Issue - meetings

This report presents recommendations for the future delivery of Business Engagement with major employers (often referred to as Key Account Management) and Inward Investment in York, to ensure a continued private sector focus and to provide support in a more streamlined and effective way.

RESOLVED: (i)         That Option 3 be approved as the most appropriate means of delivering Key Account Management and Inward Investment activity in York.

                        (ii)        That the Director of City Strategy be instructed to make the necessary arrangements regarding staffing in respect of Option 3, and to develop a new ‘York Enterprise’ team within the Council which responds to the objectives of the ‘Future York Report’ through engagement with the Economic Partnership Chair.

REASON:      In order to rationalise business support arrangements within the Council, provide a streamlined and more effective service and address the need for a strong private sector involvement in promoting York as an international ‘brand’.

Members considered a report which presented recommendations for the future delivery of Business Engagement with major employers (often referred to as Key Account Management, or KAM), and Inward Investment in York.

The recommendations had resulted from informal discussions between the founder members of york-england.com.  This was a limited company set up by City of York Council, North Yorkshire County Council and Yorkshire Forward to attract inward investment to York and North Yorkshire.  More recently, its focus had shifted towards undertaking a programme of KAM with major employers in the sub-region.

As a result of these discussions, the following options were presented for the future delivery of KAM and associated activities in York:

Option 1 – maintain the current arrangements through york-england.com.

Option 2 – develop a proposal in line with a suggestion from non-stakeholder members of the york-england.com board, as set out in Annex A to the report, involving a reconstituted york-england.com with representation from the York Economic Partnership and with City of York Council as the single stakeholder.

Option 3 – position KAM and associated activity within the mainstream economic development function of the Council, with a line of accountability to the York Economic Partnership.

Option 3 was recommended, on the basis that it would rationalise business support arrangements within the Council and provide a streamlined and more effective service.  It would also address the need for a strong private sector involvement by providing a stronger focus for the role of the York Economic Partnership.

RESOLVED: (i)         That Option 3 be approved as the most appropriate means of delivering Key Account Management and Inward Investment activity in York.

                        (ii)        That the Director of City Strategy be instructed to make the necessary arrangements regarding staffing in respect of Option 3, and to develop a new ‘York Enterprise’ team within the Council which responds to the objectives of the ‘Future York Report’ through engagement with the Economic Partnership Chair.¹

REASON:      In order to rationalise business support arrangements within the Council, provide a streamlined and more effective service and address the need for a strong private sector involvement in promoting York as an international ‘brand’.