Feasibility/Viability Assessment Tools for Evaluating Potential Economic Development Projects

Skill Building

The challenge of making critical decisions in the face of imprecise information often leads to failure of new or expanding businesses. Risk of failure can be reduced by completing a viability assessment, including:

• establishing measurable goals and expectations
• completing a thorough business plan
• evaluating the project's ability to meet the goals and expectations established

The presenters have worked together to develop a set of tools that can be used to navigate the process of identifying and developing viable entrepreneurial development projects by providing an overview of the complete viability assessment process. This will include a discussion of goal-setting for benchmark performance measures; human resource skills inventory; market assessment; operating and investment requirements; cost estimates; business organization; risk assessment; and economic feasibility/viability analysis.

An Excel spreadsheet based Economic Viability Assessment Model will be presented to illustrate how to incorporate information compiled in business plans into evaluations of economic viability. The tools will be presented and discussed with real program examples, including program problems and outcomes. Lessons learned from the actual application of the materials will be shared.

Participants will acquire the skills, materials, and references necessary to assist entrepreneurs in their communities to identify, plan, and carry out successful business ventures. Direct access to tools discussed (guidebooks, instructor materials, Power Point presentations, worksheets, references, etc.) will be provided. The Economic Viability Assessment Model will be made available to interested participants for a small cost (to cover reproduction and mailing).