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GFDA Releases New Economic Development Strategy

and Adopts dba Great Falls Development Alliance

Over the past two years as we worked hard to help our region come out of the pandemic growing strong, we have also been conducting a deep dive strategic assessment to develop a new regional economic development strategy.

Our new Economic Development Strategy is the most ambitious we have ever undertaken. It takes advantage of our region's and our organization's strengths, addresses key weaknesses to make us more competitive and effective, pursues new opportunities to grow and diversify our regional economy, and prepares our region to protect against potential threats.

The new Economic Development Strategy has four strategic areas of focus: People, Place, Opportunities, and Team.

PEOPLE

People are the heart of economic development. This area of focus addresses quality of life and the talented workforce local employers depend upon. Key quality of life factors in our economic development strategy include housing and childcare. Workforce factors include talent attraction and workforce development.

PLACE

Competitiveness of place is critical in retaining and attracting talent and in attracting investment. Key competitive factors include the vibrancy of our downtown, riverfront, and commercial corridors, availability of sites and spaces for businesses, transportation and logistics, and infrastructure.

OPPORTUNITIES

Great people and competitive place are not enough to succeed in transforming our economy. We must also aggressively pursue market-driven opportunities. Key opportunities include five strategic growth sectors and core economic development work of business attraction, business retention and attraction, and entrepreneurship.

TEAM

A strategic plan is meaningless without team to put it into action. Key team priorities in our economic development strategy are capacity, strategic catalyst, and partnerships.

Strategy Implementation

Within the four strategic areas of focus, the plan details 19 priorities and 46 specific actions that our economic development team will undertake over the next three years. We have already begun work on these actions.

Great Falls Development Alliance

We have adopted the dba, Great Falls Development Alliance to better reflect what we have always been, a team of private businesses and developers, non-profit organizations, and local public agencies and leaders working together to make things happen that otherwise would not.

Thank You!

Thank you to our investors, partners, and hundreds of area business and community leaders who participated in the strategy development, and to the consultants who undertook extensive market and SWOT assessments, all of which are available here on our website.

Our Mission

Grow diverse economic opportunities that enhance quality of life.

GFDA is a certified Community Development Financial Institution and a 501(c)3 charitable organization. High Plains Financial is a certified Community Development Corporation that offers SBA 504 loans statewide. GFDA and High Plains Financial are Equal Opportunity Employers and Lenders.

GFDA is proud to host a Montana Small Business Development Center, a Montana Procurement Technical Assistance Center, and a Montana Food & Ag Development Center. We are also proud to provide office space for MSU's Montana Manufacturing Extension Center and an SBA Women's Business Center in partnership with the University of Montana and the Montana Native Growth Fund.

GFDA was the first economic development organization in the Rocky Mountain West to earn accreditation from the International Economic Development Council.

For more info, click to our website.