Dynamic Development Cycles and Local Economic Management

There has been a proliferation of local economic intervention. Unfortunately, local development activities are often inadequately informed and lack coherence. This article presents and applies a three-cycle dynamic model to inform local development practice and its evaluation. It is suggested that the interaction of three economic cycles, product, process, and factor price cycles, often applied to industrial change and national economies, can provide valuable insight into local development and suggest guidelines for local development activities. Case studies are used to illustrate the analytical and prescriptive value of the dynamic cycle framework The value of dynamic cycle audits in identifying local development vulnerabilities and opportunities, providing direction for local development efforts, and suggesting particular local actions that can facilitate beneficial repositioning in dynamic development cycles is demonstrated.