Why Less is More: The Case for Strategic Database Management in Economic Development
A mid-sized city (population ~135,000) recently joined the Executive Pulse family and asked us to import the community’s entire business population into the CRM. In the end, there were just under 10,000 records. I participated in several internal calls about the data migration and realized that the majority of businesses that our team and our clients’ teams spent time importing have little to do with the day-to-day work of business retention and expansion. Their economic development team? Three people.
This scenario plays out frequently; EDO realizes there has to be a better way to track company data, gets excited about using a CRM and goes about the business of adding data in a way that feels complete but sets the organization up for challenges later. Having worked adjacent to economic development organizations for a majority of my career, I’ve learned that successful ones share one trait: selective focus on businesses they can actually influence.
My thoughts on how to streamline and make activity more productive:
Focus on Influence, Not Inventory
The solution isn’t complex—it’s selective. Segment businesses by influence potential:
Tier 1: Major employers, locally-owned manufacturers, companies with active incentive agreements, businesses where you have relationships. Full profiles, regular contact, proactive outreach.
Tier 2: Growing local businesses, professional services with expansion potential. Basic tracking, periodic engagement.
Tier 3: Franchises tracked only in aggregate for economic indicators.
This approach aligns with best practices showing CRM data should track trends over time to identify emerging patterns while focusing engagement where it matters. Your 50 largest employers likely represent 40%+ of total employment—they deserve more attention than 12 Subway locations. Our proprietary algorithm will help you “bubble to the top” the companies you should be focusing on.
The Reality Check
Businesses using CRM are more likely to exceed goals, but this assumes you’re actually working the data, not drowning in it. For our new client, the path forward meant accepting they could meaningfully influence perhaps 500 businesses—those where local relationships, incentives, and services actually matter.
As someone who’s evaluated hundreds of economic development investments through my years on various EDO boards, I’ve seen this pattern repeatedly: wins come from deep relationships with strategic businesses, not comprehensive databases.
Your CRM should reflect your actual sphere of influence. Because economic development success isn’t measured by database size—it’s measured by jobs retained, businesses expanded, and investments secured. Those victories come from focusing where you have real influence, not from maintaining perfect records on every LLC in town.
By Chuck Peters
Advisor, ExecutivePulse | Chair, Government Affairs Committee, Erie Regional Chamber | Board Member, Infinite Erie & Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority, | Managing Partner, Altair Holdings.