On April 16 2003, more than 150 people participated in a "Summit on the Economic Future for Sarasota County”. In a diverse community that has at times been described as fragmented, the Summit yielded a remarkable level of consensus and sense of a shared vision.

The 2003 Summit was convened as part of Sarasota County's 2003 Economic Development Plan. Introductory speakers at the Summit included County Administrator James Ley, County Commissioner David Mills, and Schroeder/Manatee President John Clarke. Summit participants comprised a diverse group of business owners and executives, small enterprise managers and entrepreneurs, and civic leaders.

The event commenced with a presentation of research findings by the project's consulting team. The preliminary analysis addressed economic conditions, institutional factors and development opportunities for the County. A major finding was the identification of Sarasota's 10 largest economic clusters, and the interactions between those clusters.

Having reviewed the traditional drivers of the Sarasota economy, and discussed some of the potential threats to economic health associated with remaining on an unchanged path, Summit participants completed a "Cluster Visioning” exercise. Starting with a diagram of Sarasota's existing clusters, participants drew in the new linkages and cluster expansions they envisioned for the region's future.

The outcome of the cluster visioning exercise was striking. The completed diagram indicated, more powerfully than written words ever could, just how strongly participants supported the project's key recommendation: that Sarasota should attempt to attain a diversified and more sustainable economy, and that the best way to do so would be targeted development of the region's higher value-added clusters.

The Summit concluded with participants separating into breakout teams, each assigned to explore economic goals such as Developing Business Climate, Expanding Sarasota's Strengths, Growing Local Businesses, Enhancing Business Image, Ensuring County-Wide Development, and Leveraging Efforts. Report-backs from the breakout groups generated a number of strong recommendations for the region's economic efforts:

• Active attraction of talented, innovative new residents to the region
• Coordination of effort & communication among major economic development entities
• Use of angel networks and streamlined regulations to achieve a capital-rich, business-supporting environment
• A strong public education campaign on the benefits of economic development

Having established this shared vision, Sarasota County is moving rapidly ahead to implement it. In each of Sarasota's four high-potential clusters - manufacturing, health & life sciences, creative services, and high tech - Cluster Groups have been launched, bringing together businesspeople and civic leaders to investigate collaborative strategies for enhancing economic competitiveness. Additionally, Working Groups on Business Climate and on Public Education will convene, to address these important economic foundation issues, and thereby create a fertile climate for cluster development in Sarasota.