Page 16 - I21 Summit Magazine

PROMOTING COLLABORATION AND

CREATING PARTNERSHIPS

Since its founding in 1907 (more than a century ago!) the mission of the Greater Akron Chamber has been to drive econom-
ic development and prosperity for all of the people of the Greater Akron Region.

hrough its public and private sector partnerships ing, incentives, retention and expansion, site selection and
and relationships, the 110-year old organization is workforce development.
Tcommitted to building - and maintaining - a vibrant Working with its economic development partners in Me-
and sustainable economy supported by leadership from dina, Portage and Summit Counties, the Greater Akron
business, education, foundations, government and non- Chamber has conducted nearly 5,000 business visitations
profi ts. via its award-winning Greater Akron Partnership busi-
Serving Medina, Portage, and Summit Counties - and its ness retention and expansion program since the program’s
nearly 900,000 residents - the Greater Akron Chamber has inception in 2003. The Greater Akron Partnership has
more than 1,500 members representing a diverse cross- made a real impact with local companies in targeted indus-
section of the community including entrepreneurs, family- try clusters including advanced manufacturing, automotive,
owned businesses, Fortune 500 companies, international logistics, health care, IT and rubber/plastics/polymers.
companies and start-ups. These companies employ more In 2017, the Greater Akron Partnership met with more
than 117,000 employees, have a payroll in excess of $2.3B than 400 companies in order to proactively address issues -
and represent total revenues in excess of $66B! and commence a dialogue - in an effort to advance invest-
Through its public and private partnerships with organi- ment opportunities throughout our region.
zations such as the Akron Urban League, City of Akron, Although not unique to the Greater Akron Region, the
Cascade Capital Corporation, County of Summit, Devel- Greater Akron Partnership has identifi ed workforce de-
opment Finance Authority, FirstEnergy and Team NEO/ velopment as an ongoing challenge for local employers.
JobsOhio, the Greater Akron Chamber provides traditional Working with partners such as Akron Public Schools,
areas of assistance including advocacy, attraction, fi nanc-

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