clicking on Annual Convenings and Publications, respectively.

FutureWorks is based in Arlington, Massachusetts.

Origins and Learning Framework

In 2000, FutureWorks launched a twelve-month planning effort to design and organize a learning collaborative among business-based civic institutions that would design business practices and public policies that support equitable and sustainable regional economic development benefiting low-income people and communities while advancing the business interests of firms.

MetroBusinessNet was officially launched in the fall of 2001. Five regional business-civic organizations were selected to participate in the effort and two group planning meetings took place in early 2001 to define the program's structure, strategy and work plan. Each business-civic organization or founding partner participating in MetroBusinessNet received financial support through the network to develop or advance a long-term, business-driven initiative to achieve sustainable economic development goals. For three years, founding partners and other business-civic institutions met annually report on progress, share experience and learn from each other.

Founding partners of MetroBusinessNet were, and continue to be, pioneers in this emerging field. They include the Bay Area Council, Chicago Metropolis 2020, The Greater Washington Board of Trade, the St. Louis Chamber and Growth Association, and the Austin Area Research Organization. These organizations continue to raise the bar for innovative approaches to regional development.

MetroBusinessNet was funded by the Ford Foundation through its Corporate Involvement Initiative (CII). In 1996, the Ford Foundation launched CII to encourage investment in economic development projects that benefit businesses and communities. The long-term goal of the CII is to increase the use of core operating resources and capacities of business to build human and financial assets for low-income individuals in the United States.

The work of MetroBusinessNet was guided by its Learning Framework, which provided parameters for the work and framed the program's thinking and action. The Learning Framework draws on two key documents:

MetroBusinessnet Learning Agenda (PDF, 25KB)
This document articulates the "what" and "how" of MetroBusinessNet — i.e., substantive issues at the intersection of business competitiveness, regionalism and social equity and how business-civic organizations are tackling them.

Building Regional Business-Civic Capacity (PDF, 116KB)
Developed for MetroBusinessNet by Pete Plastrick, this document identifies six key components of building regional business-civic capacity: collaborative regional planning; regional systems analysis; agenda setting; strategies and products for sustainable regional development; implementation; and adaptation.

In order to view these publications, you must use Adobe Reader.

Annual Convenings

MetroBusinessNet hosted a convening once a year for business-civic organizations working at the intersection of business competitiveness, regionalism and social and economic equity. Convenings began in the fall of 2001 and were designed to expose network partners to cutting-edge practice, showcase the work of network partners, share lessons learned and accelerate innovation. Leading national experts attended the meetings, made presentations and provided context and perspective on the network's experience. Meetings were designed and staffed by FutureWorks and a select group of consultants.

To access convening agendas and presentations, please click on a specific convening below:

Miami, FL (Spring, 2005)

New York, NY (Spring, 2003)

Chicago, IL (Fall, 2002)

San Francisco, CA (Spring, 2002)

St. Louis, MO (Fall, 2001)

In order to view these publications, you must use Adobe Reader.