In May 2017, the Georgia Department of Economic Development’s Workforce Division announced the recipients of the Governor’s High Demand Career Initiative (HDCI). The purpose of HDCI is to identify what industries will be in most need of skilled workers and ensure a sustainable pipeline of workers. Building on previous partnerships created in the region, the State Workforce Development Board, which administers federal Workforce Investment and Opportunities Act (WIOA) funds, awarded the Northwest Georgia Workforce Investment Board (WIB) with a $232,200 Sector Partnership grant.
Led by Governor Nathan Deal, the economic development community in Georgia has heard from the businesses across the state that one of the greatest challenges is the need for a consistent, trained, and reliable workforce. In response, Governor Deal created the High Demand Career Initiative (HDCI) to bring partners from the University System of Georgia (USG), the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG), and local K-12 systems to hear directly from the private sector about their specific workforce needs (i.e., degrees/majors, certificates, courses, skillsets, etc.). With decision makers from each of these entities working together, the region will gain a clear picture of what businesses need, pair them with existing assets, and formulate a plan to tackle any gaps that may exist.
The Northwest Georgia Regional Commission (NWGRC) submitted a proposal to the state on behalf of the 15-county Northwest Georgia region that focused on advanced manufacturing; bringing together the local government, the private sector, local high schools and community colleges to build a network of partners. The NWGRC has selected the Center for Economic Development Research (CEDR) at Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI2) to lead this effort.
The goal of HDCI is that this employer-led partnership will enable an education system responsive to the needs of advanced manufacturers in the region, and create a pipeline of workforce talent poised to apply their knowledge and creativity in a variety of industries. The opportunities created through the HDCI sector strategy will reach across all advanced manufacturing sectors. The NWGRC includes a 15-county region, comprised of the following Georgia counties: Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Fannin, Floyd, Gilmer, Gordon, Haralson, Murray, Paulding, Pickens, Polk, Walker, and Whitfield.
Advanced manufacturing is tied to the economic development and long-term viability of communities in the Northwest Georgia region and beyond the state’s borders. Global competitiveness in the northwest Georgia region relies on the strength of the manufacturing sector. Since 2013, the NWGRC and the CEDR team have been working to convene a diverse consortium of manufacturers, community leaders, Chambers of Commerce and Development Authorities, industry associations, local schools and technical colleges and other stakeholders in the region to understand industry needs and plan for the growth of advanced manufacturing in the region.
Georgia Tech’s Center for Economic Development Research will lead the research. Researchers will define the county’s labor draw area, survey business leaders, and analyze detailed industry, occupational, and wage information. Researchers will analyze and assemble this information into a Labor Market Study that Fannin leaders can use to market to prospective business.
Blue Ridge, GA. Photo from the Fannin County Development Authority
The research team expects to complete at the end of August.
This post is the second half of a series on economic resilience. It presents some successful practices from communities around the country and describes some resilience activities from communities in Georgia.
Mayor Kasim Reed has appointed Stephanie Stuckey Benfield as the city’s first Chief Resilience Officer. Photo : Stephanie Benfield, Twitter
The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) recommends that communities develop plans to mitigate the impact of shocks to their economies and support long-term recovery efforts. This includes all communities, whether they are prone to natural disasters or deleterious economic shifts or not. All communities should be aware of their vulnerabilities and be prepared to withstand and respond to related shocks. Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) Content Guidelines offer a number of resiliency strategies for economic development organizations to incorporate into their CEDS planning documents that accomplish this goal. Some economic resiliency initiatives are discussed below.
Initiatives around the US
Regions around the country have performed studies or outlined strategies to prepare for shocks. Below are just a few examples from other states that Georgia communities should consider.
North Central Florida: The North Central Florida Regional Planning Council (NCFRPC) completed a study in 2011 to assess the region’s ability to economically recover from natural disasters. The study consists of the following:
A hazards analysis to model hurricane-induced storm surges;
A vulnerability analysis to map developed areas and infrastructure at high flood risk;
A regional economic analysis to assess capital structure loss, job loss, and population loss from a hurricane; and
An economic resiliency discussion focused on the state’s Florida Business Disaster Tool Kit.
Mountainland Region Utah: The Mountainland Economic Development District (MEDD) updated their CEDS in 2013 and included a disaster and economic recovery and resiliency strategy. The section outlines MEDD’s commitments in the event of a disaster. It includes a phase describing efforts for pre-disaster preparedness and a phase devoted to post-disaster planning and implementation. It also defines MEDD’s role in post-disaster economic recovery. This includes restoring the economic base of disaster-impacted communities and identifying hazard-mitigation opportunities in concert with reconstruction.
Southeastern Vermont: Southeastern Vermont Economic Development Strategies (SeVEDS) developed their CEDS in 2014. Their CEDS touched on many issues, including economic resiliency, but it stands out because of its focus on results. Its goals, objectives, and strategies focus on concrete actions with measurable outcomes. For example, an objective to act regionally includes a strategy to expand public, private, and non-profit collaboration which includes a measureable outcome: “The Southeastern Vermont region will achieve a good to excellent rating for best practices in regional CEDS and collaboration by end of 2018”.
The CEDS’ focus on results keeps the plan from collecting dust on a shelf. Instead, it becomes a checklist of action items that the implementation team can measure their progress against. To do this, they employed ViTAL Economy’s S.M.A.R.T. framework to guide the development of their strategy and action items. Applying it to economic resilience goals and objectives ensures meaningful implementation.
Resiliency in Georgia
Augusta-Richmond County: The consolidated government of Augusta-Richmond County began focusing on the long-term after it experienced economic downturns toward the end of the 20th century. Their efforts for economic resiliency involved three goals: attracting a diverse mix of businesses, enhancing their higher educational institutions, and encouraging investment in their historic downtown. With these goals and with their focus on the long term, the community now boasts a strong economic foundation. They have attracted a diverse mix of small and large businesses. Their university is growing with new properties downtown. The downtown is also growing with mixed-use developments and affordable housing. Their long-term focus on these three goals is also credited with the community’s ability to weather the effects of the Great Recession.
Coastal Regional Commission of Georgia: In 2014, the Coastal Regional Commission released the Resilience Plan for the Coast of Georgia. The plan examines the natural hazards of the region, its natural and built environment, and related proposals and programs. The purpose of the plan is to strengthen the region’s ability to avoid the impacts of natural hazards and to recover from the effects of natural hazards after the fact. One component of the plan involves an assessment of business vulnerability (included jobs and sales effected) in the event of a category 1 thru 5 tropical storm. The plan also includes recommendations for communities to engage businesses regarding continuity planning in the event of a crisis and recommends courses to help businesses plan for catastrophic events through the Small Business Administrations.
City of Atlanta: The latest resilience effort announced by a Georgia community is the City of Atlanta’s appointment of a Chief Resilience Officer, Stephanie Stuckey Benfield. This new position, funded by the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities initiative, will lead city-wide efforts to address social, physical, and economic resiliency challenges. These include acute natural disasters such as hurricanes and fires, as well as “slow-moving” disasters like water shortages and unemployment. Some current resiliency projects include:
Converting the Bell Wood Quarry into a reservoir with a 30-day water supply;
Hiring an urban agriculture director tasked with bringing local, healthy food options to more Atlanta residents; and
Implementing the Renew Atlanta bond program to improve the city’s infrastructure.
Also of Interest: Economic resilience will be the focus of Georgia Tech’s 2017 Basic Economic Development Course—Economic Resilience: Building Capacity for Strong Communities (March 21, 2017-March 24, 2017). For more on the course, visit www.gt-bedc.org.
Sources
Note this discussion draws from the 2016 Georgia Economic Outlook Report prepared for the EDA University Center program, operated by Georgia Tech’s EI2.
United States Economic Development Administration (EDA). (2016). Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) Content Guidelines. Retrieved from: https://www.eda.gov/ceds/.
City of Atlanta. (2016). Mayor Kasim Reed, In Partnership with 100 Resilient Cities, Appoints Stephanie Stuckey-Benfield as City of Atlanta’s First Chief Resilience Officer. Retrieved from: http://www.atlantaga.gov/index.aspx?page=672&recordid=4803.
This post is the first half of a series discussing economic resilience. It offers some definitions of economic resilience and outlines resiliency initiatives. CEDR is spotlighting economic resiliency because it will be the focus of Georgia Tech’s 2017 Basic Economic Development Course — Economic Resilience: Building Capacity for Strong Communities (March 21, 2017-March 24, 2017). For more on the course, watch this short video or visit www.gt-bedc.org.
The National Association of Counties (NACO) describes economic resilience as a community’s ability toforesee, adapt to, and leverage changing conditions to their advantage. Similarly, the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) Content Guidelines note that resiliency has three primary attributes:
The ability to recover quickly from a shock;
The ability to withstand a shock; and
The ability to avoid the shock altogether.
Shocks may include:
Downturns in the national or global economy impacting demand for local goods and spending;
Downturns of particular industries critical to local economic activities; and
External impacts such as natural or man-made disasters, military base closures or a major employer, changing climate, etc.
Though the Great Recession is in the rearview mirror, it is during the relatively prosperous times that communities need to keep their focus on resiliency efforts. Communities should prepare because economic shocks are always waiting around the corner. Since shocks are inevitable, as EDA notes, a region’s long-term economic prosperity is linked to its ability to deal with disruptions to its economic base.
Downtown Rome, Georgia
Economic developers play an important role in building a community’s economic resiliency. They must consider their role from the pre- and post-incident perspective. As a result, their strategies for economic resiliency fall into two camps defined below.
Steady-state Initiatives
These are pre-incident initiatives that focus on long-term efforts to improve the community’s ability to withstand or avoid shocks. Some examples include:
Comprehensive planning efforts that incorporate a vision for resiliency;
Implementing efforts to diversify the industrial base;
Adapting business retention programs to assist firms with recovery following a shock;
Developing a workforce that can shift between jobs and industries;
Using geographic information systems (GIS) to map business establishment data and available development sites, integrated with hazard information to allow for rapid post-incident impact assessments;
Ensuring redundancy in communication networks to protect commerce and public safety;
Promoting business continuity by ensuring businesses understand their vulnerabilities, such as their supply chains, in the face of disruptions; and
Employing safe development practices, such as locating structures outside of floodplains, preserving natural lands as buffers, and protecting existing development from extreme weather.
Responsive Initiatives
These are post-incident initiatives that focus on a community’s ability to react in the short-term to shocks and recovery needs. Some examples include:
Pre-disaster recovery planning that defines key stakeholders, roles, responsibilities, and actions;
Developing a system for regular communication, monitoring, and updating of business community needs for use after or during an incident;
Establishing the capability to rapidly contact key officials (local, regional, state, and federal) to relate business sector needs and impact assessments; and
Creating coordination mechanisms and leadership succession plans for short, middle, and long-term recovery needs.
Sources
Note this discussion draws from the 2016 Georgia Economic Outlook Report prepared for the EDA University Center program, operated by Georgia Tech’s EI2.
United States Economic Development Administration (EDA). (2016). Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) Content Guidelines. Retrieved from: https://www.eda.gov/ceds/.
The mission of our Economic Development Research Program (EDRP) is to assist local communities by providing affordable economic development and policy research to enhance their competitive positions.
The types of research include strategic planning, forecasting, feasibility studies, readiness assessments, economic impact analysis, and labor market studies to name a few.
Registration is open throughout the year!
Have questions or want to apply? Contact:
Alfie Meek, Ph.D.
Director of the Center for Economic Development Research
In the first half of this series, international companies’ locations and expansions in the State of Georgia were investigated using Georgia Department of Economic Development Data from the 2015 fiscal year. Gwinnett County stood out, with half of its new locations and expansions coming from international companies. In this post economic development strategies, demographic changes, and cultural assets that could affect international company locations in Gwinnett County are explored.
According to Partnership Gwinnett (a community and economic development initiative of the Gwinnett Chamber), the county is home to more than 600 international companies. Its website recently featured an article about the new location of Linhai Powersports USA, a Chinese-owned company in Norcross. Within the article, Gwinnett County Commissioner Jace Brooks was quoted saying, “Gwinnett’s vast international representation and skilled talent pool, not only help attract global companies such as Linhai to the community, but also enable them to thrive here.” Nick Masino, Senior Vice President and Chief Economic Development Officer at Partnership Gwinnett, credits metro area assets like Hartsfield-Jackson Airport and world-class educational institutions, the county’s award winning public school system, interstate access to northeast American markets, and Gwinnett’s established history as a leader in international business. When recruiting international companies, Masino is able to point to the multitude of successful international companies already in the county.
Figure 1: Foreign Born population in Atlanta Metro
The recently updated Partnership Gwinnett 3.0 Economic Development Strategy and Implementation Plan refers to enhancing and expanding the approach to international business recruitment. The plan’s strategy focuses on fostering relationships through face-to-face interactions, such as visits to target markets. It stresses “consistency in follow-up with those relationships.” The plan also discusses creating “an atmosphere that is inviting and comforting to a foreign investor” as a way to set it apart from other communities.
“The cultural and educational ties that international investors and their family members may have to a community can often be as important as any business or government relationships in forming strong bonds that result in investment and trade.” (Partnership Gwinnett 3.0 Economic Development Strategy and Implementation Plan)
Figure 2: Hong Kong Supermarket in Norcross, GA
Demographic shifts over the past decade have made Gwinnett County one of the most diverse areas in the country. Of the Atlanta region, Gwinnett County saw the highest population growth between 2000 and 2010 growing by 37 percent—over 200,000 people. This growth is due in large part to new immigrant residents in the county. Today, American Community Survey data shows that one in four residents of Gwinnett County are foreign born (ACS, 5-year estimates, 2012). This is a higher share than any other county in the Atlanta region (Figure 1) and shows major change from 1990 (5.0 percent of total population in Gwinnett County was foreign born) and 2000 (16.9 percent). Gwinnett County is now “majority-minority” with a non-Hispanic white population at 42 percent (ACS, 5-year estimates, 2014).
Figure 3: Global Mall in Norcross, GA
The county is home to many organizations with programs and offerings that can benefit immigrants: Latin American Association, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Center for Pan Asian Community Services, and several bi-national chambers of commerce. The presence of these organizations results from the area’s growing immigrant community. Immigrant entrepreneurs have also responded to the demand for businesses that serve the diverse population by opening grocery stores like Hong Kong Supermarket (Figure 2) and shopping centers like Global Mall (Figure 3). Buford
Figure 4: Buford Highway
Highway (Figure 4), Norcross, and other places in Gwinnett County have become cultural meccas in Atlanta for cuisine, festivals, and community. This perhaps draws back to the importance of cultural community ties for international investors and their family members to build strong bonds resulting in more investment and trade, referenced in the Partnership Gwinnett Plan.
A strategic and progressive economic development team, demographic shifts, and a thriving immigrant community all contribute to Gwinnett’s success in attracting and retaining international companies.
This post is the first half of a series on international companies locating and expanding in Georgia using data provided by the Georgia Department of Economic Development. This part will look at the State of Georgia and the following post will focus on Gwinnett County.
According to data collected by Georgia Department of Economic Development, there were 331 expansions or new locations of companies in the state of Georgia in the 2015 fiscal year. Of these, 197 listed a country of ownership. 72 companies or 36.5 percent were internationally owned and these companies were responsible for 42 percent of the jobs created by expansions or new locations (with ownership data) in FY15.
These 72 companies came from 18 different countries (Figure 1). The top three countries of ownership were Germany (22.2 percent), South Korea (12.5 percent), and Japan (12.5 percent).
Figure 1: FY15 New Locations & Expansions, International Countries of Ownership
The international companies located or expanded in 31 Georgia counties (Figure 2). The top five counties for international company locations or expansions were Gwinnett, Fulton, Chatham, Richmond, and Hall.
Gwinnett County had nine international locations or expansions, the most of any county. Half of all new locations and expansions in Gwinnett County for FY15 were by international companies, in Fulton County the percentage was less than 20. China, Germany, and South Korea were the top countries of ownership for 2015 locations to Gwinnett. Three out of four companies with Chinese ownership locating or expanding in the state of Georgia were in Gwinnett County.
The next post will expand on international companies locating in Gwinnett County. It will review some of their economic development strategy and demographic shifts in the county.
Figure 2: FY15 New Locations & Expansions, international companies by county location in Georgia
Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP) community representatives from across the country converged for a manufacturing-focused panel at the Regional Studies Association North American conference, which was held on June 16th at the Historic Academy of Medicine in Midtown Atlanta. The conference was themed, “Cities and Regions: Managing Growth and Change”. Building on this theme, the panel centered the discussion on “Regional Collaboration for Effective Economic Development Manufacturing Strategies: IMCP Communities”.
IMCP is one of the White House Administration’s main programs to support job creation and accelerate manufacturing growth by transforming their industrial ecosystems into globally-competitive manufacturing hubs. Administered by the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration, IMCP does this by leveraging federal resources from across key government agencies with priority projects that IMCP communities identify for their key industry sectors.
All of the panelists who presented at the RSA session work directly with communities and regions in a collaborative capacity to enhance manufacturing ecosystems across six key areas:
1) workforce and training;
2) supplier networks;
3) research and innovation;
4) infrastructure and site development;
5) trade and international access; and
6) operational improvement and capital access.
This integrated approach has helped regions across the country identify gaps in the current manufacturing ecosystem, develop strategies to improve the climate for jobs and investment, and create strong and committed partnership networks to implement those strategies. Panelists shared their experiences – best practices, lessons learned, and practical advice – on how to build a strong manufacturing ecosystem and influence regional policy using collaboration and partnerships generated through the IMCP program.
Panelists for the session included:
Deepak Bahl, Program Director, USC Center for Economic Development and adjunct associate professor at the USC Price School of Public Policy. Deepak also helps manage the AMP SoCal IMCP.
Debra Franklin, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Wichita State University, WSU Ventures. Debbie also manages the South Kansas IMCP.
Erin Ketelle, Economic Development Program Manager at University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service, and TN’s DRIVE for the Future IMCP.
Julie Wenah, Counselor and Policy Advisor, U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration. Julie leads the White House National Economic Council initiative that currently supports 24 communities across the country, aka IMCP.
The panel was moderated by Leigh Hopkins with the Georgia Tech Enterprise Innovation Institute’s Center for Economic Development Research (CEDR). Leigh also co-manages the Northwest Georgia IMCP with the Northwest Georgia Regional Commission for the 15-county northwest Georgia region.
The panelists tour ATDC during their Atlanta visit. From left to right: Leigh Hopkins, Julie Wenah, Erin Ketelle, Debra Franklin, Johanna Kaiser (ATDC) and Deepak Bahl.
The Regional Studies Association provides a platform for researchers to address the effects of policy, organizational, and institutional innovations and their impact on work, identity, governance, production networks, infrastructure investments, technology diffusion, and place. The annual North American conference was co-organized by Dr. Jennifer Clark with the Center for Urban Innovation at Georgia Tech. The conference focused on the regional policy implications of emerging forms of governance and policy delivery relative to uneven development and inequality of market liberalization, financialization, and global competition in an era of recovering financial markets. It also included a tour of Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), a technology business incubator in the heart of Tech Square.
Starting this August, the Center for Economic Development Research will work with the Fitzgerald and Ben Hill County Development Authority to create policy guidelines for local economic development incentives. The research will look at existing plans and guidance from the city and county. With this and with input from local leaders, the project team will recommend a set of policies and incentives to help the community become more competitive while being responsible with taxpayer resources. Some of the recommendations may include policies for tax and fee reduction, strategies for review process acceleration, and cost/benefit analysis guidelines. The project team expects to conclude in October with a final report detailing their incentive policy recommendations.
On May 6, 2016, US Department of Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker and Deputy Secretary Jay Williams visited Northwest Georgia, touring Engineered Floors and the Northwest Georgia College and Career Academy. They participated in a round table discussion with the Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP) Consortium, Floor360, and Communities That Work Partnership (CTWP) leaders from industry, workforce development and the Northwest Georgia College and Career Academy. The discussion centered on development of a skilled curriculum for the next generation working in a highly automated manufacturing environment, both the engagement of parents and teachers to redefine manufacturing and to develop skilled pathways to manufacturing employment using apprenticeships, and launching of the new Advanced Manufacturing and Business Academy (AMBA) at the College and Career Academy.
From left to right: Asst. Sec. Jay Williams (USDOC), Dr. Kathryn Hornsby (TCSG), Barbara Ward (Dalton Utilities), Louis Fordham (J+J Industries), Sec. Penny Pritzker (USDOC), Jason Reynolds, (Plant Manager, Engineered Floors), Deana Perry (NWGRC), and Leigh Hopkins (Georgia Tech).
The IMCP program is one of the US Department of Commerce’s main initiatives to support job creation and accelerate manufacturing growth to make communities more globally competitive by transforming their industrial ecosystems into globally-competitive manufacturing hubs. The Northwest Georgia region has been designated an IMCP “Manufacturing Community” by the US Department of Commerce (Economic Development Administration) since 2014. This designation gives organizations that support the industry via the Northwest Georgia’s Advanced Manufacturing Strategy elevated status for certain federally-aligned grant programs. Throughout the IMCP initiative, the region has placed particular focus on workforce development issues. As an outgrowth of IMCP, Northwest Georgia was selected to participate in the CTWP, a one-year joint project between EDA and the Aspen Institute. Each partnership/cohort consists of 3-4 individuals from organizations within their regions who are in a position to accelerate change to benefit businesses and workers through industry-led workforce development strategies, one of whom represents the voice of business. The goal of CTWP is to accelerate and document promising, evidence-based best practices in regional collaboration for talent development that promotes growth and opportunity in the regional economy.
