Clusters in West Midlands, UK

The West Midlands in the UK, like many of regions across the world, is concentrating its efforts is to develop 'business clusters'.

Clusters are groups of businesses and related organisations linked through a common technology or an end product. They include suppliers and specialist educational institutions, involved with industry (or cluster) - related training and research.

The 10 clusters that have been identified as being most relevant to the ongoing development of the West Midlands, and are split into:

* Established clusters: e.g. food and drink and transport technologies. The emphasis here is helping these clusters to diversify and modernise.

* Growing clusters: e.g. information and communication technology, environmental technologies. These are already showing signs of growth.

* Embryonic or aspirational clusters: e.g. Interactive media for education and entertainment, medical technologies. These are good prospects for growth.

Stimulating the growth of these clusters involves:

* identifying market opportunities through market research

* encouraging collaborative efforts within clusters e.g. skills development, sharing of research efforts, etc.

The Transport Technologies cluster is perhaps the most important in the West Midlands employing about 175,000 people. It includes commodity manufacture of metal and polymer components, metal processes/ treatments, electrical/electronic/mechanical sub systems and vehicles. There are high concentrations of activity including the Jaguar plant at Castle Bromwich.

This cluster is identifying opportunities for focusing on higher value added activities, based on new technologies and in luxury cars, motor sports and materials to improve products through design. There are many opportunities for technology transfer between different modes of transport and also in the use of new materials that lessen environmental impact.

Go here to read more.

Irish Business Investment Profile

Ireland, through the efforts of the Irish Development Agency (IDA), has been very successful in attracting considerable investment from other countries. Here is a quick profile of the current situation. In a nutshell, Ireland has seen a slowdown, like other nations, but remains a strong location for business investment by manufacturing and service businesses alike.

1. Ten years ago there were 78,500 people employed in 860 IDA-assisted companies nationally
- In that last ten years 84,600 people lost their jobs in those companies
- Today there are 133,000 people employed in 1,100 IDA assisted companies
- Effectively the whole base of inward investment has totally changed in the decade, while it has also grown beyond all expectation.

2. Ten years ago inward investment companies accounted for about €12 billion or less than half of Ireland’s exports.
- Today they export over €60 billion of goods and services per annum – about two thirds of the total.

3. The value of inward investment to the economy, in retained spending in Ireland, has also changed significantly:
Expenditure on wages, Irish raw materials and services ten years ago was just over €4bn per annum. Today it is worth €16bn.

So, where will the IDA put its attention in the future? Four distinct areas of focus are seen:

1. Renewal of the existing overseas companies in Ireland;

2. Finding appropriate replacement investments for the closures and job losses;

3. Promoting the ‘new’ Ireland for the high value and skills based investments;

4. Researching new areas of business and building on Ireland’s capabilities and reputation to attract and develop these new sectors.

Go here to learn more.

Latest Manufacturing Outlook

Here is the latest manufacturing outlook from Global Insight, Inc.

Despite persistent sluggishness over the past few years, manufacturing output finally rebounded this past summer and should continue to expand through the end of 2003. Consumers have been the stalwarts of this recovery and their free-spending habits, especially for big-ticket and housing-related items, should continue. Exports, which declined in 2001 and 2002, should begin to improve as the already weakening U.S. dollar declines further. Finally, government spending for defense and security will remain a strong economic stimulus.

All these economic drivers have generated optimism within the U.S. economy. Global Insight expects the industrial sector to strengthen through year-end, setting the stage for an even stronger performance in 2004. Some troubling issues still linger, however. Job losses continue to plague the economy and business uncertainty remains high. Furthermore, volatile energy prices and problems in Iraq have created a cautionary environment.

Nevertheless, energy prices have eased from their prewar peaks, which should continue next year, while business confidence has slowly strengthened since early summer. We expect both business and consumer optimism to build through the end of 2003. By early next year, businesses should start investing in traditional equipment again, building toward a robust recovery during the second half. The following key sectors will dominate next year’s expansion.

High-tech industries will lead the way, with the computer and electronic component markets experiencing the strongest growth. Moreover, some other investment sectors that have not made it into our top growth rankings, such as railroad equipment and other forms of transportation equipment like medium and heavy trucks (which experienced major contractions over the last few years), will also enjoy rapidly improving business conditions.

The military ordnance industry should continue to thrive over the next several years, as the United States pursues its war against terrorism. Indeed, real defense spending is expected to increase 5-10% in 2004—the third consecutive year that it will approach or exceed double-digit growth rates.

The pharmaceutical industry will also benefit from healthy consumer spending, as well as an aging population. (Although categorized under the general chemical industry, pharmaceuticals should properly be classified as “high tech.”) Over the past ten years, this industry has consistently outperformed general manufacturing, even in a weak economy. With expected real output growth of 6.0% next year, the pharmaceutical industry ranks fourth.

Corporate profits have improved and interest rates have increased very little. As a result, the financial sector is poised to do quite well next year and has easily made it into our top performers’ list. A rising number of mergers and acquisitions will also help this sector.

Health care, another service industry, is expected to round out our growth leaders in 2004. Like pharmaceuticals, demographics and aging baby boomers will help sustain its long-term growth.

U.S. Industry Growth Leaders for 2004
(Change in constant-dollar revenues)

1) Computer & Office Machinery 15.0%
2) Electronic Components & Accessories 11.6%
3) Ordnance & Accessories 7.9%
4) Pharmaceuticals, Soaps, & Toiletries 6.0%
5) Finance 5.1%
6) Health Services 4.8%

Source: Global Insight, Inc.

State of Ohio 's New Site Selection Initiative

Chris Chung, the Manager of Site Selection for the Ohio Dept. of Development, gave a very useful and informative presentation at the Ohio Development Association's annual conference (www.odanet.com) about the state's new site selection initiative.

In my estimation, the state's system is moving in the right direction. It's always a challenge for state development agencies to co-create a system of this nature with their local and regional partners.

You can learn more about the Ohio system by going to this website: www.ohiosites.com. Chris Chung can be reached at 614.466.5245, or email him at: cchung@odod.state.oh.us.

Why Job Development Isn't Enough

Yesterday I gave the keynote presentation at the Ohio Development Association (ODA) on a new value-based model for economic development. I talked about why it is not enough for EDO's to just work on job development and why they need to work toward creating other forms of value for their stakeholders.

You can download a copy of my presentation at the business website: www.don-iannone.com. Go to the download and links page and you will see the presentation listed as a newly posted item.

I welcome comments from you. Email me at dtia@don-iannone.com, or call me at 440.449.0753.

How Does NE Ohio Stack Up?

The Center for Regional Economic Issues at Case Western Reserve University has released a new report comparing NE Ohio to comparably-sized U.S. metro areas. It's interesting and thought-provoking data.

What does it mean to NE Ohio communities? That is a question you should be asking yourself as you read the presentation.

It tells me that NEO is:

1. Holding its own in some areas of technological innovation.
2. Population is growing slowly.
3. Jobs are growing slowly.
4. Personal income is growing slowly.
5. Manufacturing employment is still very important to the region.
6. With a total regional economic output of $106 billion, NEO still produces a lot of stuff--both goods and services.
7. Finally, we are lagging in terms of educational attainment.

These are the numbers that our local and regional economic development programs must impact over the next 5-10 years. How much of an impact can we have? That is the all important question. I believe if we work together we can raise our impact. Also, we must focus on what is most important. For one, we need to give much greater attention to educational attainment and excellence in the region.

We have a lot of work to do. I believe NEO economic developers are up to the task.

What is the new economic development model that we need to adopt to improve our future impact. Download my new Ohio Development Association presentation here.

Download the REI report here. (Caution: big file with lots of hard to navigate graphics.) But an excellent piece of work by Greg Stoup at REI.

People on the Move

About 120 million (46 percent) of the nation's population that was 5 years old and over in 2000 lived in a different home than they did in 1995, according to a report released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. Twenty-five percent moved within the same county, 10 percent between counties in the same state and 8 percent between states; 3 percent had moved from abroad.

According to the Census 2000 Brief, Geographical Mobility: 1995 to 2000 [PDF], Nevada led all states in the mobility of its population —— 63 percent were movers. Colorado and Arizona followed at 56 percent each. California, Arizona and Nevada had the highest proportion of people who changed residences within the same county, about 31 percent each.

In 2000, about 60 percent of the U.S. population lived in the state where they were born. Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Michigan had the highest proportion of residents who lived in the state where they were born (79 percent, 78 percent and 75 percent) while Nevada, Florida and Arizona had the lowest (21 percent, 33 percent and 35 percent).

Go here to read more.

Download the new Census report here.

Census 2002 American Community Survey Data Available

The latest American Community Survey data is now available. Each area profile consists of 4 data tables:

1. general demographics,
2. selected social characteristics (including education),
3. economic characteristics, and
4. housing characteristics.

Go here to see which area profiles are available by state.

Indiana Steps Up Life Science Marketing

Leaders in Indiana’s effort to develop the next generation of businesses today unveiled BioCrossroads as the moniker to replace Central Indiana Life Sciences Initiative.

The collaboration between business, government and academia is working toward making the region a bioscience hub.

The new name is part of a comprehensive marketing plan developed to better define the area’s bioscience assets and promote them across the globe.

Go here to read more.

Latest Regional Economic Oulook

Here's the latest from Economy.com about U.S. regional economies.

The South and West are expected to continue to lead the economy into a stronger recovery through the rest of this year and next. Near-term strength will remain concentrated among the defense-intensive economies of Southern California, the Southwest, portions of the Southeast and the Gulf Coast, and the greater Washington, DC area.

Other sources of strength also will begin to support other regions. Distribution services and improved travel patterns by this fall will contribute to recoveries in Orange County, Fort Worth, Atlanta and Miami. Indeed, Atlanta has posted sizable employment gains in recent months. Some tech production centers will be expanding by late next year. Even hard-hit Silicon Valley may be at least stabilizing by mid-2004.

The Midwest will be reined in by a slower pace of auto production, although more diversified economies in the region will begin to expand next year as well if spending on industrial equipment persists. While the region will improve in step with national trends, the pace is expected to lag the U.S. both in the near and the long term. In the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic region will have the better prospects, as New York and southern New England await improvement in the financial service and money management industries.

As an indicator of hiring intentions, regional help-wanted advertising can provide a window to near-term labor market performance. There is only one region—the Mountain West—that has seen a significant improvement in help-wanted advertising since the beginning of this year. This reflects the relatively robust economies still seen in Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico, and a surge in the ad index for Salt Lake City despite no turnaround yet in actual hiring there. These small economies are among the few with stable, although moderate, rates of job growth at the moment. The Pacific and West South Central (Texas and the Oil Patch) regions show tentative gains in help-wanted ads since May, indicating some potential growth. Elsewhere in the U.S., help-wanted advertising is either flat or still declining.

Go here if you subscribe to Economy.com.

Holiday Retail Sales: Good But Not Great

What will the upcoming holiday shopping season look like?

There seems to be plenty of hype about how great the coming holiday season will be, but unfortunately, much of it is overblown, acoording to Economy.com. U.S. retail sales growth this holiday season will likely be the best since 1999. However, much of the year-over-year gains have already been realized, and the very easy comparisons following several weak years will make this year’s sales growth somewhat of a hollow victory. Retailers appear to recognize this fact, as anecdotal evidence points to a little more seasonal hiring than last year, at best, but not a return to normal.

This year, it appears that retailers may hire a few more workers than last year, but will not return to historic seasonal hiring patterns. Sears has indicated it plans to hire fewer workers than last year. Mervyn’s and The Limited plan to hire similar numbers of workers as last year. Bloomingdale’s indicated it will hire more workers. Several retailers indicated they will add workers more slowly due to the increased tendency of shoppers to wait until late in the shopping season to make their purchases. This also gives them the flexibility to cut back on hiring if sales fail to meet plans. After seasonal adjustment, employment may drop again.

Overall, the outlook is positive for retailers this holiday season. Sales growth will be healthy, though those expecting month-to-month growth in retail sales to remain elevated through the holiday season will be disappointed. This year will fall far short of being another 1999.

Economy.com is among the forecasters projecting that retail sales growth this holiday season will be the best since 1999 (see chart below).

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Go here, if you subscribe to Economy.com.

Economic Development and Local Politics

The upcoming election in suburban Aurora, Colorado points up how easily economic development becomes a local political campaign issue in communities. Click here to read an interview by the Denver Business Journal with mayoral candidates. It all starts with this simple question: "What do you want business leaders to know about why you should be mayor of Aurora?"

Let's look at just one issue discussed during this interview. Regional coordination is a key issue for Aurora and other Denver area communities. Here is what one of the Aurora mayoral candidates had to say about this issue: "The second thing, which ties in with the first, is that Aurora establish better working relationships with neighboring governments and neighboring economic development agencies. We've had a very strong attitude of: 'We've got to get it because if they get it, we lose, they win.' And it really is not a zero-sum game in my mind. When the Denver metro area gets shored up economically, Aurora benefits from that, even if the business is not in our city limits." Sound familar? It should because its' an issue in almost all metropolitan areas across America.

It makes sense for Denver area communities to work together and see economic development as a common good for all concerned. Regional cooperation is not easy given the way businesses play communities against each other to extract bigger incentive packages. Cooperation is difficult also because economic activities, including businesses, labor markets, real estate markets, earnings and other things are not limited to single political jurisdictional boundaries. It's a good thing they aren't or we'd all go broke and our economy would fall apart.

It will be interesting to see how the political and economic development situations play out in Aurora, Colorado over the next couple years. Yes, let's fast-forward to 2005. The new mayor has been in office for 24 months and the Denver Business Journal wants to know how he is doing in upholding his campaign promises about economic development. What will he say? This is an important perspective to hold in mind as any community mounts a local economic development effort.

All communities getting involved in economic development must be aware of the political realities surrounding economic development and the need for the community economic developer to have a very skilled hand in navigating local political waters. Politics has always been the "art of the possible," and the professional economic developer must be able to get something done in even the worst of political environments. Are you up to the challenge? As a starting point, learn from other's experience--both good and bad.

A Three-Ring Circus Is Not Economic Development

Here is a story to learn how NOT to approach economic development. Any community can make mistakes and that is understandable, but this story about an Austin, Texas suburb points up several important lessons about approaching economic development on a community level.

Cedar Park, Texas is reconfiguring its once high-flying economic development efforts with some moves that have the Austin area business community a bit antsy. The small suburb to the north of Austin only months ago was advertising nationally that it would provide $5 million in incentives for the right business to come to town.

Now, it has removed the economic development foundation's top staff member, halted a search for an executive director and altered the board of directors so that it includes only city employees.

Several Cedar Park business leaders -- who decline to go on the record -- questioned the changes during a private meeting earlier this month, calling the foundation's economic development efforts "disorganized" and vehemently questioning having only government officials on the board of directors. State and regional economic development officials have questioned the appropriateness of these moves.

Initially, Cedar Park set out to attract high tech or biotechnology companies with 100-plus employees. After the dot-com bust, that initiative seemed fruitless, so the city decided to go after large retailers, a tactic that was pursued heavily by Kirk Clennan, the economic development board's former executive director. In May, Clennan, the city's first and only economic development executive director since the board was formed in 1999, was asked to step down.

In March, during Clennan's tenure, the city nationally advertised a $5 million incentive to lure businesses to Cedar Park. However, the campaign failed to attract the big business the city had hoped for. "I've heard that some people thought the $5 million campaign was a gimmick," Cedar Park Mayor Duprey says. "It was worth trying, though. I thought it was a great campaign, and I really thought we'd get a lot of attention."

What are the lessons here?

1. Community economic development efforts should be grounded in professionalism.

2. These efforts should be guided by a balanced public and private sector leadership team.

3. Flash-in-pan efforts and gimmicks don't work. In fact, they very often come back to haunt you.

4. A thoughtful plan should guide community ED efforts. In this case, the plan should be used to coordinate activities with regional ED groups and it should be used to gain business investor confidence.

5. The business and economic world needs stability and consistency. Sudden moves and changes signal risk and uncertainity. Businesses try to reduce their exposure to risk and places they are sources of unnecessary risk.

Enough said. Go here to read more.

Plant Closings Spur ED Action

The story is an all too familiar one. A community experiences a series of business facility closings and everybody gets into high gear to strengthen local economic development efforts.

For a perfect example of this scenario, read the recent article describing the Rockdale County, Georgia situation. Click here to read the story.

What can we learn from the Rockdale stories across America that are all too common these days?

1. Global economic pressures are hitting local communities hard, even with an improving economy.

2. Manufacturing is especially fragile, even Sun Belt plants that had a labor-cost advantage through the 1990's.

3. There is no substitute for forward-thinking local leadership that is constantly scanning the economic and business environments looking for looming problems and opportunities that could impact the community's economic base.

4. There is no substitute for "being prepared" for economic development. Community readiness is a prerequisite for community survival and growth.

Greater Cleveland: Innovative Retail Development

One developer is challenging America’s retail development model with its rollout of University Square, a four-story shopping center that was completed this spring in the Cleveland suburb, University Heights.

Multistory shopping centers are common in Europe and Asia, where space is at more of a premium, but they’re rare in the United States. There are advantages, however, to such a layout that U.S. shoppers will come to appreciate, says David D. Wasserman, a principal at Providence, R.I.-based Starwood Wasserman, University Square’s developer.

“If you think about it, it’s much more convenient than shopping in a 600,000-square-foot shopping center that’s spread over five acres,” he said. “You avoid the traffic nightmare of driving first over there to the Gap, here to T.J. Maxx, then on to Target, Kaufmann’s and the grocery store. Here you can make those five trips with one stop.”

The project, which was about 80 percent leased at press time, replaces an aging, stand-alone Kaufmann’s department store and accompanying parking lot with a 620,625-square-foot, value-oriented enclosed mall that includes a brand-new Kaufmann’s. Instead of surrounding the mall with parking, University Square does it the other way around — it wraps the retail around a multilevel parking garage.

If you're looking for creative ways to re-design retail space in your community, this is one to look at.

Go here to read more.

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Smaller Cities Growing

A recent National League of Cities' report looks at demographic trends in smaller cities, or those with 50,000 people or less. Here are some of its findings:

* Small cities grew considerably faster (18.5%) than large and medium-sized cities during the 1990s.

* Regional disparities in growth patterns are evident for small cities as well, with small cities in the West and Midwest growing at a fast rate, and considerably faster than their regions as a whole.

* Small cities in metropolitan areas are growing at faster rates than small cities outside of metropolitan areas.

* Overall, the White population is still the most prevalent race in small cities (except in the South), although influxes of Hispanic, Black, and Asian populations are gradually changing the face of many small cities and towns.

Go here to download the report.

Young Workers Falling Behind

The nation’s teenagers and young adults are being left behind in the U.S. labor market, suffering greater job losses than their older counterparts during the recent economic downturn and earning substantially less than their peers a generation ago. These are conclusions of a new report released by the National League of Cities based on research by Northeastern University’s Center for Labor Market Studies.

The report, "Leaving Young Workers Behind"finds that with rising numbers of young Americans, continuing weak labor markets, and an increasing premium on education, the job market prospects are likely to get worse for young Americans between the ages of 16 and 24, especially those with limited education.

Joblessness and unemployment are widespread among young adults. 43 percent of young adults face at least one serious labor-market problem such as unemployment, part-time jobs due to economic conditions, or inadequate weekly earnings.

· Earnings for young men have eroded substantially in recent decades. Adjusting for inflation, young men with no more than a high school education earned 25 percent less in 2000 than young men earned in 1973.

· Young Americans have been hardest hit by the latest economic downturn and the jobless recovery. For instance, summer employment in 2003 was down approximately 1 million compared to 2000.

· Growing numbers of young immigrants compound the challenge. Young foreign-born adults are less likely to have obtained a high school diploma and/or to be enrolled in high school or college, compared to their native-born counterparts.

· Fewer high school students are able to gain footholds in the job market, especially minorities. In 2002, only one in six black high schools students had a job compared to one in five Latino students and one in three white students.

Download the report here.

Corporate Real Estate Outlook: Cautiously Optimistic

A survey issued by Jones Lang LaSalle reveals that corporate real estate executives (CRE executives) are cautiously optimistic about the economy, but are still struggling to deal with a substantial inventory of excess space. Furthermore, new accounting rules regarding the impairment of excess space have created additional hurdles for CRE executives.

Almost half (49 percent) state that they are either "highly optimistic" or "somewhat optimistic," while 20 percent are neutral in their outlook. Less than a third (30 percent) are pessimistic. Perhaps out of familiarity or corporate loyalty, respondents are far more optimistic regarding their own company's prospects over the next 12 months. Two out of three (66 percent) believe their company's prospects will dramatically or somewhat improve over the next year.

Even with these optimistic economic projections, CRE executives report that excess space remains a problem. More than a third (35 percent) of CRE executives report that their excess capacity is more than 15 percent of their current portfolio, while 60 percent claim levels above 10 percent. Based on consensus economic growth expectations, this could represent two to three years of supply.

Relatively high levels of excess space may be causing CRE executives to be somewhat cautious in projecting when they will finally return to the market for additional space. When asked in what time frame they foresaw a need for net additional space in their portfolio, respondents offered a mixed outlook.

CRE executives – like the rest of Corporate America – continually are faced with the need to cut costs. One in three (38 percent) expect to have to deliver cost-cutting in the 0-10 percent rangeover the next 18 months, while roughly half expect to be asked to reduce real estate costs in the 10-15 percent range.

"Eliminating surplus space" and "Consolidating/co-locating space" were cited as the strategies with the most potential for cost cutting by 44 percent and 23 percent of respondents, respectively. Manufacturing space was named the most challenging for disposition, while headquarters and general office space were cited as offering the biggest opportunities for savings.

Go here to read more.

North St. Louis County Readies for Development

Being a central urban county is not easy from an economic development perspective. Everything is harder, including getting cooperation to develop large sites for future business expansion.

A plan to transform a largely vacant area with a rocky redevelopment history into a vibrant business park with nearly 12,000 new jobs is gaining steam in north St. Louis County.

The 479-acre site, just east of Lambert Field, was once a residential community of older homes that largely was emptied over two decades in an airport-noise buyout program.

For years, the site sat dormant as three cities stalled in their efforts to compete for new development. Now, the cities - Kinloch, Berkeley and Ferguson - will pool their land and efforts.

Together, they're endorsing a plan to turn the site into a rare commodity in built-out St. Louis County: a large tract of open, developable land.

When the park is built out in an estimated 20 years, it would have offices and manufacturers and would benefit the local economy to tune of $6.4 billion, according to a report prepared by consultant Jones Lang LaSalle.

With a prime location near Lambert Field and close to several interstate highways, the site will appeal to suppliers for Ford Motor Co., Boeing Co. and other nearby large employers, developers say.

But before they can begin preparing the site, the cities and the economic council face a lengthy slate of meetings, decisions and red tape.

Specifically, they must iron out a tax-increment-financing plan to fund $22.2 million in site work, choose one or more developers and negotiate a deal to buy the land from the property's owners.

In addition, the planners must contend with what could be a major development headache: the remains of hundreds of crushed houses that are buried underground throughout the site.

Go here to read more.

Economic Development Research

Research is vitally important to the success of economic development programs. Economic development organizations (EDO's) have increased their attention to research and planning over the past 10-15 years. These activities are a part of what I call the "knowledge management" function in economic development.

Economic development research activities fall into two broad groups: 1) basic research focused on understanding the behavior and driving factors of economic local and state economic systems; and 2) applied research focused on real-world decision-making in economic development.

What are some typical research and planning activities undertaken by EDO's?

* Local and state economic research.
* Demographic research.
* Business prospect research.
* Industry trend analysis.
* Target industry/industry cluster analysis.
* Competitive intelligence gathering.
* Location factor analysis.
* Geographic information system (GIS) analysis.
* Customized business presentation development.
* Labor market trend research.
* Cost of doing business comparisons.
* Economic and fiscal impact analysis.
* Survey research, including web-based surveys.
* Opinion polls.
* Cost of living comparisons.

Who is doing research in economic development? Many work for EDO's, while others work for university centers and associations with involvement in economic development. Some work as consultants to EDO's. Here are some excellent examples of people feeding the research pipeline in economic development.

* Steve Kelley, Chief Economist, Ohio Dept. of Development.
* George Harben, Vice President, Research and Marketing, Paducah Kentucky Economic Development Council.
* Paul Ringer, Sr. Vice President & Chief Performance Officer, Greater Phoenix Economic Council.
* Rachel Burke, Research and Marketing Analyst, City of Avondale, AZ.
* Dr. Jim Robey, Vice President, Research, Greater Cleveland Growth Association.
* Dr. Bill Lafayette, Vice President, Economic Analysis Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce.
* Dr. Sena Black, Senior Vice President, Research and Marketing, Enterprise Florida.
* Dr. Lay James Gibson, Professor of Geography, University of Arizona.
* Dr. Ned Hill, Professor of Urban Studies and Planning, Cleveland State University.
* Dr. Rhonda Phillips, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Planning, University of Florida.
* Mary Jo Waits, Assoc. Director, Morrison Institute on Public Policy, Arizona State University.
* Dr. Ken Poole, President, ACCRA.
* Jeff Blodgett, Vice President of Research, CERC, Connecticut.
* Dean Whittaker, President, Whittaker & Associates, Holland, Michigan.
* Don Iannone, President, Donald T. Iannone & Associates, Mayfield Village, Ohio.

Featured research publication: Download the first issue of Applied Research in Economic Development Journal (New ED research journal.)

Tribes Get Boost in California from Departing Davis

As part of his finale, Gray Davis signed legislation extending the reach of Indian gaming facilities in California. California currently has 54 Indian-owned casinos, and including the three tribes who had their agreements ratified yesterday, another 10 tribes are authorized to establish new ones.

Go here to read more.

India Increases Attention to Logistics

Here is one to pay attention to. Indian business and government officials are becoming more savvy about transportation and logistics, which is a growing concern on domestic and international companies opearting in India.

Traditionally, manufacturing companies in Asia managed their own logistics requirements in-house, partly due to lack of capable third party logistics players (3PLs). However, as competitive pressures escalate and local (in India) logistics companies become more proficient, Asian manufacturers are starting to outsource their logistics needs to capable local service providers so as to focus better on their core competencies.

The situation is more or less similar to that of outsourcing in the information technology industry. In a bid to cut cost and to improve efficiency in their respective field, IT companies abroad and in India are outsourcing their non-core activities to a third part IT service provider.

Advanced logistic systems would make Indian goods more competitive globally. The success of today's market leaders such as Wal-Mart, Dell, Cisco and Toyota is based to a significant degree on their superior operations and logistics capabilities.

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Read more here.

Nevada Officials Seek to Increase China Air LInks

Nevada officials are thinking ahead. They realize that China is the fastest growing nation across the world and that Chinese business and personal travelers will be boarding airplanes more in the future. One of their objectives during their 10-day trade and business development mission to China is to interest Chinese air service officials in considering flights to Las Vegas and Reno in their future plans.

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Go here to read more.

Minnesota Looks to Re-Write Laws to Support New Technology

Minnesota lawmakers are wrestling with the issue of how their laws regulating telecommunications either spur or hinder the use of new telecom technology. This is an important issue for all states to consider. Shouldn't state law encourage innovation and economic development wherever possible and appropriate? I think they should. What if states conducted an audit to determine whether its laws spur innovation or just reinforce the status quo in terms of technology? Maybe there is something to gain from this exercise.

Click here to read more about the Minnesota situation.

Continuing Education for Advanced Practitioners

For some time, I have felt there is a need to offer more continuing education to advanced economic development practitioners. As I look at the educational and training offerings of IEDC, EDI, and the various regional and state development organizations, I see very little offered to challenge practitioners who have been in the field for ten plus years. Most programming is aimed at entry and mid-level practitioners.

My recommendation is that these groups give greater consideration to new programs to meet the continuing education needs of senior practitioners. This is important to ensure that advanced professionals remain challenged in the field. One suggestion is to offer a set of programs that enhance and build the leadership needs of advanced professionals.

What are your thoughts on this matter? I would welcome the opportunity to dialogue with you about this issue. Please call me at: 440.449.0753 or send me an email by simply clicking here.

Viet Nam Seeks Chinese Business Investment

In case you have not noticed, Chinese businesses are becoming more active investors in other countries. Case in point is Viet Nam, where the number of Chinese investments is growing steadily.

How long before Chinese businesses will be investing in the U.S.? In my estimation, the answer is not long. Initially, they will enter the U.S. market by acquiring established U.S. companies.

Click here to read more.

Largest Metros See Biggest Immigrant Gains

A new Brookings Institute analysis of the flow of domestic and international migrants into and out of the nation's 81 most populous metropolitan areas between 1995 and 2000 indicates that:

The nation's largest metropolitan areas gained the greatest number of migrants from abroad in the late 1990s, but lost the most domestic migrants. These six "immigrant magnet metros"—the New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Washington, and Miami areas—gained 3 million migrants from abroad in the late 1990s, but experienced a net loss of 2.1 million residents to other parts of the U.S.

Residents leaving the nation's immigrant magnet metropolitan areas were more racially and ethnically diverse than in previous decades. In the late 1990s, only 35 percent of net domestic out-migrants from the Los Angeles area were non-Hispanic whites, compared with 78 percent in the late 1980s. As in the 1980s, however, individuals with lower educational attainment left these metro areas at higher rates than individuals with college degrees.

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"Domestic migrant magnets" in the Southeast and West attracted the largest numbers of migrants from other areas of the U.S. Rapid in-migration to several of these metro areas, including Phoenix, Atlanta, and Las Vegas, boosted population in each by more than 100,000 residents in the late 1990s alone.

While immigrants drove population growth in and around the core urban counties of metropolitan areas, domestic migrants fueled the fast growth occurring in outlying suburban counties. For example, the urban county containing Dallas, TX, gained enough immigrants between 1995 and 2000 to compensate for its net loss of 90,000 domestic migrants. Meanwhile, farther out in the same metropolitan area, Collin County, TX, grew nearly 20 percent thanks to domestic in-migration.

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New Report on Low-Wage Jobs

The Brookings Institute has just released a new report on low-wage jobs. An analysis looked at data on low-wage workers and their employers from 1996 to 2001. It reveals that:

Smaller firms, and those in the retail trade and service industries, pay lower wages than other employers when worker characteristics are held constant. Worker turnover is also closely associated with wages: three-fourths of low-wage firms experience at least 100 percent turnover on an annual basis, compared to about one-third of high-wage firms.

Almost half of workers who had persistently low earnings from 1996-98 earned somewhat higher incomes in 1999-2001. Low earners who changed jobs during that time were considerably more likely to achieve higher earnings in the latter period than those who stayed at the same job.

Most low-wage workers who increased their earnings over time did so by gaining employment at a higher-wage firm. Low earners who began working at "temp" agencies were more likely to gain subsequent employment at high-wage firms than were other low earners.

Medium- and high-wage firms are more heavily concentrated in urban counties than in suburban or rural ones. At the same time, certain better-paying industries that employ large numbers of less-educated workers, such as construction and manufacturing, are located outside urban counties more often than are other industries.

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MBA's Say Social Responsibility Is Important

A recent survey of MBA students by the Aspen Institute says that corporate social responsibility should be given far more attention in the future. They believe that an ethical business culture should be instilled in students during the business education process and that business managers, executives and board members should work at ethical practices on an ongoing basis.

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Iowa City Takes Aim at Younger Generation

While larger cities across the nation have invested in luring younger generations to boost the labor force and strengthen their economic future, Iowa City already is a hot spot for the young and ambitious.

"The biggest attraction to that age group is the University of Iowa," Iowa City Mayor Ernie Lehman said. "I'm not sure there is anything the city could even do that would compare with the university."

According to 2000 U.S. Census data, there are 14,872 people between age 20 and 24 in Iowa City and 10,218 people age 25 to 34. Those two groups are the city's largest, more than doubling most other age groups.

In an effort to retain younger generations and entice newcomers, cities have been playing host to conferences to discuss youth-attracting strategies. One of the most recent, Richard Florida's Memphis Manifesto, was put on last spring in Tennessee and assembled residents of 40 cities, including several representatives from Iowa City.

Eight members of The James Gang, an Iowa City-based volunteer organization fostering community development, attended the summit after host Richard Florida personally invited them.

Further proof that the community is a hot spot for the young and ambitious came in June when a study christened the Iowa City-Cedar Rapids area as the coolest place in Iowa for people born between 1961 and 1981.



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