Upstate South Carolina Alliance

Organizational Strategic Plan (2008)

Because of history, geography and demographic dynamics, Upstate South Carolina has often been more of a region “on paper” than in practice.  While great progress has been made to bring the disparate communities of the Upstate together until a common banner, there is much work remaining to fully realize the vision of the Upstate’s potential as a unified entity.

To determine how it can best facilitate the realization of this vision, the Upstate South Carolina Alliance retained Market Street to develop a Strategic Plan for the organization.  Market Street is now working with the Alliance to provide the organization with an understanding of how its mission, operational structure and programs relate to the current and future needs of the region.  Ultimately, the Plan will enable the Alliance to more effectively realize the job and wealth-creation goals of the Upstate region.

In its five-plus years of existence, the Upstate Alliance has grown from being a “start-up” regional marketing organization to serving as a key player in regional economic development.  The question is no longer, “Will the Alliance survive?” but “How can the Alliance more effectively impact regional growth and development?”  To that end, the strategic process assessed current Alliance operations, involved hundreds of regional investors and stakeholders, and identified best-practice models that could inform the Alliance’s future programs and processes.

Ultimately, the Alliance’s Strategic Plan and implementation priorities will serve to refocus the organization on key activities that can help improve the region’s competitiveness and advance its economic prospects.

The Plan has been approved by the Alliance’s executive committee and Board of Directors, who gave staff the mandate to take the strategy and put it into successful motion.