ABOUT THE ALLIANCE
The Hampton Roads Alliance (the Alliance) is the leading regional economic development organization for the Hampton Roads region of Virginia. It is a nonprofit, public-private partnership supported and led by the region’s most influential business leaders, local governments, and top academic institutions — all of whom are dedicated to the creation of a more diverse, growing and prosperous economy. The Alliance is proud to represent 15 localities who, with the support of over 100 private sector investors, govern and resource the organization and its regional economic development efforts. The Hampton Roads Alliance’s mission is to work collaboratively to lead the Hampton Roads region in attracting, growing and retaining companies and talent to create a more resilient, inclusive and equitable region of choice.
The Alliance serves as a catalyst for new business attraction, existing business growth and long-term business environment improvements in the Hampton Roads region. We do this by proactively:
Marketing Hampton Roads, Virginia as a globally competitive location for business and talent.
Leading collaborative processes across peer organizations to leverage complementary assets and strengthen coordinated action.
Facilitating decision processes for companies considering Hampton Roads for new business investments and existing business expansion.
Engaging the region’s top business, academic, and elected leaders to understand key trends impacting the region’s economic competitiveness.
Providing assistance to existing businesses that foster regional growth.
Utilizing multiple databases and statistical platforms to provide relevant, comprehensive, and up-to-date reports and research for our prospects, partners and more.
OUR SERVICES
Through collaboration with our community and business partners, the Alliance serves as the region’s single point of contact for corporate decision makers and site selection consultants who are seeking assistance with real estate site selection, data analysis, workforce development, educational resources, business services and more. All business attraction, retention and expansion assistance is confidential and provided at no cost, to domestic and international companies considering Hampton Roads.
Regional Business-to-Business Networking: The Hampton Roads Alliance is a public-private partnership made up of its members which are local governments and leading private sector businesses here in the region. Our business development staff have existing relationships with our members and the business community. For example, a local metal fabricator requested to meet with the supply chain division of region’s leading shipbuilder, Huntington Ingalls. Our team coordinated a visit and meeting for a business development opportunity for both organizations.
Supply Chain Development Support: The Alliance is a regional economic development organization focused on attracting new capital investment and jobs to Hampton Roads. In that effort, the business attraction team develops their plans of work based on target industries for the region. Our leads are generated by companies that have identified Hampton Roads as an ideal business location, often to be near their customers. We are also interested in the business customers and suppliers for the region’s existing businesses. In attracting companies that grow our existing industry clusters, existing businesses will have opportunities to enhance their supply chain, potentially reduce their costs and possibly add new product lines.
Business Intelligence Data: The Alliance has a robust business intelligence division with a dedicated Director of Business Intelligence on staff to develop reports and analyze data. Our organization subscribes to several paid services that aggregate public and proprietary business intelligence. We are able to quickly develop market research reports and wage analysis to help companies make better decisions. We have supported existing businesses in making the business case to their board or corporate leadership for budget decisions by supplying regional business intelligence to include skill level information for the regional available workforce, regional educational and training programs, and case studies to support business decision making.
Matchmaking for Startup Technologies and Established Business Operations: Hampton Roads is emerging as a leader in the start up space with new technologies being developed in community like ReAktor in Hampton (a business accelerator that was a spin off from NASA), the Norfolk Innovation Corridor, and within our colleges and universities with technology transfer. We are inquiring with established businesses, particularly with chief innovation officers or leaders within the research and development divisions about their goals and industry areas to create partnerships with the startup community. We have found that established businesses are able to expand through new product lines and services with R&D support.
Consultative Services: The Hampton Roads Alliance has implemented various value-added services for qualifying expansion projects. The qualifications for these incentives align with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership’s Virginia Jobs Investment Program. These offerings are designed to enhance the local and state incentive package and create value for companies within our target industry sectors. The offering includes (1) Project Announcement Aftercare to follow up after the expansion announcement to ensure the project is moving along and regional connections are facilitated, (2) Custom Marketing Solutions to showcase the company’s announcement leveraging regional and global media distribution networks, (3) Membership to the Hampton Roads Alliance as an Investor receiving benefits such as listing in the Investor Directory, promotion at the Annual Report and Alliance investor events, and invitations to exclusive Investor Events featuring other leading Hampton Roads business leaders.
The Hampton Roads Alliance is dedicated to assisting you with your business investment or expansion needs. The decision to invest in a new or expanded operation is never taken lightly. Our goal is to match the business needs required for your company to be successful with the assets found in Hampton Roads, Virginia. Our objective is to facilitate the evaluation process and provide powerful tools that save you time and money as you seek to locate your new business operations in Hampton Roads. Connect with us today.
