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Tauscheck reflects on listening tour as Partnership begins crafting 2024 priorities

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Tiffany Tauscheck has had a busy start to her tenure as president and CEO of the Greater Des Moines Partnership.

Tauscheck was named the economic development organization’s new leader beginning July 1 after her predecessor, Jay Byers, stepped down to become the new president of Simpson College.

Since then, she has met one-on-one with each member of the Partnership team, learning about their journeys, their career paths and their future aspirations. She also has held more than 320 conversations across the Partnership’s 11-county region. That included talks with Partnership investors, city and county leaders, local chamber of commerce leaders, small business owners and policymakers.

At the same time, the Partnership conducted an investor survey, which included input from 100 participants.

The Business Record sat down with Tauscheck recently to learn more about what she heard during those meetings and how that information will be applied in the Partnership’s mission moving forward.

Here is some of what she had to say: 

Why was it important to undertake the listening tour that you’ve been on?

I’ve been at the Partnership for over eight years, have worn various hats and have seen a lot of the work that the Partnership does in coordination and collaboration with our partners throughout the community. It was really important to me to get out into those communities and sit down and look face-to-face and talk through what is important to you, how are things going for you and your community or your business, how can the Partnership be helpful to you. They were candid conversations, and I view that feedback as a gift and helping inform the next steps for the Partnership. It’s always very important for me to listen and learn. While the listening tour is going to be wrapping up at least for this year, the listening and learning never ends. It always continues. I foresee the listening tour will live on, but perhaps through 12 months of the year instead of the four months that I’ve spent.

What did you hear during those meetings?

There was a great deal of consistency with what I was hearing. We heard in nearly every conversation unsolicited key themes around workforce, child care, education and housing. Those were the four topics and opportunities that came up in nearly every single conversation without asking. Those were the four that were lifted up. 

Some communities are addressing those opportunities differently, there’s a great deal of consistency in identifying these are four areas we could collaborate on as a region and have a positive impact. There’s also acknowledgment that those four themes have connective tissue, and if we can positively impact one area, then that will likely positively impact another one of those areas. 

I also heard an eagerness for rural, urban and suburban to connect and have even stronger relationships. An example would be city leaders and community leaders wanting to get connected with a city manager in the area that they don’t have a relationship with. They want that relationship before they need that relationship, and that is something the Partnership can  help with.

The conversations indicated that there continues to be an interest in people having their fingerprints on the future of the region, a willingness to lean in and be a part of solutions and building opportunity collaborating. Our opportunity, what I heard in all these conversations, is continuing to help people see themselves and being a part of the future that we’re building together. Having some ownership in that future. 

What she heard:

On workforce.Everyone wants more talent. That’s the message across the board. How do we continue to draw more talent into the region, while continuing to retain the talent that we do have? There’s a lot of interest in work-based learning and apprenticeships, and there’s already some great programs, but we also have opportunities to help educate, connect and collaborate with some of our investors on building out even more programming.

On child care.It varied a little bit based on the community what the specific challenge was. But overall, there are different models that we’ve learned about through the listening tour, where different communities are addressing those child care challenges with unique models to their community. What you’ll see us do as we move forward is lifting up some of those examples and models to other communities. And while that exact model may not work for another community, they may be able to borrow parts of that idea or model to create a model that will work uniquely for their community.

The airport. We heard over and over again that the No. 1 needed game changer is the airport terminal project. So the fact that the bond referendum just passed and with 80% approval really underscores that Partnership investors and board members and members and the voters agree that there is this need. 

On placemaking. Another key message that we heard was placemaking and a continued commitment to placemaking and thinking of it through a regional lens. Remembering that even small projects in a community can have a major impact on placemaking for that community and therefore the region.

Can you share some specifics on how some communities are addressing some of those issues?

Sprouts Early Learning Academy in Carlisle: They are working closely with retirees as well as students at the high school to help with their learning center. An example related to housing and building quality of life is what Grinnell and Poweshiek County are looking to accomplish with the Sapphire Lake project. That proposed project is anticipated to add more than 700 homes to the area in providing additional outdoor recreational opportunities. There’s also the Veterans District development in Knoxville, a partnership between Marion County and the city of Knoxville to redevelop the 152-acre site of the former Veterans Hospital with several residential neighborhoods and a new park. 

How will the information you learned during the listening tour be used moving forward?

We are building out our 2024 strategic priorities and goals, which we will roll out in January at the Partnership’s annual dinner but these conversations have been key in helping us plan for the future of the organization. It also underscored the importance of the Partnership as the  regional economic development organization and the place for talent development. We see great opportunities to lean into economic development and talent development on behalf of the region. We also see great opportunity to play that role of convenor and strengthen the bridges between the urban, suburban and rural communities and leaders to make our region even stronger.

What have you learned about yourself during these first months in your new role?

One lesson I’ve learned even further since taking this seat is how important it is to have a strong team internally, and a support network externally. As you step into a top leadership role, you realize that people are looking to you for direction on decisions and challenges that you may not have faced before. Chances are, others have had similar experiences to navigate, and leaders in our community are willing to help each other. It just takes the willingness to be vulnerable and ask for help.

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Michael Crumb

Michael Crumb is a senior staff writer at Business Record. He covers real estate and development and transportation.

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