o guarantee the high level of service provided by the VPs of economic development to Georgia’s businesses, the DTAE in 1989 implemented the Certified Economic Developer Trainer (CEDT) program, a professional training program with high standards for certification.

“What we do is very dynamic,” says Pete McDonald, a 1997 CEDT graduate and VP of economic development for Coosa Valley Technical College. “We have to change as the challenges change,” he says, and it’s through the CEDT program that economic developers are trained to respond to the ongoing needs of businesses.

“Through CEDT, both technical college and Quick Start staff members are better able to market Georgia communities as location sites for businesses and to excel at training the workforce for all kinds of manufacturing and service industries,” says Sandra Morris, Quick Start’s director of performance technology operations, who oversees the CEDT program.

“We accomplish this in three ways,” Morris continues. “We continually update our training to match the evolving needs of businesses. We incorporate hands-on project assignments aligned with CEDT job duties. And, once certification is complete, we provide additional training during annual conferences.”

The CEDT program consists of a rigorous, 18-month curriculum that covers a wide range of relevant economic development competencies, from effective community marketing, manufacturing and service industry operations, and assessing workforce training needs to the latest quality and productivity enhancement programs such as Lean Manufacturing. Program activities are diverse and include interactive workshops, self-study, operational tours and four individual projects. Project assignments include a community assessment and an in-depth analysis of one manufacturing or service company.

“A great deal of complex content is covered,” says Jan Melcher, VP of economic development for DeKalb Technical College. “Project assignments are very challenging. Participants learn the intricacies of how businesses are recruited and trained in Georgia. This knowledge, along with Quick Start and college resources, prepares them to function as a vital economic development partner within their community.”

Since 1989, the DTAE’s CEDT program has set the standard for excellence in the workforce development arena of economic development. Before CEDT, “there were pockets of excellence all over Georgia, but no way to ensure that all businesses received the same high quality of workforce development services through our agency,” explains Jackie Rohosky, DTAE assistant commissioner of economic development.

“At that time, local technical schools were transitioning to what is today the statewide technical college system,” Rohosky continues. “As part of this change, the DTAE’s Board of Directors and Commissioner Dr. Kenneth Breeden identified the need for training to meet the unique needs of the DTAE’s economic developers. In partnership with Georgia State University, a DTAE team designed and launched the CEDT program to extend this excellence to all areas of Georgia. Today, we guarantee the quality of the program and partner with the Goizueta Business School at Emory University to ensure high-caliber and objective evaluation of projects.”

To date there have been 10 CEDT classes and the Certified Economic Developer Trainer program is still keeping up with the frantic pace of economic development in Georgia.

Click here for Adobe PDF Version of this page