Hawke's Bay regional economic development strategy: The importance of stakeholder buy-in

摘要

The main components of most economic development (ED) strategies are very similar. The visions and aspirational goals also sound alike for most communities. Most communities have also had a series of ED strategies that, over time, were often never implemented because of poor stakeholder buy-in. This paper considers the importance of community support for an ED strategy and compares the engagement processes of the Auckland Council and the Hawke's Bay in developing their respective regional economic development strategies. In the Hawke's Bay situation, the process is more important than the actual strategy document. This paper argues that garnering stakeholder buy-in is the most critical component of the strategy development process.