Meet Our Chairman and President
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Letter From Chairman of the Board Bill Roop
Enhancing wealth creation in the Rockford Region is our number one priority, and Rockforward!, our five-year strategic plan for 2008 through 2012, addresses five strategies focused on achieving this mission. Economically, our nation and our region have faced serious challenges over the course of the last year. The effects of our nation’s recession have affected the Rockford Region to a greater degree. Our unemployment rate continues to be number one in the State of Illinois; over 4,000 primary jobs were shed from our MSA in 2008. Despite these economic hardships, we continue to believe in the Rockforward! strategies. We are adjusting our plans accordingly and taking into account the current economic conditions. Now, more than ever, we need to continue to move forward. In order to do so, I see the following three immediate objectives:
Overall, it is the collaboration and synergy of us all working together that allow us to improve our community and ultimately our economy. These are challenging times; however, we believe that together we can make a difference. Thank you for your continued support. Sincerely, |
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Letter from President Janyce Fadden 
I am honored to serve as President of the Rockford Area Economic Development Council for the past four years. Together, we have engaged over 200 investors in the work of economic development and have developed a sophisticated, targeted approach to wealth creation for the Rockford Region. Unprecedented third and fourth quarter financial markets led to dramatic changes for the world, nation, and our region. In these difficult economic times, you can count on the RAEDC to focus your resources. Recessions are an opportunity for us to adjust to a new economy. It is my belief that our community’s strong foundation—built on public/private collaboration—will allow us to emerge a stronger and more competitive region. The history books for the Rockford Region tell us that we are impacted early, yet we recover faster. In this latest economic downturn, we know that we have improved our position by launching Rockforward!, our new five-year strategic plan designed to increase wealth in the Rockford Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA – which is Boone and Winnebago counties) by $2.8 Billion. The goal by 2012 is to assist businesses with creating over 10,000 additional jobs in our community. In today’s economic climate, reaching this goal will take deliberate work on all of our parts. During the fundraising campaign for Rockforward!, we met with over 300 companies, organizations, and municipalities. Our investors—recognized in this report—represent public and private companies from large to small and are our economy of today. Rockforward! was the first major redesign of the RAEDC since its start in 1980. The Board of Directors unanimously supported this change, and the results are impressive, with over $9 Million raised to fund the work of the RAEDC over the five years of the strategic plan. The staff and I are grateful and humbled by your support. In addition to carrying out the primary strategies of Rockforward!, it is important to focus our collaborative efforts on three specific initiatives that will have meaningful impact on our region’s wealth: We must embrace and grow our International connections. Over 18 percent of our region’s wealth can be attributed to exporting, and this statistic is growing at 22 percent per year, translating into $1.5 Billion of potential wealth by 2012. Over 80 percent of exports in the Rockford Region are from our manufacturing companies, and Foreign Direct Investment will continue to grow. We must build a strong, sustainable region. The condition of our environment plays an integral role in our economic future. We can embrace “green” as a way to build on our strengths and diversify our industries. Having leading technologies attracts the attention of inventors and investors. It improves our competitiveness and will gain the attention of our young people. We must improve our educational system. Our region’s wealth—in large part—is built in the knowledge of the people who hold jobs. Since most employers seek employees locally, they look to the output of our education system as the foundation for their workforce pipeline. Unfortunately, the Rockford Region is 25 percent below the national average for four-year college degrees. This statistic has a direct impact on our region’s wealth. Case in point: A recent study for the Federal Reserve Bank stated that if we were at the national average for four-year degrees, the Rockford MSA would have over $2 Billion more in Gross Metropolitan Product (GMP), which equals 15 percent more wealth annually. These three calls to action already have strong seeds in our community. Given the global economy, we can take action to assure that we move forward, faster. Many of you are already a part of this change. The collaborations that are ongoing in our community energize the staff and me. I ask for your renewed resolve to keep our work moving forward together so that our strong public/private partnership continues to deliver superior results. Together, we can create the future we want now. Together, we can Rockforward! Sincerely, |
As I begin my tenure as chairman, I am honored to have this opportunity to work with the Rockford Area Economic Development Council staff, our investors, and our local and regional partners in order to continue to strategically position and market our region for more economic growth. We have experienced many wins for our region, and I am eager to continue our work and our success.