The Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce has launched a new jobs initiative called Fort Collins Works.
Fort Collins Works is a multi-faceted, multi-pronged communications program for communicating the business community’s economic vision of the community to key audiences including city government officials, candidates for public office and the general public.
The Chamber already has a strong issues advocacy program and has a political program that endorses candidates for public office. Missing was a way of telling the larger economic story to bring attention to opportunities and threats and to offer specific recommendations for economic action. Thus was born Fort Collins Works.
The pieces of Fort Collins Works are grouped into 4 broad categories. Each element stands on its own but together they provide a data-driven economic vision of the community. The elements include:
– Economic Studies. Technically sound research to provide an understanding of key economic issues will be foundational to Fort Collins Works. The studies are not policy documents but will inform policy considerations.
– Economic Policy. There are three elements included under economic policy including a 40-point ‘Jobs Agenda’, scorecards to report the actions of elected officials against the Jobs Agenda and city council candidate questionnaires built around the Jobs Agenda.
– Communications. The communications strategy of Fort Collins Works includes a web presence through www.FortCollinsWorks.com, downloadable Job Creation 101 PDFs, and Job Creation 101 videos; information and videos from the Future of Jobs Summit information, public relations and advertising, and Voter Research (public opinion polling)
– Activation. In time, an activation component will be added including an online pledge form supporting the Chamber’s jobs campaign along with an electronic jobs newsletter, lapel pins, website plaque, etc to allow people to ‘Join the Jobs Campaign’ to actively promote the development of jobs.
Regarding the scorecards, the purpose is to keep attention on the actions of elected officials relative to job creation. The scorecards will regularly be posted online and shared with the public via print and / or electronic advertising.
Several resources are available on FortCollinsWorks.com that are timely due to City Council elections. The candidates all filled out questionnaires, which are posted at FortCollinsWorks.com under the Candidate Positions icon. The results of a recent public opinion poll can be found under the Voter Research icon.
Fort Collins is a wonderful place and will remain so with focused effort on keeping the economy strong. FortCollinsWorks.com is one way to keep the economy front and center with policymakers.
Thank you to our wonderful sponsors:
Partners:
Dellenbach Chevrolet, Cadillac, Subaru & Suzuki; Dohn Construction; EKS&H; Everitt Companies; Harmony Club; OtterBox; Spradley Barr Ford; University of Colorado Health
Supporters:
Bank of Colorado; Columbine Health Systems; Ed Carroll Motor Company; First National Bank; Fort Collins Dodge Chrysler Jeep Hyundai; Hewlett Packard; Home Instead Senior Care; In-Situ Inc.; Markley Motors; MM Solutions; NewMark Merrill Mountain States; Pedersen Auto Plaza; Total Facility Care; Tynan’s Nissan Kia & Saab; WaterPik and Woodward