Prager Company is a boutique consulting firm specializing in economic development through customized and pragmatic solutions. Prager was incorporated in 1998 and operates from its Evanston, Illinois offices.
Prager gravitates toward challenging and politically charged projects that others may shun, and views its role first and foremost as capacity builder on behalf of its clients. While clients frequently retain the Firm for multiple engagements, Prager strives to equip those it serves with the strategy, structure, tools and information necessary to become, not only successful, but self-sufficient. With that said, unlike many consulting firms, Prager remains available and accessible to provide informal guidance and direction long after the official project has concluded.
To ensure quality control and the attention to detail its clients deserve, Prager accepts only a modest number of projects per year, typically no more than 10 to 15. On occasion, Prager retains proven subcontractors for specific technical services, such as property environmental remediation, civil engineering, statistically accurate surveying, technology transfer and public finance.
Provided is a partial list of past Prager clients. About one-third pre-date the incorporation of Prager Company and were performed by the Company's current president on behalf of other organizations.
Benchmarking
• Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs
• Fort Leonard Wood (MO) Regional Commerce and Growth Association
• South Suburban Cook County
• Naval Air Warfare Center/Indianapolis Reuse Planning Authority
• Northern Illinois University
• Bay County (FL)
• Chicago Partnership for Economic Development
• Mansfield (TX) Economic Development Corporation
• City of Mount Vernon (IL)
• Portugal Trade and Tourism Office
Strategic Planning & Policy
• City of Denver Mayor's Office
• Sri Lanka Board of Investment
• Korea Trade Investment Promotion Agency
• Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
• Albuquerque City Council and Mayor's Office
• DuPage County (IL) Private Industry Council
• Savannah (GA) Economic Development Authority
• Greater Cleveland Industrial Trade Alliance
• Humboldt Park (Chicago) Empowerment Partnership
• Kane County (IL) Workforce Development
• Chicago State University
• City of Chicago Mayor's Office
Organizational Development
• Hanshin-Awaji Revitalization Organization, Japan
• Indiana Department of Commerce
• DuPage County (IL) Office of Economic Development and Planning
• Chicago United (IL)
• Sugar Grove (IL) Economic Development Corporation
• Metro Evansville (IN) Chamber of Commerce
• McHenry County (IL) Economic Development Corporation
• Jefferson County (IL) Development Corporation
• World Business Chicago
• Village of Tinley Park, (IL)
• Nogales-Santa Cruz County (AZ) Commerce and Economic Development
Target Marketing
• World Bank
• Jacksonville (IL) Regional Economic Development Corporation
• Lake County (IL) Partners
• Thailand Board of Investment
• Interlocken Advanced Technology Environment (Broomfield, CO)
• Oklahoma Gas and Electric
• Montgomery (IL) Economic Development Corporation
• Metro Tulsa (OK) Chamber of Commerce and Career Partners
• Macomb (IL) Area Economic Development Corporation
• Vision-e (Evansville, IN)
Urban Revitalization
• Chicago Housing Authority
• Humboldt Park (IL) Empowerment Partnership
• Kobe City Government, Japan
• Columbus' (OH) Eastmoor Village Urban Redevelopment Corporation
• Cook County (IL) Assessor's Office Tax Reactivation Program
• Calumet River (IL) Redevelopment Corridor
• Chicago's 34th Ward
• Urban Investment Trust (IL)
Regionalization
• Fort Leonard Wood (MO) Regional Commerce and Growth Association
• Western Illinois Corridor Council
• Metropolitan Chicago Mayors Caucus
• Metro East Development Council (Minneapolis Area, MN)
• Illinois Development Council
• Chicago Southland Economic Development Corporation
• Southwest Indiana Economic Development Coalition
• Illinois DCEO Opportunity Returns
Property Advancement
• West Pullman (IL) Industrial Park
• Bangpakong Industrial Estate, Thailand
• Riverbank (CA) Army Ammunition Plant
• Chicago's Marshfield Plaza
• Vigo County (IN) Industrial Park Authority
• Sears Roebuck-Chicago Bears (IL)
• LaSalle Partners, Florida
• Vanderburgh Industrial Park (Evansville, IN)
• Franklin (WI) Business Park Commission
Often those most in need of economic development assistance are least able to afford it. It is for this reason that Prager selectively consults pro bono. Assistance tends to be for discrete, concrete services and for a clearly defined time period. Past examples include: 1) helping the Navajo Nation identify investment opportunities in spite of their remoteness and economic strife and, 2) helping an Illinois city prepare for life after the imminent closure of one of the State's largest manufacturers. Prager also occasionally helps struggling communities procure grants from economic development-minded foundations and sympathetic government organizations.
Prager Company was formed by Adam Prager, who serves as its president. Mr. Prager has over 20 years of progressive experience in the field of economic development as an adviser to leading organizations and a State Government economic development practitioner. Additionally, he has considerable experience in the field of facility site selection, previously as part of Fantus Consulting, the nation's oldest and most active corporate site selection firm (now Deloitte & Touche Fantus Consulting). As a result of his varied economic development background, Mr. Prager has a rare combination of practical economic development knowledge from government, corporate and third-party consulting perspectives.
Until 1998, Mr. Prager was a leader of Deloitte & Touche Fantus Consulting's Economic Development Services. He joined Deloitte & Touche to create the Firm's first economic development practice and subsequently led its economic development activities in the Midwestern United States and Asia. Mr. Prager has advised many national, state, county, city, utility and real estate organizations on myriad strategic economic development issues including: organizational/departmental improvement, business climate enhancement, business attraction planning and implementation, business retention and expansion, workforce development, industrial park development and promotion, industry clustering, market development and market intelligence, investment incentive utilization, international investment promotion, entrepreneurship, economic impact and cost/benefit analysis, and policy development. He has provided economic development consultation to well over 100 government and private sector entities in North America, Europe and Asia. And he has served on many corporate site selection teams throughout the United States.
Prior to entering private consulting, Mr. Prager served as the head of Marketing Resources for the State of Maryland Department of Economic and Employment Development. In this capacity, he co-managed efforts to market Maryland to prospective investors. During his five-year tenure in Maryland, he was responsible for investor management, site selection data base development, brochure and collateral material development, State-level advertising and many other activities.
Mr. Prager's published works include:
• Selecting the Optimal Site, Corporate Location Magazine
• Local Economic Development Trends and Prospects, International
Management Association Municipal Yearbook
• Marketing Guidebook for Rural Regions, Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs
• How Does Midwestern Economic Development Stack Up, Economic
Development News
He has been quoted in:
• Area Development Magazine
• Charlotte Observer
• Crain's Chicago Business
• Midwest Real Estate News
• Plants Sites & Parks Magazine
• Tampa Tribune
• Washington Post
Mr. Prager has Masters Degrees in Planning and Public Management from Ohio State University, and a Bachelor in Environmental Science from the University of Delaware. He has spoken on economic development issues before the Economic Development Institute and the economic development associations of many U.S. states. Government and economic development associations have recognized his work publicly for its ability to coalesce those of differing viewpoints and enact change where needed the most. |
