Leadership: Technology First Strategic Plan

Author: Ann Gallaher

August 2009

During the quarterly Board of Trustees meeting in July, a revised strategic plan was approved for Technology First focusing on three audiences – buyers, suppliers, and producers.

Buyers are CIO Council members that lead large enterprise information and communication systems. Typically vertical market industries – that are power users of technology – such as manufacturing and healthcare. Buyers tend to have a sizeable IT workforce so they are most interested in training, professional development, and best practices for their staff and their company.

Suppliers are Information Technology solutions and services providers that service small businesses to large enterprise organizations. Most often they service the local or regional geographic customer base. Suppliers tend to be most interested in developing new business development opportunities within driving distance of their customers.

Producers are technology companies – headquartered in Dayton – that are working to expand the reach of their product or service outside the region. They tend to be interested in entering new geographical areas because niche markets have a limited, local customer base or new vertical market industries.

Previous strategic plans and programming have focused primarily on buyers and suppliers. The Training Exchange, Digital Mixer, and CIO Council meetings have helped buyer members develop the professional competencies of their staff and learn better ways to solve problems.

The Tech Source program was developed with funds from the State of Ohio to help local businesses adopt technology. The web-based database of suppliers helps buyer companies find the best supplier company to meet their technology needs.

The new audience that has surfaced from this strategic plan is the producers. These companies are reaching beyond the Dayton area and scaling their businesses to service a broader market. A small group of producer CEOs have begun to meet to identify common challenges to their business and possible topics for discussion. In the coming year we plan to introduce you to these companies so you can learn more about the growing technology industry in Dayton!