Many people assume that when it comes to place development, the best way forward is to involve and engage with the local business community. I have been part of this 'engagement process' on a number of occasions. The private sector gets invited to lots of events, but often finds it hard to get excited about issues such as consultations, community planning and core service delivery. However, move on to discussing the image and reputation of a particular town or city, how it presents itself to the world, its competitiveness and whether it is attractive place for recruitment, investment and the development of business, and the local private sector is a most-than-willing participant. In today's economic climate the public sector needs to look closely at how best to work with and help local businesses, and it needs to adopt a serious approach to place experience and the 'climate' within which companies operate. Some towns, cities and regions are alive to the fact that how they communicate, the environment they manage, the product they develop and the way they deliver service provision, all really matter when they are compared with other locations.
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