President Barack Obama is not the only new executive in America facing a daunting task of economic improvement and job creation. Recently, Andrew Burke announced his retirement as CEO of the Northeast Tennessee-based Regional Alliance for Economic Development (RAED), handing over the reigns to Tom Ferguson. This shift occurs at the dawn of a potentially huge move by Volkswagen to locate its American plant in Chattanooga. RAED is one of a few Tennessee organizations working to bring some of Volkswagen's business to Northeast Tennessee.

Along with Alicia Summers of the Northeast Tennessee Valley Industrial Development Association and Richard Venable, CEO of the NETWORKS-Sullivan Partnership, Andrew Burke was one of three representatives of the Tri-Cities area to travel to the Volkswagen headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany. Gov. Phil Bredesen led the trip of business-minded executives to the automobile facilities during the week of October 22 through October 28. Burke, Summers and Venable went in hopes of better understanding how to land some third-tier supplier business to the Chattanooga plant.

"We are certainly not tier one or tier two," says CEO Ferguson of the potential economic possibilities for the Tri-Cities area. (The labels of tier one and tier two are reserved for those within thirty miles and sixty miles of the plant, respectively.) Due to their distance from Chattanooga, supplier companies located in the Tri-Cities area will have to settle for a third-tier partnership with Volkswagen. Right now, the Tri-Cities representatives are focusing on researching their strategy to land Volkswagen business for their corner of the Volunteer state. "It is still early in the game to make any predictions," Ferguson states, "but there are several companies interested in being suppliers."

Richard Venable of NETWORKS is quite optimistic about the region's chances. One reason for his optimism--the vacant Magneti Marelli shock absorbers facility in Kingsport. "To have an existing building is a nice advantage," Venable says. Marketing of the building is currently in the hands of a national commercial realtor, but the building is not the only ace up Northeast Tennessee's sleeve. While the Tri-Cities are around two hundred miles from Chattanooga, farther than the average third-tier supplier range, Venable believes it is actually in an ideal position given the area's proximity to companies like Volvo in Dublin, Va., and BMW in Greenville, S.C.

The Chattanooga plant is expected to supply an immediate 2,000 jobs upon its 2010 completion, and when it begins operation in 2011, an estimated 6,000 jobs are likely to emerge from the trickle-down. Though both Venable and Ferguson agree that it is too early to latch on to such lofty numbers, Venable acknowledges officials are well aware that if the Tri-Cities area were to land the business they are shooting for, a "major effect" would take place. A tier three supplier in Northeast Tennessee would create a relative boom among businesses ranging from restaurants to real estate, as even third-tier suppliers would need additional suppliers.

Ferguson looks to Huf North America, a manufacturer of automotive locking systems in Greeneville, Tenn., as an ideal example for the Tri-Cities. "Huf chose Greeneville because its central location could also serve South Carolina, Virginia and Ohio," Ferguson says. While the trickle-down for Volkswagen's business may not be at the same volume as that at Huf, every drip would be a tremendous opportunity.

Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey, Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield, and Tom Edd Wilson, president and CEO of the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, also look to what came out of the BMW investment in Greenville, S.C., as an example of how to use regionalism to maximize benefits for the greater good of the area. In a recent meeting, these three discussed eight lessons learned from BMW's success in Greenville: At the top of the list was to "think and act regionally." While the Chattanooga region to which they are referring includes northern Alabama and Georgia, those in the Tri-Cities will push to make sure the focus extends a little farther north.

After all, this is not the Tri-Cities' first venture in the auto-supplier world. Last year, Japanese corporations Koyo and Nakatetsu set up shop adjacent to each other in Washington County. The companies cited the region's commitment and ideal location as valuable assets for an auto supplier. If you add to these resources the experience of the area with a massive supplier like Koyo, who supplies for Toyota, Honda, Ford, GM, DaimlerChrysler and BMW, the Tri-Cities has put together a solid résumé to present to any possible supplier looking to invest in the region.