Town of Cochrane Strategic Plan – Final Report October 2014
organization manage and allocate its resources more effectively, but will also facilitate the
initiatives in the community’s economic strategic plan.
For example, CTS is well positioned to deliver Strategic Direction 7.1.2 Encourage Internet
adoption by Local Businesses. CTS’s role may be in the form of business training, promotional
offerings, and/or infrastructure offerings/upgrades. NOW could support Strategic Direction 7.2.6
Explore Feasibility of a Greenhouse Adjacent to a Waste Heat Source. Although NOW’s core
service offering doesn’t include power production, it may have the expertise to manage the
feasibility study of waste heat capture and utilization study that is a byproduct of the Northland
Power co-generation plant.
Potential community leaders
CTS and NOW will each lead their respective strategic planning initiatives. Their respective
Boards are best suited to provide the role of steering committee members to guide their respective
plans.
Potential funding sources
• NOHFC, page 100.
• FedNor, page 95.
7.1.5 Explore the Feasibility of Targeted Manufacturing
Economic development opportunities have the greatest chance for success when they leverage
competitive advantages. As discussed earlier in this document, a community has a competitive
advantage when it acquires or develops an attribute or asset that allows it to outperform competing
organizations or communities.85
When communities have limited resources, the wisest strategy is to identify and pursue only those
opportunities where they have at least one obvious advantage. Cochrane’s competitive advantages
include:
• Access to natural resources, such as the Great Claybelt agricultural area and Boreal Forest
biome.
• Bilingual labour pool.
• Ready access to utilities, e.g. natural gas, and an inexpensive waste heat source.
• Location on the TransCanada Highway.
• Freight rail access.
The Economic Development Officer should first develop a more detailed list of the community’s
competitive advantages. From this list, he or she can generate three to five potential business
opportunities that rely on these particular advantages as location selection criteria. The EDO
85
Porter, Michael E. (1985). Competitive Advantage. Free Press.
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