Client Story

Invest Hamilton County in central Indiana initiated a strategic planning process during a period of organizational transition. As the county’s economic development opportunities continued to evolve, the organization needed to confirm that its strategic priorities were balanced with the perspectives of a large and diverse group of public, private, and nonprofit partners.

Their team needed clear direction to move beyond internal assumptions and toward evidence-based decision-making. Leadership staff and the board of directors required structured stakeholder input to better understand partner needs, perceived gaps, and opportunities across the county—along with a strategy that staff could realistically execute.

To address these needs, Invest Hamilton County engaged Transform Consulting Group (TCG) to design and facilitate a comprehensive strategic planning process rooted in stakeholder engagement and analysis.

Most notably, a large partner summit convened more than 150 attendees to gather broad-based feedback. During the summer, speakers delivered brief presentations on Invest Hamilton County’s programs and initiatives, followed by multiple engagement activities designed to capture input effectively and at scale.

These activities included:

• Online polling
• Data carousel activities
• Small-group discussions focused on identifying top goals, opportunities, and needs

TCG synthesized the stakeholder feedback alongside additional data and contextual information to produce an organizational analysis and needs assessment for Invest Hamilton County’s board of directors and leadership team. Building on this foundation, an interactive strategic planning retreat brought leadership staff together with the board to develop buy-in, confirm priority goals, and align strategies.

Our team developed an implementation framework to support Invest Hamilton County staff in executing the strategic plan, transforming the plan into an active roadmap.

Throughout our engagement, TCG served as strategic planning partner and lead facilitator. Our team applied our expertise in stakeholder engagement design, data analysis, board-level facilitation, and strategic planning to guide Invest Hamilton County from a starting point of information gathering through decision-making and implementation readiness.