Economic Development Leadership Survey

If you have not completed the ED Futures Leadership Survey, please considering doing so. If you are interested in completing the survey, simply click here.

Since May 9th, 336 economic developers have responded to the survey. Not bad for a start!

Here is a small sample of what the survey results are showing so far:

1. Economic developers see leadership as a defining issue for the profession at this time.

2. Many economic developers are not fully tapping the resources and potential of their boards in moving their organizations forward.

3. Most ED organizations are barely scratching the surface in terms of leadership training and development activities. In short, little is being done to develop leadership once it is in place.

4. Leaders play various roles in advancing ED organizations, but certain roles are common to most organizations.

5. There is more talk than action with respect to collaborative leadership in economic development.

The survey results will be made available to those completing the survey.

Michigan Signs Accord with Tribes

Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm and leaders of Michigan's 12 federally recognized American Indian tribes signed an accord Friday aimed at coordinating economic development and job creation efforts.

"We all benefit from a robust economy and more jobs," Granholm said in a statement. "I am pleased to be working with the 12 Indian tribes in Michigan to maximize our ability to foster an environment that welcomes new business and growth."

Under the accord, representatives for the governor and the tribal leaders will meet twice each year to discuss joint economic development programs.

The goal is to diversify tribal economies by developing new, non-gaming initiatives that can benefit both the tribes and surrounding communities, the governor's office said.

More here.

Senator Chuck Hagel on America's 21st Century Challenges

"Today, in the world’s widening circle of freedom, America must commit to taking the long view of its role in the world. That will require strong and imaginative leadership, coherent policies, and responsible politics and government. My generation has enjoyed 60 years of expanding prosperity, security, and national prestige. This was a legacy passed on to us by our parents and every generation of Americans. We owe it to them and to our children to pass on an enhanced inheritance to future generations. This is the 21st Century Toynbee challenge." Source: Recent National Press Club speech.

Jacksonville, Florida's Headquarter Companies

Headquarters and Employment

Winn Dixie Stores, Inc., 7,238
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Florida, 7,000
CSX, 4,400
Citibank, 4,000
Bank of America, 4,000
Vistakon, 2,249
Gate Petroleum, 2,200
Aetna U.S. Healthcare, 1,700
Georgia Pacific Corporation, Palatka Division, 1,254
Fidelity Information Services Company, 1,200
Swisher International, 1,140
Kemper Auto and Home Division, 1,100
Stein Mart Inc., 1,000
PSS World Medical Inc., 1,000
EverBank and EverHome Mortgage, 900
Florida East Coast Industries, 873
Crowley Company, 856
Landstar System Inc., 850
MPS Group, 800
Ring Power Corporation, 800
The Haskell Company, 745
Chase Manhattan Mortgage Corp, 700
Allstate Workplace Division, 700
PGA Tour, 650
SunTrust Mortgage, 640

Note: January 2005 data. Includes corporate, division, and regional headquarter operations.

Source: Jacksonville Cornerstone Alliance

How to Work Effectively with Your Economic Development Board

Economic Development Leadership Survey

Leadership is a major determinant of your economic development success. ED Futures is conducting a national survey on economic development leadership trends and issues.

If you are interested in completing the survey, simply click here.

Since May 9th, over 300 economic developers have responded to the survey. Not bad for a start!

Here is a small sample of what the survey results are showing so far:

1. Economic developers see leadership as a defining issue for the profession at this time.

2. Many economic developers are not fully tapping the resources and potential of their boards in moving their organizations forward.

3. Most ED organizations are barely scratching the surface in terms of leadership training and development activities. In short, little is being done to develop leadership once it is in place.

4. Leaders play various roles in advancing ED organizations, but certain roles are common to most organizations.

5. There is more talk than action with respect to collaborative leadership in economic development.

The survey results will be made available to those completing the survey.

The survey site will be open until Monday, May 23rd, 5:00 PM (EST).

Latest Purchasing Managers Economic Survey

Manufacturing Summary

Expectations for 2005 remain high as 72 percent of survey respondents forecast revenues to be greater in 2005 than in 2004. However, expectations are lower overall as the panel of purchasing and supply executives now expects a 6.8 percent net increase in overall revenues for 2005 compared to a 7.8 percent revenue growth forecast in December 2004. Industries expecting double-digit improvement in 2005 are: Primary Metals; Wood & Wood Products; Transportation & Equipment; and Electronic Components & Equipment.

Non-Manufacturing Summary

Sixty-eight percent of non-manufacturing purchasing and supply executives expect their 2005 revenues to be greater than in 2004. They currently expect a 5.3 percent net increase in overall revenues compared to a 5.9 percent increase predicted for 2005 last December. Non-manufacturing industries expecting the greatest improvement over 2004 are — listed in order — Business Services; Mining; Wholesale Trade; Construction; and Health Services.

Source: National Association of Purchasing Managers, May 2005 Survey.

Cities and Broadband

Looking for some good ideas on how to get broadband Internet services to your community. Click here to download a presentation at a recent National League of Cities' conference on the subject. (Note: Large PowerPoint slideshow).

NGA's Creating Great Places Initiative

Creating Great Places is an initiative of the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) that helps governors design and implement state growth and physical development strategies that promote healthy, economically competitive and sustainable communities.

The initiative represents the first comprehensive approach, specifically tailored to the needs of the nation's governors, offering information on best practices and expert technical assistance on a wide variety of interrelated policies affecting growth and development.

Click here to learn more.

South Florida Jobs Grow, But Employers Getting More Picky About Workers

Florida's job market has been steaming forward for the past two years, with unrivaled job growth compared to other parts of the country.

Local employment is just as good. In March, the tri-county South Florida area added more jobs than any other part of the state, according to state employment figures.But a strong labor market doesn't ensure automatic employment for job seekers.

Many aspects of the job search have changed in recent years. Employers are now much more circumspect about the hiring process.

Many are becoming much more selective, said Jim Hickey, a local district manager with Randstad, a staffing company. That's in part because of lessons learned during leaner economic times when companies couldn't afford to make poor hiring choices.

More here.

Mississippi and Louisiana Job Growth Lags

An economist says Louisiana and Mississippi may fight it out for last place in job growth among the southeastern states over the next two years.

During the Gulf South Bank Conference yesterday in New Orleans, LSU economist Loren Scott predicted job growth in Mississippi of one percent, per year through 2006 and in Louisiana of point-nine percent this year and one-point-two percent in 2006. That would mean 23-thousand-800 new jobs in Mississippi by the end of 2006 and 40-thousand-100 new jobs in Louisiana.

Scott says the regional leaders will be Alabama, where employment is expected to grow by two-point-five percent through 2006, and Arkansas, where a one-point-four percent employment growth is forecast through 2006.

More here.

Arizona Job Growth Brisk

Arizona created more jobs than any state but Nevada in 2004.

Nevada's nonfarm employment grew by 5.9 percent last year, while jobs in Arizona increased 3.4 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

"Western states accounted for six of the top 10 states with the fastest job growth, as Montana, Utah, Idaho and Wyoming all posted gains of more than 2 percent," wrote Lee McPheters in the May issue of the Western Blue Chip Economic Forecast.

More than 2.73 million nonfarm jobs were created in Arizona in 2004.

More here.

Economic Development Leadership Survey

Leadership is a major determinant to economic development success. ED Futures is conducting a national survey of economic development leadership trends. If you are interested in completing the survey, simply click here.

Just in the first day, nearly 100 economic developers responded to the survey. Not bad for a start.

The survey results will be made available to those completing the survey. The survey site will be open until Monday, May 23rd, 5:00 PM (EST).

US Multinational Company Research

U.S. multinational companies (MNCs) employed 30.1 million workers worldwide in 2003, of which 21.8 million were employed in the United States by U.S. parent companies and 8.4 million were employed abroad by majority-owned foreign affiliates.

The employment of U.S. parents accounted for about one-fifth of total U.S. employment in private industries. Capital expenditures by U.S. MNCs totaled $435.7 billion; U.S. parents accounted for $319.3 billion and majority-owned foreign affiliates accounted for $116.4 billion. Sales by U.S. parent companies totaled $6,614.3 billion, and those by majority-owned foreign affiliates totaled $2,948.5 billion.

Majority-owned U.S. affiliates of foreign MNCs employed 5.2 million workers in 2003, accounting for 5 percent of total U.S. employment in private industries. Capital expenditures by these affiliates totaled $109.0 billion and their sales totaled $2,130.7 billion.

Read more here.

Latest Personal Income Report

U>S. personal income increased $48.0 billion, or 0.5 percent, and disposable personal income (DPI)increased $41.9 billion, or 0.5 percent, in March, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.Personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $51.1 billion, or 0.6 percent. In February, personalincome increased $41.4 billion, or 0.4 percent, DPI increased $35.5 billion, or 0.4 percent, and PCEincreased $57.3 billion, or 0.7 percent, based on revised estimates. Read the full report here.

Tribes Look Beyond Gaming

Much of Indian Country in the United States is economically depressed, with high unemployment and a shortage of stable industries or housing. Tribal gaming has brought startling prosperity to a few tribes in strategically located parts of the country. Casinos have been less spectacular performers, though, for many tribes, frequently becoming a jobs program rather than an economic engine that spins dollars around the reservation in the traditional seven-times-over multiplier. More here.

New York's Stem Cell Research Needs Strengthening

The head of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's biotech effort is concerned that New York is not doing enough to encourage stem-cell research. Robert Palazzo, director of RPI's Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, said a top researcher recently rejected a job to lead a group of RPI scientists because, among other things, he felt the state wasn't showing enough support for that type of research.

The interest in biotechnology in general has increased during the past four years. In 2001, only 14 states had economic development initiatives focused on biotech. Today, 40 states have biotech initiatives.

New York was one of the first states to focus on biotechnology. According to a report by state Comptroller Alan Hevesi, the state's biotech and pharmaceutical industries employ more than 54,000 New Yorkers and generated $18 billion in economic activity in the state in 2003.

More here.

Detroit Considers Fast Food Tax

If approved, the Detroit tax would be the country's first to target fast-food outlets, the National Restaurant Association said. The tax would apply to anything sold at a fast-food restaurant - even salads. Opponents have been quick to call it a "fat tax" in this city dubbed the nation's fattest in 2004 by Men's Health magazine. Detroit fell to No. 3 for 2005. More here.

South Carolina's Tourism Cluster

In South Carolina, its tourism task force is focusing on developing a blueprint for how tourism will grow in the next 10 to 20 years. Subcommittees are working on ideas for increasing air service and improving work force training.

The long-range tourism cluster plan hopes to include ideas for marketing that differentiates South Carolina from other destinations, developing a mass transit system, and building a regional airport between here and Florence. Strategies for luring higher-spending tourists also could be a component, as well as development ideas that could increase the number of visitors.

More here.

Florida Gives Small Town Push

Florida visitors are probably already familiar with Orlando's glittering theme parks and the fine white sands of Gulf Coast beaches. But chances are they haven't heard much about the historic and picturesque downtowns of Dunedin, Lakeland or Jensen Beach. State tourism officials are trying to change that.

Hoping to draw repeat Florida visitors off the beaten path, Visit Florida, the state's public-private tourism arm, recently kicked off a multiyear, $1 million-plus marketing campaign aimed at promoting the cultural and historical attractions of downtowns and some of the state's lesser-known villages.

More here.

New York City 2025

If we could look into the future, and see New York City two decades from now, what would we see? For starters, in 2025, the city will probably be home to well over 8.5 million people - a half a million more than today - not to mention those who flock here daily and nightly to work and play.

There are a handful of tenets driving the new New York:

-Increasing the amount of waterfront space available, and having more water taxis, marinas and other new recreational uses, such as parks and playing fields.

-Creating more mixed-use areas that seamlessly weave together business, shopping and residential areas.

-Bringing streets back to life with bustling outdoor cafes and better pedestrian access, and vastly expanding the amount of public green space for people to enjoy.

-Responding to community concerns so their specific areas are preserved and maintained rather than remade.

More here.

Alabama Picked as #1

Site Selection magazine, which reports on economic development trends, ranked Alabama No. 1 for economic competitiveness.

The magazine's editors chose the Alabama Development Office, the agency responsible for leading the state's economic development efforts, to receive this year's Competitiveness Award. This is the third year Site Selection has given the honor.