Analyzing Industry Clusters and Foundations of Regional Partnerships with Consideration of the I-29 Corridor Task Force in South Dakota

<p>The purpose of this study was to investigate components of a regional growth strategy with consideration of the I-29 Corridor Task Force including analyzing industry clusters and foundations of regional partnerships in South Dakota. There were two primary objectives of this research. The first was to create cluster definitions and evaluate traded industry clusters in South Dakota and the I-29 Corridor Region to gain a better understanding of potential sources of competitive advantage or areas of need. To evaluate the state and region this study develops cluster definitions based on cluster research and the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). The cluster definitions are used to gather employment and establishment data to measure the presence of individual industries within the cluster, as well as the cluster as a whole. The second objective was to examine foundations for fostering partnerships that can successfully develop, coordinate, and implement a regional growth strategy. This included analyzing the initiatives, membership, leadership, and governance process of the I-29 Corridor Task Force and findings on successful regional strategies in the literature to identify recommendations that would strengthen Task Force partnerships and advance a regional strategy. The results increase an understanding of whether or not clusters are developed enough to be considered leverage as part of a regional growth strategy, as well as how the I-29 Corridor Task Force should organize to successfully move forward such a strategy.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science (MS)

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis - University Access Only

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Economics

Year dc:date.available

2012

Author dc:creator

• Warne, Joshua M.

Contributors dc:contributor

• Carol J. Cumber

• Economics
• Regional Economics

Statement dc:rights

• <p>In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted<br /><a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/</a></p>

Language dc:language

en

Repository record dc:identifier

https://openprairie.sdstate.edu/etd/1364

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:openprairie.sdstate.edu:etd-2360