May 10, 2026

Imagine if the biggest, most influential businesses in this country came together with smaller ones scaling up, competitors and newcomers alike.

Now imagine if they collaborated with both the government and nonprofit community to identify the most crucial issues facing our nation — and then came up with a plan to address them.

Now consider if they didn’t just put a plan together, but took it upon themselves to help significantly fund such a plan, knowing that a stronger country ultimately benefits both businesses and those who live there.

It sounds almost conceivable such an effort could come together, doesn’t it?

That’s exactly what has happened in Sioux Falls every five years since 1987 through the Forward Sioux Falls program. This partnership, primarily funded by the business community, has served as a force outside government to help advance economic and workforce development and, by extension, quality of life.

The most recent campaign raised more than $19.1 million, surpassing its $18 million goal. The funds will help tackle some big goals by 2031:

• Add 5,000 new jobs paying at or above the median wage
• Generate $3 billion in capital investment
• Add $700 million in new property tax value
• Attract 30,000 new residents

If you’ve spent any time in the nonprofit world, you know how challenging it is to ask for money. To reach $19.1 million in pledges takes a massive effort — which is what Forward Sioux Falls puts together every five-year campaign, powered largely by volunteers from our business community.

It’s an impressive blend of senior leadership with up-and-coming talent, intentionally designed to help perpetuate the culture that has helped Sioux Falls become the thriving community it is today.

I asked Carlotta Ungaro, a senior consultant based in the Atlanta area, to weigh in on the latest campaign. She served as campaign consultant for Sioux Falls.

“It’s just such a positive outlook about business culture and opportunity in the Sioux Falls community,” she told me. “It’s such a great place. I tell everyone.”

To her, the “high-level, expansive business commitment” to the initiative makes Sioux Falls stand out from other communities she’s worked with, she said.

“The leadership commitment is so strong,” she said. “The way South Dakota is structured, and how they do economic development, means they understand locally we need to step up and do this.”

And businesses did step up. The campaign drew 316 investors — a vast majority of them businesses — including 95 new investors.

Not only that: Of businesses that were asked, more than 88 percent ultimately gave.

“This is extremely high,” Ungaro said. “A great closing ratio is in the 70 percent range.”

The pledge-to-ask ratio was 78.7 percent, representing the amount ultimately pledged of the specific request made to the organization, which also is above average for a repeat campaign.

Forward Sioux Falls also stands out “for the amount of private-sector dollars that come into the campaign,” Ungaro continued. “Typically, communities are shooting for a goal of 50-50. You’re more like 85-15. It’s very high.”

Because this is not an effort dominated by government, it enjoys a flexibility I think benefits the community.

In classic economic development efforts funded by public dollars, “you can only spend your money in workforce on manufacturing and distribution centers or data centers,” Ungaro said.

In other words: You only can use it to compete with other states or cities for business that could go anywhere.

Those dollars aren’t able to be invested in supporting a stronger health care workforce, for example, because we’re not competing with other locations to lure a hospital. They aren’t able to creatively look at ways to lower the barrier to housing affordability — which is key to attracting a strong workforce.

“You see a lot of chatter but not real actionable items like Sioux Falls has put in their plan,” Ungaro said. “The biggest issue in Sioux Falls seems to be workforce. The unemployment rate is terribly low … and that’s not attractive and they know it. But they’re doing a town attraction campaign and it’s having success.”

Now here’s my ask to you. I want you to first take a look through this list of investors in the next five-year Forward Sioux Falls campaign.

When you have an opportunity to consider which businesses to support, keep these 300-plus in mind. Know that they understand the importance of investing in our broader community’s success.

And if your business is not on this list, consider suggesting a contribution, at any level. At this point, it’s not about how much you give. It’s about becoming part of something bigger than your individual organization. Make a pledge, and then get connected. Take advantage of the programs available to you as an employer if you’re focused on attracting and retaining talent.

In most recent data I could find, from 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed more than 12,500 private businesses in the Sioux Falls metro area. I suspect it’s even bigger than that. Remember, more than 300 gave to this campaign. Imagine the impact if a fraction of the others located here participated too.

Sioux Falls has succeeded because of a shared mentality that what’s good for the community is good for our individual businesses. The more who invest in that philosophy, the stronger we all become.