op-ed

The following op-ed was written by the East Valley Partnership CEO Roc Arnett and was originally published in the Arizona Republic’s community edition on Friday, June 14, 2013.

A rising tide lifts all boats.

That’s the essence of an exciting new collaborative effort to raise awareness nationally about the East Valley. Simply put, we want to use a brand called PHX East Valley to attract business and jobs.

The PHX is our way to capitalize on the national and international renown that Phoenix has rightfully earned as the sixth-largest city in the country. The East Valley allows us to incorporate the name that brings so much pride to the people who live there.

Our goal is to leverage the tremendous business and educational assets of the East Valley and make them better known nationally and perhaps internationally.

We see this effort as the logical next step in building awareness for the Valley as a whole. We see this as complementing the great work of the Arizona Commerce Authority, the Greater Phoenix Economic Council and regional groups such as Westmarc.

There are vivid examples around the country where this model of a regional coalition and cooperation can work. After all, as a region, we can do more together than any of the respective areas can do individually. The time has come to embrace the opportunity like other regions around the country have done.

This effort could not have been possible without the strong, supportive endorsement of business, education and government. All realized that the East Valley has made great strides during these past years and now is the time to coalesce around an effort to take that message to the nation and the world.

As part of our work, we contracted with an outside firm to conduct extensive national research. We learned some fascinating things throughout the process:

Phoenix is certainly top of mind but the East Valley is an unknown.

We’re known as a retirement area.

Ironically, we’re seen as having a young and affordable workforce.

We are four years younger than the national median age.

We don’t get as much credit for having an educated workforce.

So what did we do with all of that information? We used it as fuel. We tried to crystallize all that we learned and boil it down to some elements that this regional identity could use as something of a calling card.

We know this place is special and is doing great things. Now, we want those decision makers at businesses throughout the country and the world to know what a special place this is and we want the site selectors who help them choose locations to know it as well.

We plan to work with economic-development groups in the East Valley and beyond in our quest to help bring high-wage jobs in our knowledge-oriented industries.

Thanks to all the people who have contributed and supported this effort and who will work with us in bringing the PHX East Valley campaign to life.

The East Valley Partnership board and staff are privileged to help facilitate this effort. For 31 years, the EVP has been the business voice for the East Valley. We believe this effort will help all our boats in the Valley experience smoother sailing.

The following op-ed was written by the Arizona Republic’s Southeast Valley editorial board and was originally published in the Arizona Republic’s community edition on Friday, June 21, 2013.

The concept of the “East Valley” hasn’t penetrated anyone’s consciousness outside of Arizona. So, the East Valley Partnership’s quest to rebrand the region was both wise and necessary.

The group, an assortment of business, government and education leaders, realized that the name “Phoenix” was necessary to include in the region’s identity.

After all, the city is the nation’s sixth largest and is the country’s largest state-capital city. And despite Arizona’s regrettable political follies in recent years, the city has retained a positive image with business leaders around the country.

So, now it’s “Phoenix East Valley,” a concept that is as simple and compact as it is easy to remember.

A consultant’s study showed that Phoenix is associated with relatively low real-estate costs and a young, affordable workforce. More than any other city in the West, Phoenix makes the business leaders’ first or second cuts when it comes to plans for expansion, the study found.

The East Valley alone? Didn’t ring a bell.

Roc Arnett, the partnership’s leader, compared the move to baseball’s Anaheim Angels changing their name to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

The use of Phoenix has been crucial in the miraculous boom of Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, which has gone from zero to about 1.4 million passengers in roughly six years. There’s every reason to think the name will help here, too.

The goal of all this is to attract companies and high-paying jobs to the region. The study found that enormous growth opportunities exist in education technology and global trade.

The region’s resources, led by Arizona State University and Intel (which has made a $20 billion investment since the mid-1990s), are obviously enormous.

Now, more people will know about them.