Mission and History Information
Established in November 2003, Team Northeast Ohio (NEO) is a private sector-led regional economic development organization. It was founded by FirstEnergy Corporation, the Greater Akron Chamber, the Stark Development Board, the Lorain County Chamber of Commerce, the Youngstown-Warren Regional Chamber, and the Greater Cleveland Partnership.
The Team NEO concept emerged in 2002 in response to the business community’s need for a strategically coordinated economic development agenda that leverages the strengths of Northeast Ohio. These strengths include a $140 billion economy, rich in diverse resources such as three metropolitan cities, world-renowned healthcare, polymer expertise, skilled advanced manufacturing, entrepreneurship opportunity, agricultural resources, 26 universities, more than a dozen Fortune 500 headquarters, major sports, world-renowned orchestra and arts, and unparalleled logistics capability with three international airports, accessible highways, ports and rail.
Team NEO’s value proposition:
- Market as a region
- Accelerate industry clusters
- Serve as a user-friendly central point
- Champion creative new approaches that leverage regional strength while keeping local pride/energy
By engaging in “smart regionalism,” we increase our power as a region, while maintaining the strengths of our diverse local communities.