Polk County, Florida has been especially hard hit by the economic and demographic shifts of the last two decades. The decline of phosphate mining and citrus industries combined with the closure of a number of large factories catapulted the county’s unemployment rate to 16 percent. In close collaboration with business and community leaders, the county has attempted to develop initiatives to diversify its economic base, including the creation of public and private economic development organizations that are charged with attracting high tech, high wage employment opportunities. To further these efforts, the Central Florida Development Council (CFDC), a public-private partnership, contracted with SRI International to develop an industry cluster assessment and marketing plan at the outset of the current economic recession. Stakeholders who benefited from the economic impacts and opportunities found in this new cluster building analysis included organizations which made financial contributions to the SRI International study. These included the Florida High Tech Corridor (22 counties and three major universities supporting high tech innovation in Central Florida), the Tampa Bay Partnership (seven counties in West Central Florida promoting economic development), the Central Florida Regional Planning Council (five counties), the University of South Florida Polytechnic and Polk State College. The project, which cost $154,000, was completed in September, 2008.