ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SECTOR REPORT SNAPSHOT
By Jacqueline Brinkman
It is well accepted that one of the key challenges for economic development professionals is measuring and evaluating outcomes and outputs related to their work . As the national peak body for economic development professionals , Economic Development Australia ( EDA ) has proactively supported the sector to address this challenge for many years .
One of the key elements of this work involved the customisation of a performance measurement model for economic development produced by the Government of British Columbia in Canada . This logic model framework was recognised by EDA ’ s national working group ( led by WA based , Lucy Heales ) as one of the most accessible and practical approaches to evaluating and reporting against economic development activity . The Canadian authorities generously gave EDA permission to adapt it for use within an Australian economic context . Launched in 2020 , this toolkit has become a much-appreciated resource available to EDA members to demonstrate the impact of their economic development projects regardless of size and scale . EDA will update and expand on this model in the next 12 months .
EDA is also building capacity in this area for the economic development sector , through the launch of the module : Measuring and Evaluating Economic Development . This one-day module is a core element of the National Economic Development Training and Education Program . The content provides a practical framework for measuring and evaluating economic development activities , and how to communicate economic development outcomes in the context of broader economic trends . This module strengthens knowledge in sourcing , analysing and distilling traditional and new economic data sets and helps professionals put this knowledge to work .
In 2024 , in order to further strengthen practitioners ’ ability to illustrate impact and output and to amplify EDA ’ s advocacy efforts , the organisation commissioned an overall sector report .
Following a public EOI process , EDA engaged the University of Newcastle ’ s Institute for Regional Futures to undertake a research project examining the scale and scope of the economic development sector . The research team , headed by Professor Roberta Ryan , SallyAnn Hunting and Myles Egan was commissioned to help EDA articulate what the economic development sector looks like , what impact it has and what the return is for a city or region investing in economic development .
VOL 17 NO 3 2024 06 www . edaustralia . com . au