Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance outlines regional talent-attraction plan, names new talent director

Doug Newman, executive director of the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, told the Marion City Council on Jan. 21 that the alliance is shifting more resources to talent-attraction work and has hired a new talent director to lead a regional effort to recruit and retain workers.

The presentation focused on a three-year timeline for talent attraction and workforce retention. Newman said the alliance now treats workforce as a core function and will invest in a marketing program, an innovation council of partners and performance metrics. “Workforce is arguably our most important core function,” Newman said.

Why it matters: Marion and neighboring cities have been marketing available land and new employers, and alliance leaders said the region’s recent wins have reduced large parcels of development-ready land. That makes attracting workers and matching them to employers an urgent regional priority, the alliance told the council.

Newman outlined five core functions the alliance uses to shape priorities, noting big recent business wins and a resulting shift from marketing large tracts of land to promoting smaller parcels and localized development opportunities. He thanked Marion’s chamber and Main Street partners for ongoing collaboration and cited joint state and federal advocacy trips as part of the alliance’s public-policy work.

Jody Shaffer, introduced by Newman as the alliance’s new talent director, described her background in higher education and talent recruitment and laid out early steps for the initiative. In year one the alliance will identify stakeholders, review existing resources to avoid overlap, create an innovation council to advise marketing, and issue a request for proposals for a marketing agency. Shaffer said the first year is “heavy lifting” to build infrastructure; years two and three will emphasize fundraising, expanded marketing and regional promotion.

Shaffer said the alliance will track soft metrics such as website engagement and harder outcomes where possible, but conceded that measuring relocations is challenging. She emphasized recruiting through many one-on-one conversations and building community champions to promote the region.

Council members asked whether the initiative differs from past regional workforce efforts and whether it identifies specific industry gaps. Newman said the approach is more data-driven and targeted than earlier efforts; he said industry-gap analysis will continue to rely on existing labor-shed reports from Kirkwood and others and that the program will focus more on professional positions likely to prompt long-distance moves.

Newman and Shaffer said the alliance will coordinate regional branding and marketing that highlights quality-of-life amenities, including trail connections; Newman noted a planned trail connection that will link Uptown Marion to downtown Cedar Rapids in 2026 as an example of a marketable regional amenity.

The alliance asked the council to continue sharing local priorities and assets to help shape marketing messages. Newman thanked Marion for its ongoing investment in regional advocacy and said he expects the alliance’s policy and marketing work to continue in partnership with Marion staff and elected officials.