The Vital Role of Site Selection Consultants in Economic Development
May 14, 2025
When companies decide where to locate, or relocate, their operations, they often turn to a critical, though sometimes behind-the-scenes, partner: the site selection consultant. Acting as matchmakers between businesses and communities, these professionals guide companies through a highly complex process that influences billions of dollars in investment and thousands of jobs.
In part three of economic development and talent attraction basics blog series, we’ll explore what site selection consultants do, why they matter so much to economic developers and how their work shapes the future of regions across the country.
Who Are Site Selection Consultants?
Site selection consultants, sometimes referred to as SSCs, site consultants, site selectors or location advisors, help companies find the best locations to support their strategic goals. Their role spans from high-level portfolio planning to negotiating final incentives packages.
Some consultants specialize by industry, while others focus on a specific stage of the process, such as narrowing hundreds of potential metro areas down to a single site or facilitating final negotiations. Their projects range widely: from billion-dollar corporate expansions to small business relocations.
At some point in nearly 40% of all corporate location decisions, a site selection consultant is involved. Beyond corporate projects, they also help with business consolidation, government incentives negotiation and broader economic development consulting.
Where Site Selection Consultants Work
Site selectors can be found across several types of organizations.
- Big 4 Accounting Firms: KPMG, EY, Deloitte and PwC have robust teams focused on site selection and state/local tax incentives.
- Major Real Estate Firms: CBRE, JLL, Cushman & Wakefield, Newmark and Colliers International offer Global Location Advisory services.
- Specialized Boutique Firms: Independent powerhouses like Ginovus, Site Selection Group, Atlas Insights, Hickey & Associates and Biggins Lacy Shapiro & Company provide customized site selection services across industries.
The Core Responsibilities of Site Selection Consultants
Site selectors can have a variety of general and specialized skill sets.
- Global Footprint Strategy: Aligning a company’s facility locations with its long-term business strategy.
- Data-Driven Analysis: Leveraging extensive proprietary data sets and analytics to compare sites objectively.
- Business Relocation Assessment: Evaluating the risks and opportunities of moving or consolidating operations.
- Site Evaluation: Reviewing key factors like workforce availability, real estate options, infrastructure, utilities and community assets.
- Negotiations: Securing competitive incentive packages while maintaining transparency and avoiding conflicts of interest.
- Relationship Management: Building vital connections with economic developers, utility providers and community leaders.
- Decision Facilitation: Coordinating the entire site selection process from initial feasibility studies through final location announcements.
Because companies often lack the internal capacity to manage this labor-intensive process, site selection consultants offer critical expertise, objectivity and resources needed to make high-stakes decisions.
The Value of Incentives—and the Debate Around Them
Incentives are a frequent, and sometimes controversial, part of the site selection process. These government-offered benefits, such as tax credits, grants and infrastructure support, can be decisive factors in a company’s location choice.
Proponents argue incentives are vital tools for competing in today’s aggressive global economy. Critics, however, often label them as “corporate welfare.” Reputable site selection consultants prioritize transparency, ensuring that their compensation is tied to services rendered rather than the size of incentives negotiated, protecting the integrity of the process.
The Site Selection Process: Step-by-Step
A typical site selection project follows a rigorous progression.
- Business Strategy Alignment: Understanding the company’s long-term goals.
- Initial Market Screening: Evaluating hundreds of possible regions based on critical factors.
- Shortlisting Locations: Narrowing down to a handful of viable sites.
- In-Depth Site Visits: Analyzing sites firsthand and meeting local stakeholders.
- Financial Modeling: Forecasting project costs, tax implications, and incentive values.
- Incentive Negotiations: Securing offers from local and state governments.
- Final Decision and Announcement: Selecting the site and launching the project.
Why Site Selectors Matter to Economic Developers
For economic development organizations (EDOs), site selectors are not just a gateway to individual projects, they are strategic partners who influence numerous corporate decisions.
Establishing relationships with site selectors gives EDOs a powerful way to market their communities to multiple companies through a single point of contact. By understanding the factors that site selectors value most, such as talent pipelines, business climate, infrastructure readiness and incentives, EDOs can better position themselves for success.
Organizations like DCI support EDOs in reaching and influencing this key audience, including through partnerships with groups like the Site Selectors Guild, the premier association for professional site selectors. DCI also maintains the most comprehensive database of location advisors in North America, LocationAdvisorDatabase.com.
Emerging Trends Shaping Site Selection
- Sustainability as a Priority: Companies are increasingly factoring in access to renewable energy, green infrastructure and ESG considerations.
- Remote Work and Talent Attraction: Quality of life is now a critical selection factor, as companies seek locations that appeal to remote or hybrid workers.
- Technology-Enhanced Decisions: Sophisticated data analytics, AI and GIS tools are revolutionizing how locations are evaluated and compared.
Site selection consultants are vital architects of economic growth, shaping where companies invest, where communities expand, and where opportunities arise. Their work fosters corporate success, community development and regional transformation.
For economic developers, understanding and building relationships with site selectors isn’t just valuable—it’s essential to winning in today’s fiercely competitive environment.
Ready to ramp up your EDOs marketing efforts to reach site selection consultants? Reach out to DCI’s Vice President of Brand Rachel Deloffre at rachel.deloffre@aboutdci.com.
Check out our full talent attraction and economic development marketing blog series:
Economic Development and Talent Attraction Marketing 101
Navigating the Talent Attraction Marketing Landscape
The Evolving Power of Foreign Direct Investment
