For many companies planning a new facility or expansion, the site selection process can quickly begin to feel like putting together a complex puzzle filled with maps, property listings and incentive spreadsheets. The plan for a quick project to finalize a location can grow into a multi-month initiative, with complexity appearing from all sides. A thoughtful, structured approach helps connect the dots, ensuring decisions are grounded in long-term priorities and not just immediate opportunities.
In today’s world, where projects often involve billion-dollar investments and multi-year timelines, the success of your project depends on asking the right questions and making sure your team is aligned before the search for the right location even starts — regardless of whether you’re planning for a mega project or a potential expansion of an existing facility.
Site selection is not a one-size-fits-all journey. It is a strategic process that balances operational requirements, market dynamics, workforce considerations and internal priorities. This checklist can help manage expectations and help your team prepare and set the stage for a future-focused, risk-mitigated and successful location strategy.
Site selection is not just about real estate — it’s decision science.
First, clarify your business drivers. Your core business objective should guide how you prioritize different factors driving the process. These may include access to key labor needs, logistics priorities, the value and impact of federal, state and local incentives, availability or flexibility of real estate solutions and softer issues such as community quality. Start with “why.” Is this search driven by capacity or talent constraints? Customer proximity? Supply chain shifts? A cost-reduction initiative? Or are you planning for growth in a new region? Misalignment at this stage can lead to delays and poor site matches.
Second, align early with key internal stakeholders. Site selection involves input from operations, HR, finance, legal, real estate and the executive team. Make sure all stakeholders understand the approval process, timeline, key risks and decision criteria. Clarify who is responsible for each sign-off — and when.
Third, define your critical needs versus trade-offs. Specify non-negotiables — such as square footage, infrastructure needs, airport access or zoning — and clarify which factors are flexible. A well-documented list of priorities ensures you’re not chasing “perfect” sites that don’t exist, and helps teams balance cost, risk and speed to market.
Fourth, engage economic development and utility stakeholders early. When these partners understand your project’s scope and needs, they can be powerful allies — offering help with incentives, infrastructure or permitting.
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Fifth, build your decision framework and consider engaging a site selection expert. A structured, weighted comparison approach allows your team to evaluate options objectively. Consultants can help develop this framework, provide third-party analysis and de-risk the process with tools and experience.
Sixth, assess labor market realities. Workforce availability is complex. You’ll need to evaluate unemployment rates, demographics, pipeline quality, industry saturation and hiring dynamics. Ask whether the market can scale with your growth, how long it takes to fill key roles and what turnover and wage pressure look like.
Seventh, understand the real timeline — and build a buffer. Even “shovel-ready” sites can hit permitting or infrastructure delays. Work backward from your target in-service date to identify bottlenecks in due diligence, site control, negotiations and construction.
The most successful projects start with alignment, not just urgency.
Eighth, empower your team. Whether using internal or external teams, ensure the leaders driving site selection have authority, technical expertise and access to decision-makers.
Ninth, build flexibility into the process. Site searches are rarely linear. Set decision gates that allow you to revisit ruled-out sites if conditions shift — for instance, if a power upgrade is accelerated or permitting timelines improve.
Tenth, maintain confidentiality. Quiet searches reduce the risk of competitive exposure, help manage internal expectations and preserve negotiating leverage. Consultants can act as intermediaries to help keep identities protected.
Finally, document the process for leadership and the board. A clear business case — including labor analysis, screening methodology and risk assessment — gives stakeholders confidence and ensures alignment even if leadership changes midway through the project.
Site selection is far more than a real estate exercise. It’s a strategic decision science. The most successful companies focus early on alignment and strategy so that when the time comes to ask “Where should we go?” they’re already prepared to answer, “Are we ready to decide?”
