Research & Strategy Services for Businesses
Our team delivers research and strategic insights for businesses, non-profits, and key economic development organizations. Explore our full range of services below.
Access Research & Strategy Services for Your Business
About our research & strategy team.
Team NEO’s Strategy & Research team provides the data, insights, and analysis that help communities and businesses make smarter economic development decisions. We support partners across Northeast Ohio with market research, competitive benchmarking, and strategic guidance that strengthen business retention and expansion efforts, attract new investment, and drive job growth.
By delivering clear, actionable intelligence, we help economic development teams align strategies, uncover opportunities, and build long-term regional competitiveness. Our research powers impactful projects, informs marketing and talent initiatives, and highlights investment opportunities that position Northeast Ohio for sustainable economic success.
Support for businesses
Localized Workforce &
Talent Pipeline Insights
Workforce & Talent Insights
- Quantify local labor availability, occupational wages, and skill gap to inform hiring strategies and salary benchmarking.
- Analyze workforce supply and demand by specific occupations to understand talent gaps.
- Identify and map emerging industry trends to guide workforce planning.
- Recommend training resources or education partners to strengthen talent pipelines.
Market Intelligence &
Industry Analysis
Market & Industry Intelligence
- Provide detailed data on employment, wages, and Gross Regional Product to support site selection and expansion decisions.
- Offer detailed analysis on industry trends, workforce availability and access to infrastructure to support strategic business planning and competitive positioning.
- Benchmark cost of doing business against peerregions.
Strategic Supply Chain &
Cluster Analysis
Supply Chain & Cluster Analysis
- Identify relevant suppliers, buyers, and partnerships in key industry clusters to reduce costs and strengthen local business networks.
Custom Research Tools
and Projects
Custom Research Tools
- Spatial Analysis (GIS): Map workforce, educational institutions and infrastructure in relation to business needs.
- Explore emerging technology adoption trends in your sector to anticipate opportunities and competitive shifts.
Support for community partners & foundations
Community &
Economic Data Analysis
Community & Economic Data Analysis
- Provide metrics on economic mobility, workforce participation, and regional disparities to target programming and measure community impact.
- Create cost of living assessments for affordability-focused initiatives to design effective assistance programs and policy recommendations.
- Map demographic and employment trends to inform strategies and program design.
Education Data &
Labor Market Studies
Education Data & Labor Market Studies
- Analyze education attainment levels and pipeline alignment with employer needs to design workforce development programs that lead to employment.
- Identify high-demand jobs and industries to guide workforce programs toward career pathways with strong earning potential.
- Evaluate training program alignment with employer needs to improve job placement rates and program effectiveness.
Equity &
Inclusion Insights
Equity & Inclusion Insights
- Analyze and map disparities in employment, wages, and education outcomes to design targeted interventions that reduce opportunity gaps.
- Support targeted strategies to address opportunity gaps with data driven approaches that demonstrate measurable progress toward equity goals.
Impact Measurement &
Evaluation Support
Impact Measurement & Evaluation Support
- Identify common data priorities for coalitions and funders.
- Build baseline metrics and track changes over time to demonstrate program effectiveness and secure continued funding.
- Design data dashboards for ongoing monitoring to enable realtime program adjustments and stakeholder communication.
Support for lead economic development organizations
Economic Data &
Sector Studies
Economic Data & Sector Studies
- Provide reporting on economic performance and competitive positioning to inform strategic planning and attract investment.
- Identify target industries for attraction and expansion based on competitive advantages and workforce capabilities.
- Compare local cost of living & doing business with peer communities to inform policy.
Workforce Supply &
Demand Analysis
Workforce Supply & Demand Analysis
- Quantify local labor availability and occupational wages to support business recruitment and retention efforts.
- Pinpoint skills gaps and labor shortages to prioritize workforce development investments and policy initiatives.
- Identify top employers in the region to strengthen relationships and support expansion opportunities.
- Recommend strategies for workforce development and talent retention to build a competitive labor market advantage.
- Benchmark local performance against peerregions to identify areas for improvement andhighlight competitive strengths.
Infrastructure &
Development Readiness
Infrastructure & Development Readiness
- Sites Analysis Support: Evaluate sites for workforce access, infrastructure, and market reach.
Public Engagement &
Stakeholder Facilitation
Public Engagement & Stakeholder Facilitation
- Share complex data into accessible formats for public meetings or strategic planning sessions to build community support for economic development initiatives.
- Create visualizations for public engagement and strategic planning to communicate economic opportunities and challenges effectively.
- Facilitate dialogue between public agencies, businesses, and nonprofits to align priorities.
Research That Helps Bend the Curve
Data isn’t just information – it’s a catalyst. Team NEO’s research helps guide coordinated action to grow GDP, productivity, jobs, and opportunity across Northeast Ohio.
Team NEO and our partners are on a mission to “Bend the Curve” – dramatically improving Northeast Ohio’s economic outcomes beyond current projections. Through coordinated, data-driven strategies, we aim to:
- Boost GDP growth
- Increase productivity
- Create more high-quality jobs
- Expand access to career opportunities
- Grow our workforce
By “Bending the Curve,” we’ll forge a more vibrant, equitable regional economy by 2030, enhancing Northeast Ohio’s global competitiveness while increasing prosperity for all residents.
