Hunter Economic Development Corporation

<h2>Regional Leadership for Regional Growth</h2> <p>The Hunter Economic Development Corporation (HEDC) is an organisation appointed by the NSW State government and supported by the NSW Department of State and Regional Development. Led by a Board of 11 regional and business leaders, the HEDC's major task is to promote economic development in the Hunter by: </p> <ul> <li>Facilitating the creation of sustainable jobs </li> <li>Attracting investment </li> <li>Providing advice to government about the region's economic development issues </li> <li>Demonstrating leadership and partnership to regional stakeholders </li> </ul> <h2>Mission</h2> <p>The mission of the Board is to lead and assist regional development in the Hunter for the benefit of all communities of the Region.</p> <h2>Strategic Goals</h2> <p>The Board has developed four Strategic Goals for the Hunter Region: </p> <ul> <li>Recruit new investment to NSW Regions; </li> <li>Assist growth of existing business in regional NSW; </li> <li>Assist communities and regions to strengthen their viability as business locations; and </li> <li>Raise the profile of regional NSW as a business location. </li> </ul> <h2>Strategy</h2> <p>The HEDC Board has developed a strategy to achieve the Corporation's principle goal of economic development. The strategy promotes four core goals:</p> <h3>Promoting Regional Growth</h3> <p>The Region will succeed in continuing to attract new investment through: </p> <ul> <li>Community members acting as Hunter ambassadors conversant with detailed knowledge of the Region's achievements </li> <li>People choosing to live here because of the quality lifestyle and employment opportunities available </li> <li>The Region's competitive advantages. </li> </ul> <h2>Education & Skills</h2> <p>Through partnerships between industry, education and training providers the Region will succeed in: </p> <ul> <li>Enhancing career awareness and pathways </li> <li>Encouraging life long learning </li> <li>Continue to improve education attainment levels </li> <li>Growing employment opportunities within the education sector. </li> </ul> <h2>Regional Industry - coordination, collaboration, communication</h2> Build on its diversity Grow its "knowledge intensive" industries Penetrate niche markets Be a preferred region for investments. <h2>Infrastructure</h2> <p>Through its competitive port, road, rail and airport infrastructure, the Region will: </p> <ul> <li>Support the economic development of other regions </li> <li>Build on economic benefits of close proximity to major markets such as Sydney and Central Coast </li> <li>Offer a viable alternative to Sydney's congestion </li> <li>Continue to grow export and domestic markets. </li> <li> </ul> <h2>Marketing the Hunter</h2> <p>To achieve its goals, the HEDC must attract business to the Hunter and help local business grow. The Corporation's investment market strategy focuses on: </p> <ul> <li>Building local confidence in the region </li> <li>Improving the image of the Hunter nationally and internationally </li> <li>Targeting industry sectors and companies that can be matched with the Hunter's resources and skills </li> <li>Developing investment packages for individual companies. </li> <li>The HEDC has developed the regional brand "Hunter Means Business" which features on the Corporation's marketing material and has been adopted by regional stakeholders to provide one regional message. </li> <li> </ul> <h2>Who We Are</h2> <p>The HEDC's team comprises: </p> <ul> <li>Chief Executive Officer </li> <li>Administration / Accounts Officer </li> <li>Marketing Projects Officer </li> <li>Infrastructure Project Officer </li> <li>Hunter Export Centre - Manager</li> <li> </ul> <p>Contact us: <br> Lesley Morris <br> Chief Executive Officer <br> Tel: (02) 4908 7300 Fax: (02) 4929 7096 <br> lesley.morris@business.nsw.gov.au </p>