Highlands Economic Partnership
Our Impact Programs
What We Do
Our goal is to improve the quality of life for all citizens of Putnam, White, Jackson and Overton counties by providing opportunities for businesses to grow and prosper. We do this by raising the median household income, filling open jobs, bolstering a workforce pipeline and strategically recruiting businesses that would meet an underserved industry need in our region.
Highlands Training Center
Looking to develop your business but not sure where to turn? Need help planning or executing your next project? Let us guide you. Any organization can move forward with small incremental changes, but building for the future in today’s rapidly evolving environment means taking bold chances and making insightful decisions.
Highlands CareerFest
CareerFest is a state-of-the-art integration of technology with our supporting employers to bring the most talented workforce together to meet job needs in our region. This event will be hosted on a hybrid platform, allowing participants to avoid obstacles barring them from participation in the event.
Financial Literacy Workshops
A new vertical to the Highlands economic partnership, financial literacy workshops will be provided to all employees of HEP supporting companies free of charge. Workshops will be presented quarterly with a different focus topic including: Foundational Principles of Banking, Retirement 101, Asset Protection and Legacy Planning. Our primary initiative is to elevate the quality of life for citizens in our region and provide long-term financial planning opportunities will be critical to reaching our goal.
Career exploration
Our eighth grade career fair is a flagship program that is dedicated to peaking career interests of students at an early age through hands-on industrial learning. We facilitate these interactions with our industry partners who support our program to enlighten our future workforce pipeline for their particular industry sector.
Legislative advocacy
The Highlands Economic Partnership (HEP) is committed to working with the legislature to remove any and all barriers to opportunity for small businesses in the highlands. Through our advocacy services, we are leading the way in creating a positive and thriving economic climate for businesses to thrive.
Essential soft skills training
Highlands Economic Partnership offers comprehensive emotional intelligence training for your entire organization. Our a la carte approach brings together emotional intelligence, cutting edge technology, and enhanced team communication, providing you with the perfect workforce retention tool.
business retention and expansion
Highlands Economic Partnership offers comprehensive economic development services to existing businesses and new prospects. Our team works with businesses to help them expand, as well as recruiting new ones to meet an underserved need in our community without cannabilizing the existing workforce.