HiDEC Rebrands as Grow 3Degrees, Transfers Ownership to OMEP

BEND, OR (August 1, 2017) – Today, Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO) unveiled the rebranding of the High Desert Enterprise Consortium (HiDEC) as Grow 3o. This rebranding aims to better convey the effort's mission of providing local entrepreneurs and companies with access to continued education and peer-learning, with a focus on Lean principles.

Over the past year, EDCO and the HiDEC Steering Committee have collaborated with The Mandala Agency, a full-service branding, marketing, and creative ad firm in Bend, on both the name change and rebranding effort. From this collaboration, Grow 3o emerged, giving the group a clearer mission and focus.

Grow 3o signifies how small course corrections and incremental improvements over time can lead to significant gains and transform organizations. Continuous improvement involves engagement and problem-solving at all levels, and when consistently implemented, it distinguishes good companies from truly great ones.

In the spirit of continuous improvement, which is central to both HiDEC and Grow 3o, EDCO decided to transition ownership of the effort to an organization that shares the same values and goals but can dedicate more resources to the initiative. Effective immediately, the Oregon Manufacturing Extension Partnership (OMEP) will lead Grow 3o and expand EDCO’s efforts to engage more Central Oregon employers in learning best practices from experts and peers that will help their organizations improve.

“We believe that OMEP is the perfect organization to carry forward this effort in our region,” said Roger Lee, CEO of EDCO. “They are already the lean and continuous improvement experts in the state, and this will serve our companies well in both the short and long term.”

OMEP is part of a nationwide network of organizations called MEP Centers governed by the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST). They bring considerable expertise and resources, not only from their team but also from best practices and resources from across the country.

These Lean implementation specialists understand the importance of culture and leadership, and as former business owners and engineers, their team knows the ins and outs of manufacturing. Like HiDEC, OMEP and Grow 3o work with a variety of industries beyond manufacturing, including healthcare, financial services, government administration, and more.

About Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO)

EDCO is a non-profit corporation supported by private and public members and stakeholders. Its mission is to create middle-class jobs in Central Oregon by recruiting new employers to the region, helping entrepreneurs start new, scalable businesses, and working with existing businesses to grow their operations. For more information, visit www.edcoinfo.com.

About Grow 3o

Grow 3⁰’s mission is to help Central Oregon businesses improve their processes by leveraging the knowledge of experts and members through training and practical application of best practices. The organization focuses on Lean training and implementation, offering events, workshops, problem-solving tours, and more to facilitate continuous improvement, from first steps to advanced levels.