Interactive dashboards offer comprehensive look at TNECD’s initiatives
NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD) today launched a new online platform that provides the public with current information measuring TNECD’s strategic objectives.
The platform features 40 interactive dashboards, tracking economic data and initiatives tied to TNECD’s long-term strategic plan. The key performance indicators on the dashboards also outline historical data and trends as well as graphics and maps that are searchable by city, county and region.
The dashboards can be found here, or by going to tnecd.com/performance-metrics.
“These new dashboards enable Tennesseans to get an exhaustive look at the key economic measures and goals that drive TNECD’s long-term strategic plan,” TNECD Commissioner Bob Rolfe said. “The public primarily knows TNECD through major jobs announcements. But these dashboards tell the fuller story of our department and shed more light on the hard work that goes into our wide range of initiatives.”
“This tool shares TNECD’s strategy, goals and ongoing performance with the public in a user-friendly way, outlining our programs as transparently as possible,” Ted Townsend, TNECD’s chief operating officer, said. “I hope it will serve as a valuable resource for citizens who want to engage with TNECD as our team works to promote thriving and growing communities across our state.”
The public can use the dashboards to view a range of key performance measures, including TNECD’s five long-term objectives. TNECD has set all of these goals for 2025:
- To have the lowest unemployment of the dozen states in the Southeast.
- To rank among the top 2 states in the Southeast for personal income per capita.
- To have the highest private capital investment per capita in the Southeast.
- To eliminate all Tennessee counties that are federally designated as distressed counties. This designation is based on poverty rates, income levels and unemployment rate.
- To secure predominantly high quality jobs from expanding or newly locating businesses in Tennessee, defined as 55 percent of job commitments paying at or above the county median wage where the private investment is made.
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Additionally, the dashboards track TNECD’s business development projects dating back to 2011; FastTrack, community and rural development grants; visits with existing businesses and stakeholder meetings, among other topics.
“The Beacon Center applauds TNECD for this initiative to increase transparency through its new dashboard,” Mark Cunningham, director of marketing and communications for the Beacon Center of Tennessee, said. “While we may disagree on the role of government in subsidizing business, we can all agree that taxpayers deserve to know how their money is being spent. This dashboard is a major step in the right direction.”
“Transparency in government is a vital part of our democracy, but often governments fail to provide data in a way that is accessible, user-friendly, and comprehensive. The new dashboards created by TNECD don’t just dump more data online, but actually make that data useful to ordinary citizens,” Michelle Surka, advocate with U.S. Public Interest Research Group, said. “With this website, we can begin to see where Tennessee aims to be with regards to economic development, where it actually is, and how the state is working to bridge the distance between the two.”
TNECD staff developed the dashboards internally, with the assistance of Strategic Technology Solutions (STS), using state infrastructure and Tableau analytics.
About the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development
The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development’s mission is to develop strategies that help make Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs. To grow and strengthen Team Tennessee, the department seeks to attract new corporate investment in Tennessee and works with Tennessee companies to facilitate expansion and economic growth. Tennessee is the only three-time winner of “State of the Year” for economic development by Business Facilities magazine. Find us on the web: TNECD.com. Follow us on Twitter: @TNECD. Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/TNECD.
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