Sometimes Companies Should Spend Money to Save Money

We here at Strategic Development Group are preparing to attend the 2019 Site Selectors Guild Annual Conference in Salt Lake City.  And as such, I find myself reflecting on the Guild’s Vision:  to ensure that every corporate location decision is guided by an experienced location strategy professional (like Strategic Development Group).  You might be thinking to yourself, “Well, of course!”  After all, if you break your arm, you aren’t going to see a dentist, right?  So, why would a company attempt to select a site and negotiate incentives without an expert? 

Unfortunately, we often find that companies do attempt to manage the site location and incentive negotiation process themselves.  The individual within the company tasked with leading the site selection process often has little understanding and/or time to conduct appropriate site evaluations and negotiations.  This mistake can be extremely costly, causing untold economic losses over the life of a project.

Selecting a site in the wrong location can result in costly mistakes that are not easily rectified.  Some examples:

• Locations impacted by insufficient land size and a buffer that inhibits expansion potential can cause serious public relations issues.
• Insufficient labor draw or quality of labor can require your company to pay higher wages than anticipated to attract the talent required or spend more internal capital on training programs.
• Logistics costs that are not competitive will continually eat into profit margins year after year.

Bottom line: The cost of hiring a qualified site selection consultant, like Strategic Development Group, is extremely small compared to the potential losses associated with selecting the wrong site.  Every capital investment decision should involve a professional site selection consultant with a proven process and track record of finding optimal locations and valuable, relevant incentive packages that will improve your bottom line. 

So, yes, sometimes you need to spend money to save money.

Strategic Development Group provides site selection and incentive negotiation services for a diverse range of manufacturing, distribution, office and corporate headquarters location projects.  We would be pleased to discuss your company’s site location needs.