Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation Unveils 'Metro Denver E-Force'

DENVER, May 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Today at its Eighth Annual Meeting and Awards Luncheon, the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation (Metro Denver EDC) will unveil a new campaign that is designed to mobilize the region's most passionate business leaders and help position why Metro Denver is a top place for innovative companies and people.

Christened the Metro Denver E-Force, these executives, known as agents, are working in partnership with the Metro Denver EDC to share the latest rankings, business news, and inside knowledge with their professional and social media networks.  

"Since we started the Metro Denver EDC eight years ago, I've continually been approached by executives asking what they can do to help," said Tom Clark, CEO of the Metro Denver EDC. "This campaign is one way we can engage with people to have them really make a difference in promoting the region's economy, especially since it will keep Metro Denver top-of-mind for companies looking to expand or relocate."

The E-Force will be divided in two different groups of agents. The first is a smaller, core group of 30 initial 5280 Agents who were hand selected by the Metro Denver EDC to help host prospective companies to the region, participate in special events such as the annual Metro Denver Site Selection Conference, and identify suppliers who might consider Colorado for their next location.

The second group, known as Digital Agents, will receive news from the Metro Denver EDC through emails that they can automatically upload to their social media networks.

"We've always been extremely innovative in how we approach economic development marketing, most recently with our Colorado loves California campaign," Clark said. "As we've moved down this road, we've seen a changing of the guard of the people we deal with: they are younger and they are using social media networks."

Clark added, "We believe our E-Force, in particular the digital side of the program, is the next great frontier in how communities can leverage the huge networks of their company executives to help engage with our target audiences for investment and talent attraction."

Even during the recession, business news about the region has been positive. Last year, Metro Denver ranked third in the nation for job growth, with strong employment numbers in its eight industry clusters and subclusters including employment growth in its healthcare and wellness, aerospace, and clean-technology clusters. In addition, a recent study by the Brookings Institution found that Metro Denver attracted more relocating adults ages 25 to 34 than any other U.S. metro area in 2011.

Metro Denver has also been a magnet for new company relocation and expansion. In April, two companies broke ground on new headquarters facilities in the region. The TriZetto Group, a healthcare technology company, will add 750 jobs at a 186,000-square-foot facility in Douglas County and the IMA Financial Group broke ground on its new headquarters next to Union Station in lower downtown Denver. In addition, SCL Health Systems announced in March that it would relocate its corporate headquarters from Kansas to Metro Denver, creating 750 new jobs.

During today's luncheon, four of the region's E-Force Agents including Christian Dwyer, Senior Vice President and General Manager, MapQuest; David Eves, President and CEO, Public Service Company of Colorado, an Xcel Energy company; Andrew Hudson, CEO & Founder, Andrew Hudson's Jobs List; and Steve Katsaros, Inventor, Nokero will participate in a candid, interactive dialogue on the global positioning of Metro Denver's business assets.

"I'm encouraged by the amount of technology innovation happening in Colorado; however, the local tech industry faces a challenge in ensuring the potential workforce -- students and high-caliber employees -- stay in the Centennial State," said Dwyer. "At MapQuest we are passionate about Colorado and have made it a goal to help this community flourish. Being a 5280 Agent is just one more step I can take to help ensure the growth and stability of my industry."

Hudson, who manages a job posting website that receives more than 85,000 hits a month from job searchers and company executives throughout the nation, agreed with Dwyer on why this program will be important to showcase the strength of the Metro Denver region.

"Denver has been successful in attracting premiere companies to relocate, expand and grow here," said Hudson, a Metro Denver E-Force Digital Agent. "Along with great companies, we also need to continue to attract and retain great talent. This program allows me to regularly share with job seekers information about the region's economy and its lifestyle on a medium with which they are already using for research and news."

Anyone interested in becoming a digital agent for the Metro Denver EDC's E-Force program can sign up by visiting www.metrodenver.org/eforce. Once sign-up is complete, the agent will receive periodic updates from the Metro Denver EDC that they can choose to automatically post or not post to their social media networks.

To help kick off the campaign and encourage sign-ups for its digital agents, the Metro Denver EDC will give a $20 pre-loaded, branded gift card to every tenth digital agent.

For more information on the Metro Denver EDC, visit www.metrodenver.org.

Press Contact: Janet Fritz, 303.620.8039

SOURCE Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation