Site Selectors Guild Fall Forum

Agenda

All events are located at The Westin Book Cadillac Detroit unless otherwise noted. Event locations and times are subject to change.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2024

1:00 PM-5:00 PM | Badge Pick Up

5:00 PM – 6:30 PM | Guild Partner Event (private event for Guild Partners)

7:00 PM – 9:00 PM | Welcome Reception 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2024
7:00 AM – 8:00 AM | Breakfast

8:00 AM – 8:30 AM | Welcome

8:30 AM – 9:30 AM | Powering EV: A Look at the Future of EV Projects 

This general session, being held in Motor City, will examine the requirements of a successful EV project, including timelines, energy partners and grid reliability. It will also dive into the industry and explain how it is developing across the U.S. and globally. Guild members will also speak to the current excitement surrounding the EV industry and evaluate the industry’s long-term potential. 

9:30 AM – 10:30 AM | Behind the Rankings: CNBC’s Top States for Business with Scott Cohn

Join veteran journalist Scott Cohn as he takes you behind the scenes of CNBC’s annual rankings of America’s Top States for Business. In this session, Scott will break down the methodology behind the rankings, explore the key factors that elevate certain states to the top, and discuss the trends driving state competitiveness in today’s economic landscape. Gain exclusive insights into how states are positioning themselves for business success and what it means for site selection and economic development strategies moving forward.

10:30 AM – 11:00 AM | Break

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM | Breakouts Sessions Block 1

• The Changing Landscape in Migration and Placemaking

This session will take a deep dive into demographic shifts and trends and provide examples of strong placemaking, including transformative and adaptive office use, that communities use to attract and retain talent.

• The Pitch: Marketing Practices that Hit My Radar

Both Guild members and economic developers continue to share the importance of branding for EDOs. Guild members will highlight place brands, marketing tactics, special events, websites, and other creative approaches that hit their radar and weigh in on why it left a memorable impression.

• AI vs. The Guild: Collecting Data for a Project in Real-Time

This session will feature a live, interactive demonstration of how AI versus Guild members collect data for a project, building on the Guild’s “AI in Site Selection” report. The objective of this session is to explain AI’s strengths and limitations in producing accurate information and how that relates to a site selector’s data collection process.

• Site Selection 101: How to Be a Best-in-Class Economic Developer

This session is designed for both professionals and public sector leaders who are new to the economic development industry and Guild events. The session will be a crash course on site selection and how consultants interact with companies and will be framed around the five top traits of a great economic developer.

• Best Practices in Site Readiness

This session will look at the range of existing site certification programs, including the Guild’s recent launch of REDI Sites. 

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM | Lunch & Guild Talks

• Rajeev Thakur “Housing as a Force of Economic Development”
• Mark Williams “What Site Selection Clients Really Want”
• Courtney Dunbar “Proactive vs. Reactive Economic Development”

1:30 PM – 2:30 PM | Breakout Sessions Block 2 (Repeat of Block 1 Sessions)

2:30 PM – 3:00 PM | Break

3:00 PM – 4:30 PM | Navigating Geo-Political Risk in Foreign Direct Investment

In recent years, economic development organization have expressed increasing concerns about receiving investment from countries experience political conflict with the United States.  How can EDO’s successfully navigate FDI opportunities to avoid future problems?  The guild is pleased to welcome a representative from the U.S. Department of Treasury to discuss CFIUS and recent rules that address sensitive real estate and infrastructure issues impacting foreign investment. 

5:00 PM – 6:00 PM | Happy Hour

6:30 PM – 8:30 PM | Dinner with Consultants Sponsor Dinners
(private dinners for Dinner sponsors and Guild Members)

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2024
7:30 AM – 8:30 AM | Breakfast

8:30 AM – 9:30 AM | Ask Anything Breakouts

9:30 AM – 10:00 AM | Break

10:00 AM – 11:00 AM | Case Study: How Sustainability Fueled Eastman Chemical’s $600 Million Project in Longview, Texas

The Eastman Chemical Company’s search for a home for a $600 million molecular recycling facility started with a review of 24 US States with advanced recycling legislation that provided regulatory certainty for companies considering investments. The search continued with a short list of ten finalist communities. The company ultimately decided to build the new plant in Longview, Texas where Eastman has an existing facility. The Longview site will have the capacity to recycle approximately 110,000 metric tons of hard-to-recycle plastic waste.

Charley Poe, Eastman’s Vice President and Director of Government Relations, and Jeannette Goldsmith, Vice President of the Strategic Development Group, will take us behind the scenes where meeting the company’s sustainability goals served as the primary driver of the project. 

11:00 AM – 11:15 AM | Closing