From the Chair

STRONGER TOGETHER Throughout 2018 and the first four months of 2019, much progress has been made on transforming the Alliance into a robust, multi-faceted regional economic development organization. This progress has been accomplished through the efforts of many individuals. The list is long, but at the risk of overlooking key contributors it includes: the Alliance team and my colleagues on the Alliance Executive Committee and Board of Directors (these individuals are identified elsewhere in this Report); the members of the CAO committee that worked on the Master Agreement — Jim Baker, Doug Smith, Cynthia Rohlf, Dave Hansen and Mary Bunting; Bob Crum and the staff at the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission (HRPDC); and Dubby Wynne, Harry Lester and Jim Spore. To each of you, thank you for your hard work and your commitment to growing high wage jobs, capital investment and tax base in our region. By the time you read this report, I expect that the Master Agreement for Economic Development in Hampton Roads between the Alliance and the 11 cities and counties that invest in the Alliance will have been approved by each city council and board of supervisors, and requisite funding will have been included in their 2019-2020 budgets. This is the foundation for moving from what historically has been a local economic development model to a regional economic development approach. To continue this momentum, the Alliance also has begun discussions with the Upper Peninsula cities and counties to find ways to collaborate on economic development efforts. The Alliance’s Propel Hampton Roads private sector capital campaign is well underway. Whether from CEOs on the Business Roundtable or from management of other companies, initial commitments towards our goal of $2 million in annual funding ($10 million over 5 years) from the private sector have been encouraging. As I write this letter, the Alliance has $1.45 million in commitments and another $1.75 million in pending pledges from businesses who have been asked to invest in the Alliance.

Formalized in our 2019 Business Plan, the Alliance now has a strategically focused Go-To-Market and business retention and expansion plan targeted on the following industries:

• Business & Shared Services • Information Technology • Advanced Manufacturing • Food & Beverage Processing • Distribution & Logistics

The Alliance team also has developed a detailed dashboard of Key Performance Indicators that tie to the 2019 Business Plan. This will enable management and investors to better measure performance and to develop strategies and action items to achieve goals. The Alliance team has moved quickly in 2019 to develop new operating alignments and protocols with our public partners to facilitate the shift from a local to a regional economic development model. In the course of these conversations the Alliance staff has reconvened the Regional Economic Development (RED) Team with a new participatory format which has contributed to excellent engagement and participation at the 2019 monthly meetings. Similarly, Alliance management has engaged with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) on a variety of fronts to align the regional approach with VEDP’s strategies. In closing, I want to personally thank each stakeholder for your support and encouragement as the Alliance has worked through the past two years of transition and opportunity, and to encourage your future support as the Alliance and the region forge a new path for regional economic development. Hampton Roads is an economic region and we are stronger working together. Joint collaboration and engagement among government and business will enable the Alliance to play a vital role in enhancing organic business growth and bringing high-wage jobs, greater investment and a stronger tax base to our region.