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The health of a community's economy is directly related to the health of the businesses in that community. Economic development studies show that approximately 76 percent of new jobs and capital investment comes from a community's existing businesses. That is why APS' Building Bridges to Business program (B3) is investing in Arizona's greatest assets - the businesses that call our communities home.
The program ensures that the economic engine in Arizona's communities continues to thrive and grow by providing leaders in economic development organizations with a tool that helps them define, analyze and report data about specific businesses and industries within the community. The goal is to ensure that Arizona communities retain successful companies and encourage them to create more jobs.
Using a combination of sophisticated survey instruments and customized computer software, the B3 program evaluates the following five characteristics of small-, medium- or large-size companies within a specific Arizona community:
- Value to the community
- Growth potential
- Risk of relocating or downsizing
- Overall satisfaction
- Employment trends
When combined with face-to-face interviews, this information helps economic and community development professionals apply an efficient method to identify and implement strategies that will improve the business climate within their respective communities. Armed with the quantitative information garnered through B3, economic development leaders can make fact-based decisions to help their community thrive.
"The B3 Program has enabled us to collect information in a standard format that allows comparison of businesses in this region to other parts of the country," said Michelle Pierson, Economic Development Deputy Director for the City of Phoenix. "It also enables us to identify issues that need to be addressed by us, the county and the state. B3 helps us provide better services to businesses because we know what issues affect them most."
APS is committed to the economic development of our state and the B3 program is one example of this commitment in action.
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