Paul Whiteway, an Associate Consultant of GDP Global, specialises in inward investment promotion. From 2003 to 2008, he worked at the centre of the UK’s inward investment network as...This blog is aimed at diplomats posted overseas who have been given the task of managing an operation to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for the first time. Here are a few “do’s”:
Study the subject. Understand the basics of FDI promotion, such as how to build your country’s image as an investment destination, and how to convert investment leads into concrete projects by supplying the company with the information it needs. Understand how these activities correspond to a company’s underlying reasons to invest, its business drivers and decision-making process.
Choose the right people for your investment team. If possible, locally-engaged staff with experience of, and good networks within the private sector. Frontline sales staff must have strong influencing skills and be confident when dealing with senior business people. People recruited for support roles need advanced skills in researching from the internet and managing databases. If you don’t have the option to recruit new staff and you are doubtful of the skills of existing ones, make an analysis of their strengths and weaknesses and make sure that they receive the necessary training.
Understand what your Investment Promotion Agency (IPA) is trying to achieve. Read the Marketing Strategy (if one exists). Get to know the key figures in the IPA. Take the initiative in contacting them. Once you start to handle investment projects, you are likely to depend on them for information to supply to your clients.
Set stretching, but realistic targets. It’s no use being over ambitious and setting yourself up for failure. Review performance against targets regularly – at least once every 3 months. Make sure that these are reflected in your staff’s personal objectives. Of course you may have targets set by the IPA over which you have no control. If these do not meet the criterion of being “stretching but realistic”, it’s time to open a dialogue with the IPA.
Write a Business Plan. Incorporate your targets into this along with a note on your resources, both money and staff. Set out the timeline. Carry out a SWOT analysis of your own economy seen from the perspective of attracting Foreign Direct Investment from that market. Include the strengths, weaknesses etc of your own embassy too. Cover issues such as image-building activities, designed to generate investment leads.
Get to know your market. Study the economic situation in the market where you are posted, analyse which sectors are important and any key trends. Identify companies which are growing and which operate in sectors relevant to your own economy. Focus on these.
Establish ground rules for handling enquiries from potential investors. Make sure that your staff understand exactly what to do if an investor contacts the embassy.
Get involved! Don’t leave it to your staff to do all the work. Draw up a list of companies to visit and see them yourself. Take another member of staff with you.
