Palouse Knowledge Corridor Corporation

IN LATE 2021, THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS COMMITTED TO HIRING THE ORGANIZATIONS FIRST EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR. THAT NOVEMBER, RICH FRENCH WAS HIRED TO FILL THAT POSITION. DURING THE FIRST FOUR MONTHS, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR INTERVIEWED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURIAL SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS AS WELL AS LOCAL BUSINESS OWNERS TO MAP THE SUPPORT ECOSYSTEM IN THE PALOUSE. THIS EFFORT WAS NOT ONLY TO CREATE A LIST OF RESOURCES AVAILABLE, BUT ALSO TO START TO REBUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH THESE ORGANIZATIONS. AFTER AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST OF RESOURCES IN THE REGION WAS CREATED, IN LATE FEBRUARY OF 2022 THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND BOARD KICKED OFF OUR FIRST OF THREE STRATEGIC PLANNING MEETINGS. THESE MEETINGS STARTED WITH REVIEWING THE INFORMATION COLLECTED BY THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR. THAT INFORMATION WAS SORTED AND GROUPED INTO LIKE CATEGORIES. AFTER A DETAILED REVIEW AND DISCUSSION OF THE RESULTS OF THOSE INTERVIEWS, THE BOARD IDENTIFIED THREE PROJECTS. THIS NEW STRATEGIC PLAN WAS A SHIFT FROM THE ORIGINS OF THE PALOUSE KNOWLEDGE CORRIDOR. THIS SHIFT LED TO THE RENAMING AND BRANDING OF THE ORGANIZATION TO ONE PALOUSE. CURRENT PROJECTS:PALOUSE BASED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ROUNDTABLE OUR FIRST EVENT WAS HELD IN DECEMBER OF 2022. THE MORNING SESSION INCLUDED SPEAKERS FROM WASHINGTON AND IDAHOS SBA, SBDC, EDA, USDA RD, AND WSU. THE AFTERNOON WAS A FACILITATED DISCUSSION LED BY THE CLEARWATER ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION (CEDA) TO IDENTIFY THE CHALLENGES FACED BY ENTREPRENEURS AND THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT SUPPORT THEM. ONLINE ECOSYSTEM MAP AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST OF PALOUSE BASED ENTREPRENEURIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS HAS BEEN COLLECTED. A SEARCH FOR A TOOL TO PRESENT, SEARCH, AND UPDATE THAT DATA WAS COMPLETED, AND A SOFTWARE TOOL IDENTIFIED. IN LATE 2022, WASHINGTON STATE MICROENTERPRISE ASSOCIATION (WSMA) RECEIVED A GRANT TO LAUNCH A TOOL CALLED EVERGREEN BIZHUB. THIS TOOL IS A STATEWIDE LIST OF ENTREPRENEURIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS UTILIZING THE SAME SOFTWARE AS IDENTIFIED BY ONE PALOUSE. THIS PROJECT HAS BEEN PUT ON HOLD UNTIL LICENSING CAN BE NEGOTIATED THAT COULD INCLUDE THE IDAHO PORTION OF THE PALOUSE. ONE PALOUSE HAS CREATED A QUICK START TOOL ON OUR WEBSITE TO CONNECT ENTREPRENEURS TO THOSE RESOURCES UNTIL THE ISSUE CAN BE RESOLVED. PARTNER ACCOMMODATIONS - THE ONE PALOUSE PARTNER ACCOMMODATIONS PROGRAM RECOGNIZES THAT SUCCESS IN RECRUITMENT OFTEN DEPENDS ON THE OPPORTUNITY TO FACILITATE THE EMPLOYMENT OF AN ACCOMPANYING PARTNER/SPOUSE. OUR LOCAL BUSINESS AND ORGANIZATIONS NEED A TOOL TO COMMUNICATE THOSE NEEDS AND ADDRESS THAT ESSENTIAL PART OF RECRUITING AND RETAINING THE HIGHEST QUALITY EMPLOYEES. THIS TOOL WILL FACILITATE COOPERATION BETWEEN HIRING AGENCIES IN THE REGION AND WILL INCLUDE PROVIDING JOB SEARCH GUIDANCE AND REFERRALS TO JOB NETWORKING CONTACTS. WE ARE CURRENTLY BETA TESTING A FACEBOOK GROUP WITH LIMITED MEMBERS TO IDENTIFY ANY ISSUES WITH THE TOOL BEFORE RELEASE.