Strategic Partnerships Heartland Forward actively pursues collaborations with government agencies and major foundations, including partnerships with the Department of Health and Human Services and the Rockefeller Foundation, as well as signing new clients like Anthropic. This indicates a receptiveness to mission-aligned, impact-focused partnerships that can be expanded with policy, health, and AI ethics initiatives.

AI and Workforce With recent client Anthropic and a focus on talent pipelines and regional competitiveness, there is a clear opportunity to offer policy research, workforce development programs, and AI ethics and governance initiatives tailored to midwestern states and communities.

Health and Equity A formal partnership with HHS Office on Women’s Health to advance maternal health outcomes signals demand for data-driven policy programs, program evaluation, and scale-ready pilots in health equity that can be extended to other states or federal-funded initiatives.

Regional Impact Track record Heartland Forward aims to generate substantial economic impact in the heartland and has been recognized for metro dynamism, suggesting opportunities to package and sell regional economic development studies, impact dashboards, and policy playbooks to state economic development organizations and metro alliances.

Community Engagement Demo Day events and school pathway initiatives demonstrate a capability to design and deliver workforce exposure programs, internships, and career-pathway curricula, enabling partnerships with school districts, universities, and regional employers to build talent pipelines.