About CEED
Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (CEED) is a non-profit, non-partisan membership organization serving entrepreneurs and economic developers. Entrepreneurs and Economic developers promote economic well-being and quality of life for their communities, by creating, retaining and expanding jobs that facilitate growth, enhance wealth and provide a stable tax base. From public to private, rural to urban and local to international, CEED’s members are engaged in the full range of economic development experience. Given the breadth of economic development work, our members are employed in a wide variety of settings including local, state, provincial and federal governments, public-private partnerships, chambers of commerce, universities and a variety of other institutions. When we succeed, our members create high-quality jobs, develop vibrant communities, and improve the quality of life in their regions.
CEED's Mission
CEED's Members
CEED's Services & Programs
CEED's Staff
CEED's Mission
Provide leadership and excellence in entrepreneurship and economic development for communities, members, and partners.
We embrace the following core values. They reflect and support our mission, and guide our decisions, actions and provision of services:
Social responsibility and a dedication to building healthy, just, and competitive communities
• Creation of wealth for individuals, businesses, and communities
• Advancement of both the economic development profession and professional
• Cooperation and collaboration
• Diversity, tolerance, and equity
CEED's Members
CEED’s is one of the leading membership organization serving the entrepreneurs and economic development profession. From public to private, rural to urban, and local to international, our members represent the entire range of entrepreneurs and economic development experience, including:
Global, National, Regional, state and city economic development organizations
• Chambers of commerce and other business support agencies
• Community and neighborhood development organizations
• Technology development agencies
• Utility companies
• Educational institutions
• Consultants
• Redevelopment authorities
The strength of our organization comes directly from the expertise and influence of our members. This expertise includes:
Real estate development and commercial revitalization
• Workforce development
• Infrastructure and business finance
• Business marketing, attraction, expansion, and retention
• Community development
• Industrial rehabilitation and location
• International trade
• Tourism development
CEED's Services & Programs
Building strong, sustainable communities is an endeavor requiring innovative strategies, tools, and techniques. Our programs and services have been developed accordingly: they provide educational opportunities, analyze and disseminate information, and improve decision-makers’ responsiveness to economic development needs. They include:
Opportunities to network with and learn from community leaders, industry experts, and federal policy makers at our technical and annual conferences
• Professional development that strengthens economic developers’ careers and communities, and a certification program that unifies and sets the standard of excellence for the discipline
• Advisory Services and Research that creates custom solutions for all types of communities, as well as federal agencies
• In-depth analysis in the premiere publication of the discipline – Entrepreneurship and Economic Development Journal– and a bi-monthly survey of entrepreneurship and economic development news and federal updates in the Entrepreneurship and Economic Development Now e-newsletter
• Public policy which monitors federal activity impacting the field of entrepreneurship and economic development and engages our membership in policy advocacy activities
• The Accredited Entrepreneurship and Economic Development Organization program, which provides organizations with independent feedback on their operations and recognizes excellence in local entrepreneurship and economic development efforts
CEED's Staff
Comprised of recognized leaders in entrepreneurship and economic development and professionals skilled in association management, our staff is dedicated to supporting the endeavors of our members and advancing the profession and discipline of entrepreneurship and economic development as a whole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Explore opportunities to build more vibrant communities, where young people can learn and look toward a future full of opportunities. A set of programs and policies that aid in the creation, retention and expansion of the entrepreneurship, the jobs, the development of a stable tax base; and the enhancement of wealth. The CEED encourages rural and urban communities to take an active role in planning and directing their future.
CEED is one of the leading professional organization for entrepreneurship and economic development practitioners. We have members and network across the Globe.
CEED’s works to help entrepreneurs and economic developers do their jobs more effectively, and to raise the profile of the profession. If we succeed, our members create more high-quality jobs, develop more vibrant communities, and generally improve the quality of life in their regions. To that end, we provide information on trends and best practices, networking opportunities, professional development courses and numerous other services.
Our members are the people who:
Work to persuade new businesses to locate in your community, region or state
• Try to help the businesses that are already in your community to continue growing there
• Who look for ways to turn distressed areas into vibrant hubs of economic activity
Some CEED members work in major cities, while others work in remote, rural areas. Some work for public agencies, while others work for chambers of commerce, private nonprofit organizations, public/private partnerships or for universities. Some work with private-sector consulting firms, and some are sole practitioners working in the field. Name a type of economic development project, and some CEED member has worked on it. In short, our members represent the entire range of economic development experience.
CEED is a Sec (8) nonprofit organization. As such, we are prohibited from lobbying except under limited circumstances, and from endorsing political candidates. Even without such restrictions, we’d still be nonpartisan, because our members’ political opinions are as varied as their work and life experiences are.
We do generate papers on specific entrepreneurship and economic development-related topics, and have provided testimony at government hearings on the value of various entrepreneurship and economic development programs and policies. We also publish annual reports about federal spending on entrepreneurship and economic development projects and offer alerts to members about pending legislation or regulatory changes that could affect their work.
An Initiative by CEED (Center for Entrepreneurship & Economic Development) under Incubator & Accelerator Program for Startups.