Saline County Leaders Sharpen Their Skills With Prospect Team Training

Saline County, AR (May 2, 2006) –

You never have a second chance to make a first impression. Representatives from Saline County learned that lesson, along with many others, in a training session conducted by representatives of Teamwork Arkansas, Entergy’s Office of Economic Development, at the Almatis Training Center in Bauxite May 2. Numerous community leaders, consisting of business and economic development officials, participated in the training session.

Sherry McDonnell, community developer for Entergy Arkansas, coordinated efforts with the Saline County Economic Development Corporation to host two of Entergy’s business development professionals, Danny Games and Russell Harris. “From a community development perspective, it is extremely important to be prepared for site visits by companies considering your area for multi-million-dollar investments and equally important to use every tool you have once they visit to improve your chances of securing their location in the area,” McDonnell said.

Games and Russell conducted a two-hour training session for the communities to help them deal effectively with prospective companies looking to locate an operation in their area. The training addresses what to do before a prospect arrives in town and how to make the most of the opportunity once the prospect arrives. “I thought the training session was very worthwhile,” said Bill Hope, Jr,, chairman of the Saline County Economic Development Corporation. “Danny and Russell focused on some key points. They emphasized the importance of being prepared and of maintaining confidentiality, which is critical when working with prospective companies.”

Games is a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) through the International Economic Development Council, and Harris is a graduate of the Economic Development Institute and the Community Development Institute. Harris is a former project manager with the Arkansas Department of Economic Development. Both have worked with many communities across the state and numerous companies, including Goody’s (Russellville), Denso (Osceola), Eakas (Wynne), and Hino Motors (Marion).

Teamwork Arkansas, now in its 19th year, is one of the largest private-sector economic development initiatives in the country. Teamwork Arkansas partners with communities to create wealth and raise the standard of living for the citizens of Arkansas by providing professional and resourceful expertise in business recruitment, marketing, planning and research. For more information about Teamwork Arkansas resources available to Arkansas communities, contact Teamwork Arkansas at 501-377-4434.

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