Connecting Young Professionals throughout The Plus
Posted by ThePlus - 07.28.2010
Northeast Ohio is home to more than 50 young professional (YP) groups whose interests range from networking to supporting a particular nonprofit. The Cleveland Plus Marketing Alliance (CPMA) which drives Northeast Ohio’s regional marketing campaign, is reaching out to these groups to bring them together for a common cause: retaining and attracting YPs to the Cleveland Plus region (Cleveland+Akron+Canton+Youngstown).
“We started with the simple idea of involving young professionals in the development of the Cleveland Plus brand,” said Rick Batyko of Cleveland Plus. “But over the last three years, that effort grew to include thousands of YPs from around Northeast Ohio who are leveraging our events to broaden their networks and learn more about all the region has to offer them.”
In April 2006, the CPMA formed an ad hoc YP advisory committee to serve as a sounding board to help advance the campaign. While advising on the development of the Cleveland Plus brand, the committee decided to plan a “Networking in the Middle event” for YPs across Northeast Ohio. The first event attracted more than 500 attendees and led to six more Networking in the Middle events from November 2006 to mid-2009. More than 2,000 YPs from across the region participated.
To expand on this success, the CPMA and its most active YP leaders decided to host a Cleveland Plus YP Summit in November 2009. With 38 YP groups from across the region represented, the summit proved that YP groups were ready to work together and focus their efforts on common goals. After the summit, an informal committee was formed to finalize a YP agenda.
In June 2010, YPs from across Northeast Ohio came together for a second YP Summit, facilitated by Rebecca Ryan of Next Generation Consulting. The Summit engaged more than 50 YP leaders and 50 community influencers and outlined six priority areas crucial to retaining and attracting YPs to Northeast Ohio. The six priorities included: government reform, mentoring programs, unified asset awareness throughout the region, public education reform, connecting Northeast Ohio’s talent system and improving Cleveland’s downtown core.
While the YP agenda developed after the November 2009 Summit formalized a process for bringing YPs together on a regular basis, the six priorities that came out of the June 2010 Summit represent bold initiatives that YPs will work to improve with the help of community influencers.
Going forward, a new committee of “YP liaisons” will work to bring these ideas to fruition. Ultimately, the CPMA hopes to help foster a regional YP community that is able to enhance Northeast Ohio’s attraction and retention efforts and strengthen our region’s base of future leaders.
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