Swift County RDA News

Why Economic Developers Need To Market Their Opportunity Zones Now

Tuesday, June 01, 2021

Why economic developers need to market their Opportunity Zones now is to attract investors to the underfunded areas of their communities. Opportunity Zone legislation passed in 2017 and is designed to promote growth in stagnant and underdeveloped regions of the country. There are more than 8,700 Opportunity Zones designated through the U.S. in all 50 states, Washington D.C., and five U.S. territories. Opportunity Zones identify areas where investment is needed to revitalize communities hit the hardest by socio-economic stress. Residents who live in areas designated as Opportunity Zones tend to suffer from unequal economic growth and access to capital. This ha...

Economic development webinars you don't want to miss

Monday, May 31, 2021

So much goes into strategy and planning for economic recovery and this line-up of free professional development webinars is designed to help you and your team take on the challenges that lie ahead. From a closer look to the interactive data you offer prospective investors and existing businesses to automatic property data feeds, from a guest panel of economic developers sharing strategies from their communities to questions about GIS tools and what brokers want you to know, these free online workshops are well worth your time. Can't attend at those dates or times? No problem! Register anyway to ensure you ge...

The plain truth about virtual site visits for commercial real estate

Friday, May 28, 2021

There's a lot of talk and excitement among economic developers about using virtual tours to profile commercial real estate to potential investors and site selectors who may not be able to visit in person because of the pandemic. We get that - it IS genuinely exciting. There are so many compelling new ways to let people see a property - inside and out - from the comfort and safety of their offices. Even after the pandemic recedes, this will remain an excellent way to engage and inform businesses making location decisions. Unfortunately, there's also a lot of miscommunication and misinformation about what virtua...

4 Ways to Get Your Attention Back on Track and Stay Focused

Thursday, May 27, 2021

The following excerpt is from Dr. Nadine Greiner’s book Stress-Less Leadership. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Apple Books | IndieBound or click here to buy it directly from us and SAVE 60% on this book when you use code LEAD2021 through 4/10/21. It can be hard to concentrate. Even on your best days, you're surrounded by distractions. When you struggle to concentrate, you can’t focus on what needs to be done, you waste time and you stress yourself out. It’s time to review some solutions. Lay out the work and stick to it When you embark on a task without a plan, it’s like going on a road trip without a map. You need to know where you’r...

It's Time You Master Google Analytics to Help Grow Your Business

Wednesday, May 26, 2021

Being inquisitive about data is essential for any web-based business. How are you going to operate a website without knowing how people are actually using it? That's why Google Analytics is so crucial for any business running a website. It will give you the insights you need to make better decisions about your content, web optimization, SEO, and more. This free tool is preferred by millions worldwide as a simple way to understand their web traffic and make improvements to their websites. If you're ready to learn GA, The Google Analytics Master Class Bundle is a great place to start. This five-course bundle comprises 12 hour...

Spruce Up Your Office or Workspace with These 10 Must-Have Items

Tuesday, May 25, 2021

Whether you're working from home for the foreseeable future or you're about to head back to working in person, there's no time like spring to update your office. We've rounded up some of the coolest items on sale right now to spruce up your office. Plus, during our storewide Spring Savings promo, when you spend $75, you'll get $10 in-store credit to put towards even more cool stuff for the future. Check out some of today's offers. Mobile Pixels TRIO: Portable Dual Screen Laptop Monitor Need some more screen space? This innovative Indiegogo-funded multi-screen laptop accessory lets you add two additional monitors to your laptop...

Why You Should Hire Someone With Disabilities

Tuesday, May 25, 2021

Hiring someone with a disability isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s the lagniappe thing to do. What is lagniappe? Minnesota author and playwright, Kevin Kling tells us it's that extra "something something" found in Cajun cooking that keeps you coming back for more. When you hire someone with a disability, you lead by example. It shows you trust a new perspective and that you’re confident in yourself, that person and your team. Click here to read full article.

3 Technologies You Can Use to Re-Skill Your Employees

Monday, May 24, 2021

The following excerpt is from Caroline Stokes’s book Elephants Before Unicorns. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Apple Books | IndieBound or click here to buy it directly from us and SAVE 60% on this book when you use code CAREER2021 through 4/17/21. I’d like to introduce you to three technologies that will help people leaders discover talent and fuel your teams’ evolution to avoid dinosaur syndrome (falling behind in terms of the skill and functionality of your teams). Let’s walk briefly through each of them. Bias Avoidance Talent Matching The first tool is SquarePeg, a matching service for job seekers and employers that uses online assessments to measure a candidate’s aptitude, preferences and character traits, and determine whic...

Kevin’s Story: Overcoming Challenges to Work in IT for the State of Minnesota

Monday, May 24, 2021

Four years ago, Kevin had what turned out to be a pivotal conversation, although he didn’t know it then. The conversation happened when Kevin was referred to a local community rehabilitation provider where Frank Herd was then working. Kevin hoped to find a technology-related job and Frank suggested that he might be a good candidate for the Connect 700 (C700) program, a trial work program that allows for a non-competitive selection process for individuals with disabilities who want to work in Minnesota state government. C700 allows qualified individuals up to 700 hours to prove they can perform the required job responsibilities whil...

Laid Off During Pandemic, Bruno Gets Training to Land Fulfilling Tech Job

Friday, May 21, 2021

Bruno was working as a leasing consultant, making $13 an hour, when the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in his layoff. At the time, Bruno was considering a career in food systems management, but the pandemic affected that industry as well. Bruno always had an interest in computer applications, so he researched various training opportunities and became interested in a software engineering program at Prime Digital Academy. This is when he found out that CareerForce partner Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Minneapolis (JFCS) could assist with the training. Bruno contacted JFCS and was enrolled in the Dislocated Worker program. His counselor, Anna Ferdelman, helped him identif...

The 9-Step Quick Guide to Rehabbing Your Career

Friday, May 21, 2021

The following excerpt is from Kanika Tolver’s book Career Rehab. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes or click here to buy it directly from us and SAVE 60% on this book when you use code CAREER2021 through 4/17/21. One of the most important phases of your career rehab journey is creating your Rehab YOU career blueprint. Become the architect of your career by considering your desired career path, location, salary, scope, organization type, benefits and perks and mentors. You’ll start to feel more confident in your career renovations as you craft your vision of your dream career. Here’s how to get started: 1. Be a brand, not an employee Most employees don’t see themselve...

Leadership Strategies For Making Employees Happy

Thursday, May 20, 2021

As a leader, it’s no surprise that one of your most crucial jobs is making sure employees are productive day in and day out. Many leaders have attempted to increase team productivity by introducing state-of-the-art technologies and testing the most successful workflow methods they could find. Unfortunately, they’re missing a key ingredient. The best way to spur productivity is to make your employees happy. Don’t just take my word for it. In 2019, Oxford University's Saïd Business School published research stating that workers are 13% more productive when they’re feeling happy. Not only is productivity significantly improved, but happy employees are more likely t...

UnitedHealth Group: Disability Employment in a Technology Company

Thursday, May 20, 2021

With the 21st-century economy increasingly reliant on a dizzying array of new technologies, it’s no exaggeration to say that nearly every business in every sector of the economy is in some way a “technology company.” Minnesota-based UnitedHealth Group (UHG)– a provider of health care, insurance, and technologies – certainly qualifies as one. And each of the many companies that make up UHG’s global footprint embraces the ideal of a diverse and inclusive workplace, a recruitment and hiring practice that includes employing people with disabilities. UHG views disability inclusion not just as an opportunity to recruit a historically underutilized population and ta...

BIPOC in Tech: Inspiring Discussion Among Local Black Leaders About Opportunities

Wednesday, May 19, 2021

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) and MnTech hosted a virtual panel discussion on Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) representation in today’s tech industry featuring three Black entrepreneurs. The panel included BIPOC tech professionals at the forefront of the discussion, including: Jonathan Banks, President and Founding Partner of NCXT; Erin Horne McKinney, CEO of WomenVenture; and Caroline Karanja, CEO of Hack the Gap. The discussion was facilitated by Jade Denson, Vice President, Programming & Member Experience at MnTech. Click here to read full article.

How To Be Creative As An Entrepreneur

Wednesday, May 19, 2021

You might think that creativity requires the antithesis of rules and regulation. Even the thought of being creative conjures up images of disorder. Messy rooms, paint everywhere, scraps of paper with ideas scrawled across them. The frantic creative genius works away, oblivious to the world around them. Chaos. Method in madness. Flashes of brilliance among a cluttered existence. The best entrepreneurs are creative. They need to find ways of solving old and new problems. They picture a world that doesn’t yet exist, they bring products to life using only their imagination. They think of ways to move forward, grow bigger an...

Diversity in Tech: Steps to Take Toward Inclusivity

Tuesday, May 18, 2021

The tech industry has created tremendous efficiencies that have accelerated business growth and innovation while capturing wealth. In the last decade, there has been a growing interest in diversifying this industry that has such an impact on how we work, communicate, and consume products and services. Yet, increasing the diversity in the tech industry has been elusive and challenging. Companies have expressed interest in finding diverse talent but often seem to come up short – stating that they cannot find qualified talent, or, as some executives I’ve talked with have stated recently, “they just simply don’t exist.” Concurrently, many candidates fro...

The Secret To Business Survival In Today’s Tough Market

Tuesday, May 18, 2021

As we were ringing in 2020, it’s safe to say that almost no one could have imagined the novel year that was virtually at our doorsteps. Like a monsoon, Covid-19 arrived, and with it a plethora of changes to not only how we live and work, but how business is conducted. Quarantines and lockdowns became a way of life, forcing companies to transform how they operate. Office staff, sales reps, and others who were considered non-essential workers began working from home. In-person meetings and sales calls became a thing of the past, replaced by collaboration tools to boost the efficiency o...

One Year After The First Wave Of Pandemic Jobs Losses, U.S. Adds Nearly A Million Jobs In March

Monday, May 17, 2021

A year after the devastating first wave of pandemic-related job losses came to light, the U.S. added 916,000 jobs in March, the Labor Department said Friday. It’s an encouraging sign on the anniversary of what was an especially distressing week for the workforce. Weekly jobless claims surged to a staggering 6.65 million for the week ending March 28, 2020. At the time, it was the highest level ever recorded. That month, the U.S. economy lost a total of 701,000 jobs in the first payroll decline since 2010. This March, the unemployment rate fell slightly to 6%—down from 6.2% in February. It’s a stark difference from the unemploymen...

Training and scholarship opportunities for economic development professionals

Monday, May 17, 2021

Committed to strengthening the knowledge, skills and diversity of Minnesota’s economic development professionals, the nonprofit Minnesota Economic Development Foundation is promoting upcoming training opportunities and offering scholarships for professional development. The Minnesota Economic Development Foundation sponsors the “Upper Midwest Basic Economic Development Course,” a 5-day course that provides comprehensive training in the basic concepts, methods, and strategies of local economic development. This course is accredited by the International Economic Development Council and fulfills a requirement for taking the Certified Economic Development exam. Click here to read full article.

Broadband Roundtable: Internet Access and Speed Are Key to Economic Growth, Business Vitality, Health and Education

Friday, May 14, 2021

St. Paul – Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Commissioner Steve Grove and DEED's Office of Broadband Development Executive Director Angie Dickison were joined by seven industry and community advocates from broadband coalitions and nonprofit groups for a discussion on March 30 about the importance of broadband access to economic growth, business vitality, health and education. This roundtable was part of a broader series of discussions the agency is hosting called "The Next Minnesota Economy," focusing on inclusive economic growth, reskilling our labor market and creating good jobs. Click here to read full article.

Cultivate a Second Life for Decommissioned Power Plants

Friday, May 14, 2021

The generation landscape for utilities is in a state of constant change. The decarbonization movement is driving difficult decisions as coal-fired power plants close amid the transition to renewable generation. But there is opportunity within that disruption. Decommissioned power plant sites offer industrial developers a great deal of opportunity — specifically, decades of well-maintained assets. The majority of these facilities were built more than 50 years ago with access to everything they needed to operate — connections that would require extensive time and capital investments to put in place today. Rather than seeking greenfield locations, industrial developers should take a close...

3D Manufacturing and COVID-19

Thursday, May 13, 2021

3D Printing v. 3D Manufacturing “3D printing” is a collective term for several different technologies for building parts layer by layer. Recently, hybrid systems have begun to integrate 3D printers and traditional manufacturing techniques, like milling, drilling, polishing, and the ability to pick and place components that cannot yet be 3D printed. I call the process performed by hybrid systems “3D manufacturing,” also known as direct digital manufacturing. 3D printing is for making parts in a single machine. 3D manufacturing is for making complete products, like fully functioning electronic devices, in one machine. Two of the great promises of 3D manufacturing ar...

Launch Minnesota Awards over $376,000 in Innovation Grants to Startups

Thursday, May 13, 2021

St. Paul – The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) announced that it has awarded $376,075 in Launch Minnesota Innovation Grants to startup businesses. With these awards, the full $3.2 million in biennium funding for fiscal years 2020 and 2021 has now been allocated. In this latest round, DEED awarded innovation grants to 15 startups. Of those, nine are targeted businesses, which include BIPOC-owned (Black, Indigenous, People of Color), woman-owned, and businesses located in Greater Minnesota. Click here to read full article.

35th Annual Survey of Corporate Executives Commentary: Survey Reflects Rapidly Changing Real Estate Environment

Wednesday, May 12, 2021

COVID 19’s impact on real estate last year was an accelerator of trends, a disrupter — more than even the Black Swan event of the financial crisis in 2008 — and exposed dramatic weaknesses and vulnerabilities in many supply chains. This year’s annual Corporate Survey gives light to some of these impacts and trends. Of the respondents, 60 percent of whom were either the CEO or owner, 57 percent were in the manufacturing or warehouse business, and 30 percent said they were going to expand operations. More customers than ever had groceries delivered to their homes and the requirement for ultra-cold storag...

Innovation Roundtable: Entrepreneurs Share How Launch MN and the Angel Tax Credit Helped Them Succeed

Wednesday, May 12, 2021

St. Paul – Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Commissioner Steve Grove and Launch Minnesota Executive Director Neela Mollgaard were joined by entrepreneurs and support organizations for a discussion about what startups need to be successful and how Minnesota can encourage more investment in entrepreneurship and innovation. This roundtable was part of a broader series of discussions the agency is hosting called “The Next Minnesota Economy,” focusing on inclusive economic growth, reskilling our labor market and creating good jobs. Click here to read full article.

35th Annual Survey of Corporate Executives Commentary: Has the Pandemic Affected the Ranking of Site Selection Factors?

Tuesday, May 11, 2021

Will the 2020 Corporate Survey provide us with insight into the needs and priorities of companies and developers, or will the effects of the pandemic and global trade tensions have created a focus on location factors relevant to a temporary business climate that most of us hope will return to a more familiar environment? My crystal ball is as good as the next pundit’s, but in speaking with clients, in reviewing responses in the 2020 Corporate Survey, and in interpreting current events and investment trends, my view is that those organizations that have adapted to new ways of working, solving problems...

Governor Proclaims April Technology Workforce Month in Minnesota

Tuesday, May 11, 2021

St. Paul – Governor Tim Walz has proclaimed April 2021 Technology Month in Minnesota. It’s an opportunity to draw attention to our technology sector and workforce and its importance to Minnesota’s economy. While the importance of these jobs has been highlighted during the pandemic, technology workers have been in demand in Minnesota’s economy for a long time and represent some of the highest-paid, best jobs in our state. According to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Labor Market Information (LMI) Office, the state of Minnesota is home to about 110,000 people working in Information Technology occupations. That’s about 3.8% of tota...

35th Annual Survey of Corporate Executives Commentary: Change in Site Selection Priorities and Plans Over the Short and Long Term

Monday, May 10, 2021

The Corporate Survey results reflect the current situation. The pandemic has not changed the corporate real estate strategy of many companies (confirmed by 76 percent) to go forward with domestic and international investments, but it has slowed it down. For example, travel restrictions still limit the possibility of foreign companies to visit possible sites in the U.S. Nevertheless, several new projects have started including FDI ones. As the survey shows, reshoring, near-shoring, and offshoring seem not to be happening. Companies are also tending to do more geographical diversification of their plants and expanding existing facilities. We are already seeing larg...

Minnesota Small Business Development Centers Partner with First Children’s Finance to Support Minnesota’s Child Care Industry

Monday, May 10, 2021

St. Paul – Under a partnership agreement announced today, First Children’s Finance will operate as the first statewide satellite center in the Minnesota Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) Network – providing specialized business and financial assistance to child care businesses across Minnesota at no cost to the businesses. Minnesota SBDC is part of the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). “Without access to affordable child care, parents can’t earn a living, businesses can’t recruit reliable workers, and children miss out on early educational opportunities,” said DEED Commissioner Steve Grove. “This has never been more apparent than during the pandemic – an...

2020: When Your Data Center Becomes Your Real HQ

Friday, May 07, 2021

Last year delivered plenty of wakeup calls to corporate real estate executives, but perhaps none bigger than this: Your site selection process for your company’s data center operations now carries more importance than your site selection for your corporate headquarters. In a world where remote work has become the norm for most non-industrial jobs, the headquarters facility has become a ghost town. Taking its place in critical importance is the data center, the lifeblood of your company’s entire global operation. The data center is what keeps you connected to your employees, your employees connected to each other, and your company connected t...

Join Us MN Business & Industry

Thursday, May 06, 2021

Machinery Still Revs the Economy, But Logistics and Life Sciences Are Where the Growth Is

Thursday, May 06, 2021

Judging by the number of e-commerce and health-related facility investments all around us in this pandemic year, you’d expect those categories to vault to the top of any global ranking by industry sector. They didn’t quite reach the summit, but logistics (+19.3%) and life sciences (+12%) show the biggest — and only — growth rates among the Top Industries of 2020, as judged by the number of projects tracked by NAICS code in the Conway Data Analytics Database. The database since the 1980s has tracked facility investments by corporate end users across all world geographies and all industry sectors. Life sciences rise...

2020 Governor's Cups

Wednesday, May 05, 2021

It’s déjà vu all over again. Only the project numbers are different where Ohio and Texas — the 2020 Governor’s Cup winning states for per capita and total projects respectively — are concerned. They’re down a bit from the previous year, but impressive nonetheless for a year all states endured a pandemic-induced economic crunch. Both states were the winner in their category last year as well. Ohio finishes the per capita facilities race with 419, down from 448 in 2019. Texas, the total projects winner for the ninth consecutive year, has 781 projects for 2020; it had 859 qualifying project...

COVID-19 Vaccine Resources For Businesses

Tuesday, May 04, 2021

As of March 30, all Minnesotans 16 years of age and older will be eligible to receive a vaccine. Minnesota has directed providers to prioritize vaccine appointments for people most at risk of getting COVID-19, or those who could develop severe illness if infected. This includes older Minnesotans, those with underlying health conditions, and those in essential jobs. How to help employees receive a vaccine: Help employees find where to get vaccinated: They can receive them through the health care provider, at a pharmacy and others. The state offers a vaccine locator map to help employers and employees. Host an on-site vaccination: Just like hosting an on-site fl...

NEMOJT provides interview tips and tricks for job-seekers

Monday, May 03, 2021

CareerForce has provided some preparation tips to assist job-seekers in their interview process. CareerForce is a unified, cohesive network of private, public, and nonprofit partners throughout Minnesota committed to providing career development. Read full article.

Essential and Emerging Skills Sought by Minnesota Employers Now

Friday, April 30, 2021

As business needs continue to evolve in response to the pandemic, many employers are putting new emphasis on finding candidates with essential workplace skills. According to RealTime Talent, while many job postings include post-secondary or technical training as a requirement, there are also many jobs for which employers are specifically seeking essential soft skills, such as time management, written communication, building collaborative relationships, self-confidence, and being a forward-thinker. This article takes a closer look at what skills are most sought by Minnesota employers now and what skills are emerging as the new foundational skills career seekers should try to develo...

CareerForce helps Ryan navigate job search challenges

Thursday, April 29, 2021

Having not had to look for work for decades, Ryan was overwhelmed by all the things he had to do and the changes which had happened in the job search process since he last needed to look for work. “I found it very difficult to proceed, even in the things I knew I could do, said Ryan. “I took several courses from CareerForce and though they were very helpful and full of ideas and important information, I found myself utterly overwhelmed with the many things I could and should do.” Ryan also had some specific challenges to overcome in finding new employment...

Support Local Businesses in Swift County During Small Business Week

Thursday, April 29, 2021

Many local businesses are beginning a journey of recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, and as Small Business Week approaches, it’s a great time to show support. The month of May includes two recognition weeks - Small Business Week and the 2021 National Economic Development Week. Community members looking for an opportunity to support local businesses can show their support during the month of May by shopping for local goods and services. Small Business Week The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) holds National Small Business Week in the first week of May each year. The COVID-19 pandemic forced 2020’s event to occur i...

HOM Superstore to Replace Oakdale Multiplex

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Now that big screen releases stream straight to our homes, consumers are apparently more likely to leave the house to buy a comfortable recliner than to visit a movie theater. And so it goes in the aftermath of a pandemic that devastated the theater industry: HOM Furniture snapped up the shuttered Vision 20 Movie Theatre building in Oakdale and plans a 155,000-square-foot retail complex in its place. HOM revealed Wednesday that it will add a 60,000-square-foot second level to the 98,000-square-foot theater building. The megastore will feature several of the Coon Rapids-based retailer’s brands: HOM Furniture, DOCK86, Sleep Express, Seasonal Concepts Patio, and HO...

Cretex to Build 245,000-Square-Foot Medical Device Plant in Brooklyn Park

Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Elk River-based Cretex Cos. late last week unveiled plans to build a 245,000-square-foot medical device manufacturing facility in Brooklyn Park. In a news release, the company said the new facility will be dedicated to “medical device contract manufacturing,” which means Cretex will use the plant to build parts for other medical device makers. CEO Jeff Wollerman said the facility will bring the company’s “capabilities together under one roof.” Cretex has reached an agreement to buy land at the intersection of highways 610 and 169, which is already home to a number of manufacturing plants, including a Tesla engineering center and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co.’s biologic...

A degree helps Laura find family-sustaining employment

Monday, April 26, 2021

Laura had worked as a bookkeeper at various companies for over 20 years, but without an accounting degree, she often experienced difficulty in finding a good-paying job. After a company she worked for was sold and all of the jobs at the company went to another country, Laura was able to get help through Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), which helps people who lose work as a result of foreign competition. Thanks to TAA and with help from TAA representative Ann Malz and Mark Pozzini at CareerForce in Woodbury, Laura was able to go to school to get her Associates Degree in Accounting. “Withou...

'We were able to buy a house!' How CareerForce changed Jeff and Sheila's lives

Friday, April 23, 2021

In 2019, Jeff and Sheila were living in a camper with no running water, electric or sewer. They were unemployed and living on $600 a month. “We both have felonies from more than 20 years ago and believed we could not get a job and because so many places now do a criminal background,” said Sheila, who said the criminal record also impacted where they lived. “We believed we could not live any place other than where we were living.” Then, Jeff and Sheila made a call to CareerForce in Virginia, Minnesota to find out if there were any options or hel...

Roundtable on Youth Jobs and Development Highlights Importance of Engaging Young People in Employment Opportunities

Thursday, April 22, 2021

St. Paul – Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Commissioner Steve Grove and Deputy Commissioner Hamse Warfa held a virtual roundtable on Friday, March 19 focused on the impact of the pandemic on youth jobs. The discussion was attended by employers across the state and is part of a push to place more young people into great jobs this coming summer. The roundtable is part of a broader series of discussions the agency is hosting called “The Next Minnesota Economy,” focusing on inclusive economic growth, reskilling our labor market and creating good jobs. “We want to help employers enable a surg...

Small Businesses Share How Minnesota’s Small Business Development Centers Helped them Weather the Pandemic

Wednesday, April 21, 2021

St. Paul – Wednesday was national Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Day and Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Commissioner Steve Grove and SBDC State Director Bruce Strong engaged in a lively, productive discussion with several small business owners and SBDC advisory board members from across the state. Business owners related stories about the challenges they’ve faced starting and running businesses both before and during the pandemic. Participants talked about the value of Minnesota’s network of Small Business Development Centers which assisted more than 5,835 Minnesota entrepreneurs and businesses in 2020, providing over 32,900 professional consulting hours at no cos...

What You Need To Start Doing Now To Attract Remote Workers

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

You want to dip into the remote workforce honey pot, so here's what you need to start doing to attract remote workers today! Remote workers balance out the economic climate for communities, bring in new skillsets to the local workforce, grow the tax base, and reduce the carbon footprint by eliminating a long commute. An abundance of remote workers are looking to relocate to communities that check all the boxes on their want/need list. Tap into this opportunity now with these simple steps. CREATE A REMOTE WORKFORCE ATTRACTION STRATEGY Economic developers should start by building a step-by-step remote workforce attraction strategy. Preparing thes...

Economic development webinars you don't want to miss

Monday, April 19, 2021

So much goes into strategy and planning for economic recovery and this line-up of free professional development webinars is designed to help you and your team take on the challenges that lie ahead. From a closer look to the interactive data you offer prospective investors and existing businesses to automatic property data feeds, from a guest panel of economic developers sharing strategies from their communities to questions about GIS tools and what brokers want you to know, these free online workshops are well worth your time. Can't attend at those dates or times? No problem! Register anyway to ensure you ge...

4 Basic Business Tools New Entrepreneurs Need To Succeed

Friday, April 16, 2021

This year, many eager new entrepreneurs are ready to hit the ground running with their startups and hopefully experience a year less challenging than the previous one. When launching a new business, it’s important to consider what business tools and core essentials small businesses need in order to thrive in today’s "new normal." I help entrepreneurs incorporate and form limited liability companies, so I generally tend to share advice on legal must-haves for small businesses, like business formations, trademarks, and tax IDs. However, I’m not going to do that this time around. Let’s assume you have obtained these items already. What other tools are necessar...

The 20 Happiest Countries In The World In 2021 (Guess Where The U.S. Ranked?)

Thursday, April 15, 2021

Who doesn’t need some happy news these days? Just in time for the United Nation’s annual International Day of Happiness on March 20, the results of the 2021 World Happiness Report have been released—and the results will put a smile on your face, despite the ongoing pandemic that has killed more than 2.6 million people around the globe. For the fourth year in a row, Finland has been named the happiest country in the world, with Iceland coming in second, followed by Denmark, Switzerland and the Netherlands. And during a challenging time for the United States, things improved here, too. The U.S. shot up to numbe...

35th Annual Corporate Survey: Effects of Global Pandemic Reflected in Executives’ Site and Facility Plans

Wednesday, April 14, 2021

The challenges faced in 2020 were unlike any other confronted in our lifetime. The global pandemic wreaked havoc on our personal and professional lives and the U.S. and global economies. The Commerce Department reports that U.S. GDP declined 3.5 percent in 2020, with the economy falling into recession in February 2020 — a month before the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic. The 3.5 percent decline is the worst year for the U.S. economy since at least the end of World War II, as reported by CNBC. As the novel coronavirus caused businesses to shut down, the U.S. unemployment rate rose from ...

Indoor Farming is for Real

Tuesday, April 13, 2021

Jonathan Webb’s quixotic dream is coming true. AppHarvest, the ag-tech venture he founded four years ago in Kentucky coal country, went public in February after shipping its first consignment of beefsteak tomatoes weeks earlier from what is North America’s biggest greenhouse. AppHarvest tomatoes now are available in chains such as Publix, Kroger, Walmart and Food City. Originally backed by celebrity investors including Steve Case, Martha Stewart, J.D. Vance and the NBA’s Blake Griffin, AppHarvest hopes to grow 45 million pounds of tomatoes a year at its environmentally sound, $97 million indoor farm in Morehead. AppHarvest announced plans in 2020 for two ne...

7 Brilliant Ways To Grow Your Remote Workforce

Monday, April 12, 2021

These 7 brilliant ways to grow your remote workforce will help you reap the benefits of the work from home movement! The advantages of a remote workforce for workers, employers, and the towns and states they reside in are many. TAP INTO THE WORK FROM HOME MOVEMENT 70% of the American workforce is likely to work remotely at least five days every month by 2025. A large number of remote workers will spend much more time than that at home. The remote workforce experiences a better work-life balance, higher productivity, and more flexibility while contributing a large number of benefits to the loca...

How to Use Automation (and Avoid the Pitfalls) as an Entrepreneur

Friday, April 09, 2021

All over the world, entrepreneurs are turning to a powerful tool to improve their efficiency and raw output: automation. Often hailed as the ultimate weapon for increasing productivity, automation certainly has a lot of advantages. But it’s not guaranteed to be effective. In fact, when used incorrectly, automation can end up working against you. To use automation effectively, you need to understand its strengths and weaknesses and build a strategy around them. Why automation is useful These days, you can automate a variety of work functions and activities. If you’re producing a physical good, you can likely automate production with the right machinery. If you’r...

Google Adds New Features To Help Remote Workers, And Other Small Business Tech News

Thursday, April 08, 2021

Here are five things in technology that happened this past week and how they affect your business. Did you miss them? 1—Google Workspace is adding new features to help remote workers. Google recently added some new features to Google Workspace in order to help those working remotely collaborate and improve their workflows. Some of the new features include making a Workspace available for frontline workers and officially launching Google Assistant for Workspace—the company’s audio assistant—for all Workspace users. Additional features will also be available such as improvements to Google Meet video calls, time management features, status setting, and multi-lingual live captioning...

Ring Lights And Late Nights: How The Remote Revolution Has Changed The Workforce

Wednesday, April 07, 2021

It’s been one year since the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic, forcing companies across the country to close their office doors. Today, nearly half (47%) of American employees are currently working from home at least part of the time, according to a study by Glassdoor. As vaccine production and distribution ramps up, some employers have announced definitive return-to-work dates. Others have committed to permanent remote-work arrangements, and freelance platform Upwork expects that 36.2 million Americans will be working from home by 2025, an 87% increase from pre-pandemic levels—and a sign that this grand experiment in telecommuting has done more than just make Zoo...

Machinery Still Revs the Economy, But Logistics and Life Sciences Are Where the Growth Is

Tuesday, April 06, 2021

Judging by the number of e-commerce and health-related facility investments all around us in this pandemic year, you’d expect those categories to vault to the top of any global ranking by industry sector. They didn’t quite reach the summit, but logistics (+19.3%) and life sciences (+12%) show the biggest — and only — growth rates among the Top Industries of 2020, as judged by the number of projects tracked by NAICS code in the Conway Data Analytics Database. The database since the 1980s has tracked facility investments by corporate end users across all world geographies and all industry sectors. Life sciences rise...

Launch Minnesota Receives National Award as a Small Business Administration “Super Connector”

Wednesday, March 31, 2021

St. Paul – Launch Minnesota – an initiative of the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) designed to accelerate the growth of startups and amplify Minnesota as a national leader in innovation – has received a national award as a “Super Connector” in the new Lab-to-Market (L2M) Competition sponsored by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) in partnership with the National Science and Technology. The competition drew over 160 submissions from across the country and awarded $330,000 in prizes. Launch Minnesota was one of four recipients in the Super Connector category which recognizes “current efforts to successfully attract and/or support networks of underrepresented communitie...

DEED Awards Over $20.6 Million in Broadband Grants

Tuesday, March 30, 2021

ST. PAUL – While the critical importance of reliable, high-speed broadband access has become even more obvious during the pandemic, there are still unserved and underserved areas of the state. To help close that gap, on Jan. 28, the state announced broadband grant awards for 39 projects designed to bring service to more than 6,900 businesses, homes, and community anchor institutions in Minnesota. This marked the sixth year of grants through the Border-to-Border Broadband Grant Program overseen by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). DEED Commissioner Steve Grove and Broadband Director Angie Dickison joined three grantees at a recent virtual press conference to talk about the progra...

Launch Minnesota Awards $450K in Grants to Continue Building State’s Startup Network

Monday, March 29, 2021

St. Paul – Launch Minnesota – an initiative of the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) designed to elevate Minnesota as a national leader in innovation – has awarded $450,000 from its Education Grants program to six organizations to continue development of our statewide innovation ecosystem. The Launch Minnesota Network is designed to help startups from across Minnesota get the resources and support they need to build the next big companies that will grow our state’s economy and create jobs. A collaboration that spans the whole state, it is connected by eight hubs for startup support that include 85 program partners. The Launch Minnesot...

Remote Workers are Choosing to Relocate to Swift County

Monday, March 29, 2021

COVID-19 led to a surge in remote work, and remote workers are choosing Swift County! After working at home for several months, many people have decided it is in their best interest to pursue remote work permanently. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, approximately 24 percent of all working Americans worked remotely at least part of the time in 2019. In 2020, 42 percent of the U.S. labor force now works from home full-time due to the pandemic, as reported by the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research. This monumental shift to remote work comes with benefits for employers an...

DEED Announces Nearly $2 Million in Awards for Job Creation

Friday, March 26, 2021

St. Paul – The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) has announced that since July, there has been $1.89 million in awards from the Job Creation Fund (JCF). Seven businesses are expanding in the state using awards from the JCF, six of which are in Greater Minnesota and one is in the metro. These projects are expected to create at least 226 new jobs. “This past year has brought some incredible challenges to business leaders in the state, but these expansions show that Minnesota still offers so many opportunities for growth,” said DEED Commissioner Steve Grove. “These awards are proof tha...

Top 30 Jobs in Demand Now in Minnesota

Thursday, March 25, 2021

St. Paul – The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) has updated its list of the top 30 jobs in demand now in Minnesota. You can see the list at CareerForceMN.com/JobsinDemand. “Many of the jobs most in demand now are in fields with a significant potential for career growth,” said DEED Commissioner Steve Grove. “For example, entry level positions in health care and manufacturing offer a path up to well-paying, family sustaining careers as a person gains experience and training. And in many cases, employers provide on-the-job training to help dedicated employees grow in their careers.” In the listing of the top 30 job...

DEED Headquarters Set to Move to Downtown St. Paul’s Great Northern Building in 2021

Wednesday, March 24, 2021

St. Paul – The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) today announced that its headquarters will move to the Great Northern Building at 180 East Fifth Street in Saint Paul, Minnesota. This two block move in downtown St. Paul, which will occur by August 1, 2021, will be DEED’s first relocation in nearly two decades. As DEED evaluated the possibility of moving, it executed a thorough three-year planning and evaluation process, and was focused on best serving Minnesotans and businesses across the state. This included an analysis to re-examine space needs, and take account of future teleworking trends, to bot...

DEED Announces Over $13 Million in Relief Grants to Convention Centers and Movie Theaters Statewide

Tuesday, March 23, 2021

St. Paul – The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) has announced awards of $4.6 million in Convention Center Relief Grants and $8.54 million in Movie Theater Relief Grants to facilities across the state. These grants were part of a $216 million economic relief package signed into law by Governor Tim Walz on Dec. 16, 2020. This package included a $14 million appropriation for grants to movie theaters and convention centers in Minnesota impacted by COVID-19. “Convention centers and movie theatres are an important part of our economy that has been severely impacted by COVID-19,” said DEED Commissioner Steve Grove. “The stat...

Why Would My Community Want To Attract A Remote Workforce

Monday, March 22, 2021

Why would my community want to attract a REMOTE WORKFORCE? -- To grow your economy, of course! The coronavirus pandemic has affected U.S. workplaces in many ways, including transitioning many employees to remote work. As some businesses begin to welcome employees back to the office, many remote workers, about two-thirds to be exact, are opting to continue working remotely, according to a GALLUP POLL. Attracting remote workers should now be a priority for all economic developers. WHY WOULD MY COMMUNITY WANT TO ATTRACT A REMOTE WORKFORCE? Remote workers can bring many benefits to the communities they choose to live in. Just like any othe...

10 Reasons Why Your Economic Development Website Isn't Attracting Remote Workers

Friday, March 19, 2021

These 10 reasons why your economic development website isn't attracting remote workers may be why you're experiencing a lack of success. NEARLY 62% of employees already work remotely at least part of the time, and that number continues to grow as social distancing and COVID safety protocol remain intact. It's of prime concern that economic developers target this audience, and knowing what your audience is looking for is key to developing the best possible website. 10 REASONS WHY YOUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WEBSITE ISN'T ATTRACTING REMOTE WORKERS 1. REMOTE WORKERS AREN'T A TARGET AUDIENCE ON THE WEBPAGE This is the most obvious issue. The economic syste...

Check out these powerful economic development videos

Thursday, March 18, 2021

If you missed these webinars, you can still check out all the great content we covered in these two fantastic sessions. Enjoy practical solutions and words of wisdom and experience from your colleagues in the industry. Digital Strategies to Support Your Area Businesses Your location's businesses of all sizes need as much support as they can get to survive the pandemic. This is particularly true of small and medium-sized businesses, who generally cannot afford to hire pricey outside consultants. These businesses represent the lifeblood of most regional economies, generating the vast majority of jobs. There are a number of ways economic developmen...

10 Biggest Challenges Small Business Owners Face Right Now

Wednesday, March 17, 2021

There is not a day that goes by where we don’t talk about the COVID pandemic. It is on the news, in our social feeds and it has infiltrated both our personal and professional worlds. Many businesses have shifted employees to a work-from-home routine; changing everything about how the business day works. We’ve moved from in-person to video. We’ve adapted to multiple family members attempting to be productive, in the same space, at the same time and we’ve shifted from brick-and-mortar to a heavier online presence. In the midst of it all, there have been many success stories. Yet, the challenges are ever apparent...

How To Prepare A Business Plan That Is Useful In Practice

Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Have you ever seen one of those 50-page business plans that go into detail about every conceivable aspect of a still purely theoretical business? You probably have, since those business plans have been the industry standard for decades. Yet, in a world where words like lean and agile are becoming the new norm for startups, 50-page business plans look a bit out of place, and with a good reason. It’s a fact that creating a plan is very helpful for a new business. A study of more than 10 thousand businesses shows that ventures grow 30% faster on average if they create business plans. Read full article.

DEED Awards Almost $2 Million in Five Community Energy Transition Grants Across Minnesota

Monday, March 15, 2021

St. Paul – The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) awarded $1.94M in grants to five communities across Minnesota to address the economic dislocation associated with the closing of local electric generating plants. DEED’s Community Energy Transition Grants Program awarded the funding, which will provide a range of economic assistance for eligible communities, including projects that increase a community’s lost property tax base and that create alternative economic development strategies to plan for financial challenges and to attract new employers to the community. “These grants are critical to helping communities across Minnesota transition their economies as clean energy growth in Minnesot...

Small Business Strikes Back: The Numbers Behind The Next 1000

Monday, March 15, 2021

In 2020, American venture capitalists invested an unprecedented $156 billion dollars into 12,254 startups, setting records in biotech, pharma and fintech. There were a record 454 initial offerings in the U.S. markets, generating over $167 billion. But pull out a map, and you’ll see a country full of small-scale entrepreneurs who don’t have access to venture funding or Silicon Valley’s unicorn factory. According to the Kauffman Foundation, 89% of U.S. small businesses are either sole proprietorships or have less than 20 full-time employees. The majority (83%) are funded from savings, credit cards, and loans from family or friends, with approximately $80,000 in startu...

Grow Minnesota! 2020 Annual Report

Friday, March 12, 2021

2020 was filled with challenges, uncertainty and change. The events of the year also highlighted the innovation and resiliency of Minnesota businesses. The true value of our well-established Grow Minnesota! business retention and assistance program was also witnessed in 2020. As the only structured ongoing statewide economic development program of its kind, we had the capacity and experience to respond quickly to the multitude and variety of business concerns that surfaced throughout the past year. Our nearly 300 one-on-one business visits completed in 2020 also allowed us to share keen insights on Minnesota’s economic outlook. We will continue to buil...

Recruiting and Retaining Today’s Manufacturing Workforce

Friday, March 12, 2021

AD: How has COVID-19 changed the employee experience in manufacturing, and what facets of this should organizations retain going forward? Zenk: Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, employees have been experiencing a drastically different work environment. Thousands of manufacturers across the U.S. and around the world were deemed essential during the pandemic, and their production lines haven’t stopped. They’ve continued to produce essential goods that the global community relies on — from the food we eat to the clothes we wear and cleaning supplies we use in our homes. As some manufacturers increased output and others reconfigured operations to satisfy urgent demands...

Does 2021 Mean A Road To Recovery?

Thursday, March 11, 2021

Grow Minnesota! conducted in-depth conversations with nearly 300 businesses in 2020, to learn what challenges and opportunities they were facing in light of the immense changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. While not a substitute for hard economic data, these conversations provide key insights into how businesses are navigating unprecedented disruptions, and offer a glimpse at what Minnesota can do to help companies recover and grow in the coming months. Not surprisingly, the impacts of COVID-19 took center stage in our virtual visits with businesses this past year. However, the results from Grow Minnesota’s! outreach also reveal some surprising insight...

Front Line: Job Creation Through Reshoring

Thursday, March 11, 2021

Back in the 1980s, the term “offshoring” became a business buzzword as more and more U.S. companies moved manufacturing to foreign countries, typically to save on labor costs. In recent years, “reshoring” has been added to the lexicon as companies decide to bring manufacturing back to the U.S., for various reasons. In 2020, reshoring created more U.S. jobs than foreign direct investment (FDI) for the first time in seven years, according to data collected by the Reshoring Initiative. In 2020, U.S. companies reshored nearly 69,000 manufacturing positions, while greenfield investment in the same industries created fewer than 42,000 jobs, according to the Initiative...

COVID-19 Vaccine Resources For Businesses

Wednesday, March 10, 2021

GENERAL VACCINE RESOURCES COVID-19 vaccine FAQ from the Minnesota Department of Health Minnesota Guidance for Allocating and Prioritizing COVID-19 Vaccine – Phase 1a from the Minnesota Department of Health Answering patients' questions about a COVID-19 vaccine from the CDC COVID-19 Vaccine Phases and Planning from the Minnesota Department of Health December 17 COVID-19 vaccine update from the Department of Health to the Senate HHS Committee COVID-19 vaccine data: Vaccine administration in Minnesota from the Minnesota Department of Health COVID-19 vaccine dashboard from the Minnesota Department of Health General vaccine information from the Minnesota Department of Health Myths and facts about the COVID-19 vaccines from the CDC COVID-19 vaccine facts and FAQs for business leaders from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Minnesot...

Pandemic Fuels Data Center Growth

Wednesday, March 10, 2021

In a year full of turmoil and strife caused by an unexpected pandemic, data centers were quickly recognized for their crucial presence in all lives, for maintaining communication and knowledge during a period of sudden change for humanity. Data center operators and major services held fast throughout the troubled, early days as they were identified as truly mission critical. Companies large and small rapidly scaled up workloads with cloud service providers so employees could access their normal applications; schools and universities moved online as students attended classes remotely; and all people looked to the Internet for entertainment as they stayed hom...

MSP Regional Recovery Hub Weekly Take

Tuesday, March 09, 2021

This Week’s Big Thing: students and teachers are returning to in-person learning across the metro, opening up return-to-work for parents who have been sidelined. According to the Minnesota Department of Health over half of school districts in the metro are offering in-person learning or a combination of in-person and virtual learning models as of this week. This is a big deal for regional economic recovery because it means parents who have been sidelined from work while taking on virtual learning and childcare duties can rejoin the labor force. It hasn’t come without its challenges. You may remember back in December Governor Wal...

Trends in Office and Industrial Parks

Tuesday, March 09, 2021

Of course, the big factor impacting office and industrial parks going into 2021 is COVID-19. The pandemic has reduced business production and workforce (through illness, social distancing, and remote working), disrupted the supply chain and cash flow, and brought about significant investments in technology. Across the nation, the demand for suburban office parks is rising as more skilled workers move back to suburbs, due to concerns about housing costs and quality of education — they also feel safer from COVID-19 and the civil unrest that is happening in some larger cities. “The most notable shift is toward lower-intensity spaces, where getting int...

Graco moving 225 jobs to Dayton, Minn., in expansion plan

Monday, March 08, 2021

Graco Inc. will relocate at least 225 jobs, along with its Industrial Products and Process divisions, to a new facility in Dayton, Minn. The company says the expansion is needed because it's running out room at its headquarters in Minneapolis. The 225 jobs represent more than 25% of its Minneapolis-based workforce, which currently has about 800 employees at its facilities near Boom Island Park. The manufacturing company announced Thursday it bought 100 acres of undeveloped land in Dayton, a northwest-metro suburb along Interstate 94. "Graco's business has been growing considerably, so we're expanding to support that growth and give our divisions more elbow room," said Charlott...

The Future of the Workforce Is a “Better Normal”

Monday, March 08, 2021

The world as we all knew it changed earlier this year with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Seemingly overnight, everything that we used to think was normal had changed, and things that once were deemed impossible for the workplace became the “new normal.” Now, seven months later, most of us have gotten used to this “new normal” — embracing the work-from-home lifestyle, using new technology, wearing masks, social distancing, and connecting virtually. But what comes next? Eventually this pandemic will end, a vaccine will be readily available, and we will attempt to return back to our “normal” lives. Bu...

Helping to preserve historic buildings may be the one thing everyone at the Minnesota Legislature agrees upon

Friday, March 05, 2021

An effort to continue Minnesota’s primary tax break for restoring historic buildings has bipartisan support at the state House and Senate — and little organized opposition. That still isn’t enough to make supporters of the measure comfortable. Backers of the extending the provision, technically known as the Minnesota Historic Structure Rehabilitation State Tax Credit, worry that lawmakers — with pandemic response and passing a budget being the major priorities of the 2021 session — might lose sight of addressing the credit, which expires June 30. A similar bill was introduced in 2020 but then disappeared after a single hearing (along with a lot o...

Why Amazon's Building Binge Has Just Begun

Friday, March 05, 2021

The most enduring sounds of the past holiday season may have been those of a van squeaking to a stop at the mailbox, followed by the thud of a box being delivered at the porch. It was an Amazon Christmas. Amazon, which began 2020 as a mere juggernaut, enters 2021 a monolith. Consider the fact that during a year of severe job cuts throughout most of the economy, Amazon hired on average of 1,400 people a day from January to October. The company’s unrivaled pace of hiring doubled during the second half of the year as the full onset of th...

CareerForce Helps Mathew Reskill to Reach Career Goals

Thursday, March 04, 2021

Mathew always knew he wanted to go into the nursing field, but it was something he kept putting off as his career took him in a different direction. But thanks to reskilling resources he learned about through CareerForce, Mathew is back on a health care career track and excited about what his career future will bring. Mathew got his first experience in health care when he provided care for people with mental and physical disabilities at Community Living Opportunities in Overland, Kansas. He found working with his clients to be very rewarding because he liked the feeling of helping people. After working with people with disabilities for three years, Mathew served six years in the military. He came back to the U.S. wit...

Servicing the Wind

Thursday, March 04, 2021

Solar and wind farms impress with the stupendous scale of their towers, blades and panels, stretching all the way to the horizon to capture every last drop of sun and breeze. Much of the economic opportunity related to them, however, takes place on smaller scale, in the form of services rendered to those massive displays of power from clusters of manufacturing, maintenance and services firms. It can take the form of individual companies such as Cross Country Infrastructure Services, an Aurora, Colorado–based equipment and construction contractor supplier that announced in November it’s moving into growing wind and solar markets by increasin...

$30 million investment positions area for better future

Wednesday, March 03, 2021

By Reed Anfinson Publisher Swift County Monitor-News An investment of more than $30 million in Benson Public Schools over the past two years has positioned the community not only to meet the needs of its students but also to make it more attractive to those considering moving here. It has been an investment in families, school children, education, the arts, athletic opportunities, student safety, and economic development. Read full article.

Cathedrals of Talent

Wednesday, March 03, 2021

Does tech investment follow tech talent or the other way around? It’s actually some of both. The question going forward, says Colin Yasukochi, executive director of the Tech Insights Center at CBRE, is the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic could upset longstanding equations and trends as 2021 unfolds into the post-COVID era. “The pandemic,” says Yasukochi, “could slow the growth of tech talent in some of the major markets if remote work takes hold, if people really do leave town and hiring starts to take place outside of those markets. It’s going to be very, very interesting.” CBRE’s 2020 Scoring Tech Talen...

Education and Training Opportunities in Health Care

Friday, February 26, 2021

So you’ve heard time and time again about how an entry level position in health care can be a springboard to a new and fulfilling career, and that is true. Health care is one of the few occupations where you are limited only by your own personal goals in life. So I wanted to take this opportunity to share information about the education and training opportunities that exist to help you begin your journey as a health care professional. Health care for youth and young adults Not sure if health care is the occupation for you? There are many opportunities to tak...

Health Care Apprenticeships and On-the-Job Training Opportunities Available to Employers and Job Seekers

Thursday, February 25, 2021

During the third week of Health Care Month, we are focusing on apprenticeship and training programs that are available to both employers and job seekers. As Governor Walz noted in his proclamation of January as Health Care Month, health care in Minnesota pays an average annual wage of $53,659, which is 4% higher than the nation’s average wage of $51,792 for the same sector. Wages go up with additional training, certification, and experience. DEED’s Labor Market Information office indicates there is projected long-term demand, as well as high current demand for health care workers. In fact, four of the top 10 job...

DEED Awards $3.9 Million in 10 Contamination Cleanup Grants Across Minnesota

Wednesday, February 24, 2021

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) awarded $3.98 million in grants to nine cities across Minnesota to cleanup 10 contaminated sites approved for redevelopment. DEED’s Contamination Cleanup Grant Program awarded the funding, which will leverage more than $300 million in private investment and create or retain 178 jobs. The redevelopment projects are expected to add 1,485 housing units, of which 373 units will be affordable housing. Local tax bases are expected to increase by $3.9 million through redevelopment of the sites. "DEED’s Contamination Cleanup Grants play a critical role in the health and vitality of our communities, especially i...

Launch Minnesota Receives National Award as a Small Business Administration “Super Connector”

Tuesday, February 23, 2021

Launch Minnesota – an initiative of the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) designed to accelerate the growth of startups and amplify Minnesota as a national leader in innovation – has received a national award as a “Super Connector” in the new Lab-to-Market (L2M) Competition sponsored by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) in partnership with the National Science and Technology. The competition drew over 160 submissions from across the country and awarded $330,000 in prizes. Launch Minnesota was one of four recipients in the Super Connector category which recognizes “current efforts to successfully attract and/or support networks of underrepresented communities in th...

How To Include Remote Workers In Your Workforce Attraction Strategy

Monday, February 22, 2021

As we enter a new year, you may be wondering HOW TO INCLUDE REMOTE WORKERS IN YOUR WORKFORCE ATTRACTION STRATEGY. Government regulations and efforts to slow the pandemic have forced workplaces to embrace remote work options. 88% OF BUSINESSES all over the world authorized their employees to work from home due to COVID-19. It is vital to focus on effectively targeting remote workers but how does this translate to benefitting the local economy? WHY IT'S WORTH IT TO ATTRACT REMOTE WORKERS IT GROWS AND DIVERSIFIES THE LOCAL ECONOMY More people working from home equals more money spent locally. More money remains in the community, and the community prospers. In additio...

5 Reasons Why Good Leaders Must Be Great Followers

Friday, February 19, 2021

“He who cannot be a good follower, cannot be a good leader.” Aristotle's old adage has never seemed more prescient. Consider the current Covid crisis: It has taken a pandemic to prove that distant, aloof and larger-than-life leaders are no longer effective. Now more than ever it has become advisable for the modern manager to empathize with, and lend an ear to, those he manages. A study conducted by Kim Peters & S. Alexander Haslam on these two identities has proven that individuals who appear to be ideal followers are often a more popular choice for any leadership position among their peers. Here are 5 reasons why an individual’s personality as a player helps them to be a proficien...

How to Protect Your Small Business Against Fraud

Thursday, February 18, 2021

As a small business owner, you have many responsibilities to uphold to keep your company running efficiently. One of them is ensuring you have sufficient security measures in place to protect organizational and employee data from fraudulent scams. Unfortunately, online scams are becoming increasingly pervasive: as of 2018, 82% of businesses reported experiencing a form of fraud. While these findings indicated that large enterprises were at a particularly high risk, small businesses were not exempt from these attacks, which is why it’s more important than ever to protect your small business against fraud. Here are three steps you can follow to boost your security and keep scammers a...

Entrepreneurs, Here's Why 2021 Is The Right Time To Start Your New Business

Wednesday, February 17, 2021

The year 2020 came with its own share of problems. If there is one thing to learn from living through pandemics and lockdowns, it’s that a lot can change in a year. Many entrepreneurs started last January with high hopes and expectations for their businesses. However, many of those expectations went downhill as the year progressed. As with human nature, life moves on no matter what, so even though we were stuck at home for most of 2020, many businesses found ways to stay afloat. As we move forward in this new year, entrepreneurs are looking to strategize and many ar...

4 Ways Your Company Can Have Great Success In 2021

Tuesday, February 16, 2021

2020 was a tough year for businesses of all sorts. Covid-19 decimated labor markets, stressed supply lines and, in some unlucky sectors, ground production to a halt. 2021 is a chance to forget last year’s trials and to start fresh. Chances must be capitalized on to create change. You need to put your nose to the grindstone, both personally and as a business leader, if you want to make it a red-letter year. If 2021 is going to be your company’s year, you have to make it so. Here’s how to do it: 1. Tailor Your Expressions of Appreciation This past year has been jus...

County has grant funds for businesses hurt by pandemic

Tuesday, February 16, 2021

There is still time for businesses whose saw significant loss in business due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic to apply for funds through Swift County. The county $256,250 in state funds to help businesses. Those funds must be spent by March 15 or they go back to the state. The application deadline is Feb. 15. The application form for the funds is now available on the Swift County Rural Development Authority’s (RDA) web site - www.swiftcounty.com/crfp. There is a link on the bottom of the page. Read full article.

Economic Dashboard For Minnesota's Recovery

Monday, February 15, 2021

Economic and business activity helps gauge the pace of Minnesota’s economic recovery from the shock of COVID-19. This dashboard, brought to you by the Minnesota Chamber Foundation, tracks activity data statewide and nationally. The data are dynamic, so check back often. Read analysis here. Read full article.

Five Essential Elements Of A Marketing Plan For A Small Business

Monday, February 15, 2021

If you are planning to open your own small business, the first step is to develop a business plan. The next step is to develop a marketing plan, as all business plans should be paired with a strategy for marketing your products or services. Marketing strategies vary in format, but they all have the common goal of attracting and building relationships with customers. The style is up to you, but it should include the following elements. 1. Marketing Goals and Objectives You will need to develop realistic and measurable marketing goals that cover a full calendar year and are aligned with you...

Strategies for Accelerating Project Execution

Friday, February 12, 2021

More than 75 percent of the companies responding to a recent survey from the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) expect the COVID-19 pandemic will have a financial impact on their business, with more than 50 percent anticipating changes to their operations. Prior to the pandemic many manufacturing companies had design and construction projects, either in progress or in the pipeline, with aggressive schedules. To slow the spread of the disease, many manufacturing operations and construction sites were shut down while new safety precautions were developed and implemented. Furthermore, uncertainty in the market caused many companies to delay committing large capital investments int...

2020-2021 Leadership Minnesota Participant Profile

Thursday, February 11, 2021

Minnesota’s economic engine is powered by more than 100,000 businesses, a diverse landscape interconnected in ways not understood by the casual observer. For a select group, Leadership Minnesota opens the window to a behind-the-scenes look at what makes our state’s economy tick. This exclusive program also helps you understand how public policy crafted at the Capitol impacts the vitality of each and every Minnesota company. By establishing a rich network of Minnesota business leaders, your shared experiences make you more effective leaders at your workplace. Read full article.

A Time to Look Forward

Thursday, February 11, 2021

Years ago in this column, I reminded readers that January is named after the Roman god Janus — the one looking backward and forward at the same time. The cover on this January issue seems the perfect illustration of that notion. We were determined to not focus again on the coronavirus and pandemic after some 2020 covers that did just that. But how do we — and you — move into a new year without that context? The way we work, the way our organizations function and the way our industries are coping and transforming have all changed. Zoom meetings fro...

5 Ways COVID-19 Changed Site Selection

Wednesday, February 10, 2021

COVID-19 didn’t just upset the established model of corporate site selection in 2020; the global pandemic obliterated it. Site Selection Magazine’s annual survey of site selection consultants, conducted in late November, revealed five ways in which the global outbreak of coronavirus significantly altered how companies choose their business facility locations: Instead of people chasing jobs, jobs are now chasing people. Remember the good old days when everyone checked into the central office each workday and reported for duty? Yeah, neither do we. When the pandemic hit America in early March, worksites around the country began shutting down and the shift to remote wor...

Local COVID-19 Resource Database

Wednesday, February 10, 2021

Businesses around Minnesota need assistance to withstand the challenges of COVID-19. Many cities and counties throughout the state have grant or loan programs available to businesses, so their local economies can compete and thrive. The Minnesota Chamber’s Grow Minnesota! Partnership has compiled a list of available funding at the city and county level. Find your community on this list, and apply for valuable resources to keep your company operating. If you don’t see your community on this list, email growminnesota@mnchamber.com, and Grow Minnesota! staff will get back to you with details about your area. Read full article.

MSP Regional Recovery Hub Weekly Take

Tuesday, February 09, 2021

This is the Recovery Hub Weekly Take, a new resource giving you the latest insights on regional economic recovery in the Minneapolis Saint Paul region. This Week’s Big Thing: the MSP region lost over 40,000 jobs in December. December jobs numbers for the region were reported yesterday and we learned that total nonfarm employment had the first substantial month-over-month drop since initial stay at home orders took effect in late March 2020. Employment usually drops from November to December here in the MSP region due to seasonal fluctuations in employment. But this year the December jobs numbers take on a COVID-19 flavor, wit...

The 2021 Regional Workforce Development Rankings

Tuesday, February 09, 2021

Joensuu, a city of 76,000 in Eastern Finland, is home to the European Forest Institute, appropriately enough. It’s also the home base of Valamis, a leading IT company specializing in the digitalization of learning. That may not be a new discipline, but it will take on greater urgency as remote learning becomes the norm. The company has 10 offices worldwide. In September 2020, Valamis published results from its second annual global report, The State of Learning and Development in the Workplace. More than 3,000 people were surveyed in more than 20 industries from entry-level to C-Suite executives in organizations fro...

Minnesota Bars, Restaurants Believe ‘Worst Is Behind Us’ Weeks After Re-Opening

Monday, February 08, 2021

It has been two weeks since Minnesota bars and restaurants were allowed to re-open at 50% capacity. It’s working for some, while others are struggling. At Lynde’s Restaurant and Catering in Osseo, the atmosphere is as important as the giant pancakes. Mark Lynde is the owner. “It’s coming back. I would hope to say that the worst is behind us,” Lynde said. Like so many others, they’ve survived two shutdowns. The second one forced them to furlough about 20 employees. Business was down 90% at Lynde’s during the month of December. Since re-opening, it’s now down about 50%, and they are hoping i...

Why Would My Community Want To Attract A Remote Workforce

Monday, February 08, 2021

Why would my community want to attract a REMOTE WORKFORCE? -- To grow your economy, of course! The coronavirus pandemic has affected U.S. workplaces in many ways, including transitioning many employees to remote work. As some businesses begin to welcome employees back to the office, many remote workers, about two-thirds to be exact, are opting to continue working remotely, according to a GALLUP POLL. Attracting remote workers should now be a priority for all economic developers. WHY WOULD MY COMMUNITY WANT TO ATTRACT A REMOTE WORKFORCE? Remote workers can bring many benefits to the communities they choose to live in. Just like any othe...

Despite COVID Restrictions, Some Twin Cities Restaurants Experiencing Boom

Friday, February 05, 2021

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — With ongoing COVID-19 restrictions, most Minnesota restaurant owners are ending the worst year they’ve ever known. But a few are surprisingly seeing significant growth. Hospitality Minnesota reports, “Over half of all Minnesota restaurants are facing permanent closure.” But amid it all, there are certain types of restaurants that are actually thriving. Facundo De Fraia grew up in Buenes Aires. “There’s pizza joints on every single street, it’s insane,” De Fraia said. “So I was trying to bring that to the Twin Cities.” So he did just that opening Boludo, a pizza and empanada shop in south Minneapolis. Like every other restaurant owner...

Site Selectors Make Five Predictions for 2021

Thursday, February 04, 2021

Renewed site selection activity, cautious optimism on foreign direct investment (FDI), continued skilled labor shortages and a shakeup of the global supply chain are among key findings of a 2021 outlook survey on corporate location trends. The findings were released today by the Site Selectors Guild, the only association of the world’s foremost professional site selection consultants. Conducted the week of December 7, 2020, the online survey of Guild members aimed to shed light on shifts and challenges in corporate location strategy moving into 2021. The COVID-19 impact survey of Guild members is the third of its kind, following surveys i...

What 2020 Makes Us Appreciate About Local Retail

Thursday, February 04, 2021

Two years (i.e. a million years) ago, as I found myself buying artisan earrings at distilleries and locally made socks at farmer’s markets, I declared 2018 the year of too many holiday pop-ups and explored what might be next for small retail brands that had come to rely on shopping events to launch or even sustain their businesses. Pandemic did not make my list of scenarios. But here we sit in our sweatpants at the end of a year that will claim as many as 25,000 stores, craving those moments where gift buying becomes an event—wanting to shop local, but unsure where to go...

Celebrating Black-Owned Businesses During Black History Month

Wednesday, February 03, 2021

We celebrate the accomplishments of Black business owners and encourage the passion of Black entrepreneurs during Black History Month and beyond. From Madam C. J. Walker, the first female self-made millionaire in America, to Robert F. Smith, the richest Black man in America, the accomplishments of Black Americans in the business world are impressive. However, inequality in the business environment of the United States still exists. We Need to Improve Black Americans own 2.2% of the nation’s 6 million businesses with employees and 7% of businesses overall, according to a survey by the United States Census Bureau. 36.1% of all Black-owned businesses ar...

Maneuver To Mobile

Wednesday, February 03, 2021

What do you do when a global pandemic rocks your business, causing shutdowns and limiting the number of customers you can serve? You hit the road. Minneapolis mobile business manufacturer Chameleon Concessions has been building food trucks, concession trailers, and custom mobile enterprises for more than three decades. In the past year, at a time when profits plummeted for many businesses, Chameleon Concessions experienced a 20 percent increase in billable income compared to 2019, says owner Mark Palm. “People are finding that they can make their businesses much more Covid-friendly this way,” Palm says. He and his team are thrilled to hel...

Not Waiting For the World to Change

Wednesday, February 03, 2021

Sprung from the lush forests of Oregon just 15 years ago, a different breed of outsourcer has found small town America to be a vital talent resource. FCR (derived from First Call Response) got its start in the legacy timber town of Roseburg, a community of 21,000 that today is home to two FCR call centers and what the company calls its “Base Camp,” just 90 minutes from the Umpqua National Forest, Crater Lake, the Oregon Coast and the city of Eugene, where FCR operates another center. It’s hard to keep up with the flurry of company site openings in 202...

Where Talent Is Migrating To — and From

Tuesday, February 02, 2021

For the last five years, Emsi has been tracking how communities are faring in their efforts to attract and develop talent. Our Talent Attraction Index equally weighs six metrics: migration, growth of jobs and skilled workers, regional competitiveness, job openings, and education attainment to rank each county and create our Talent Attraction Scorecard. Data for this year’s Scorecard captures where communities stood just before the pandemic hit. Perhaps one of the most notable results is that talent attraction is mirroring broader migration trends. Chiefly, talent is being drawn out of major metros to midsize markets. Counties between 250,000 and 1million i...

Phyllis Wheatley to create digital training program with some help from Microsoft

Monday, February 01, 2021

Phyllis Wheatley Community Center will receive $300,000 from Microsoft Corp. to support a new digital training program. The grant will help the center provide accredited software and programming training to community members ages 18 to 27. It’s a boon for the center and the community members it serves, said executive director Suzanne Burks, because technology education can help North Minneapolitans find jobs. “I think what this is really going to do is ensure that people are properly trained to really have a better opportunity in their lives, especially in the tech space,” Burks said. The center will receive the money over the nex...

4 Key Components To Creating A Sophisticated Economic Development Marketing Strategy

Friday, January 29, 2021

The strategy of simply creating a website and hoping new businesses will look at your community isn’t going to work by itself. You need a marketing plan to work along with it. A workforce attraction and business growth strategy need to target specific industry sectors. A solid strategy will have four key components: workforce attraction strategy, narrative placemaking and successful story creation, aggressive social media campaign, and a robust analytical approach to measuring the marketing effectiveness. CRAFTING A WORKFORCE ATTRACTION STRATEGY The demand for skilled labor continues to burden communities and US employers. Manufacturing has been on the rise, but the manufacturin...

Best Economic Development Websites For 2021

Thursday, January 28, 2021

A common question that our team is asked is "Can you give examples of the best economic development websites for 2021?" Each year, backed by research, conferences, and the latest trends, the Golden Shovel Agency team puts together a list of what we consider to be the best economic development websites. This is a difficult task, as there are so many organizations that deserve to be on this list, but we try to keep it to 10 for you. BEST ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WEBSITES FOR 2021 We hope this list helps with your question and that you're able to take a moment to appreciat...

5 Tips and Tricks to Improve Your Brand Strength and Equity

Wednesday, January 27, 2021

It’s not enough to have a competitive advantage in the Covid-19 era. Marketing must adapt to the new normal, and crafting a strong and authentic brand helps with this process. Brand-building is a long-term initiative that demands patience and persistence, but its benefits are worth the effort. The perks of brand-building are present in both internal and consumer-facing aspects of your business. Below is a quick list of what you can expect from maintaining a strong brand: Better employee recruitment experiences: According to more than 70% of surveyed recruiting leaders from around the world, an employer’s brand plays a significant part in the hiring process. Not man...

Learn the HR Skills You Need When Your Business Grows

Tuesday, January 26, 2021

As an entrepreneur, you likely have a growth mindset. You didn't expect to be a one-person operation forever did you? But when you're ready to start growing your business, you're suddenly presented with a whole new slew of challenges. In The HR and Administrative Career Training Bundle, you'll learn how to tackle each one of them capably. This five-course bundle is designed to help you on the next logical step of your small business's journey. You'll learn what it takes to build an awesome team and how to motivate them to do their best work. Read full article.

Combating Loneliness & Building Resilience For Tomorrow's Workplace

Monday, January 25, 2021

Add to that the emotional turmoil resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, an uncertain economic climate and increased recognition of systemic racial injustice, and the state of mental health in America needs attention. A staggering 61% of Americans experience loneliness and, in the Covid-19 era, just 37% of full-time workers exhibit high levels of resilience—or the ability to recover quickly from challenges—according to Cigna’s latest studies. Not only do these dual challenges have negative impacts on mental health; they take a toll on the workplace, too, leading to increased absenteeism, turnover and missed workdays. Read full article.

First Person: Understanding and Investing in Current and Future Talent

Friday, January 22, 2021

AD: Can you define people analytics for our readers? Williams: People analytics is described as the method of analytics which can support leaders as they make decisions about their employees and workforce. This method applies statistics, technology, and expertise to large sets of HR data, which should result in better business and management decisions by an organization. Another way of looking at this is how to get the best return on investment from their people — in an analytical, data-driven way. AD: How can the use of data help industrial companies satisfy their workforce requirements? Williams: Data can prove instrumental to inform industrial companies on the bes...

Onshoring Opportunities are Abundant in Swift County

Friday, January 22, 2021

Businesses nationwide have suffered as a result of COVID-19. Supply chain disruptions and product delivery delays are only the beginning of the complications. COVID-19 has left a lasting impact. Due to the damage experienced by many, a large number of business executives have decided it is time to onshore part or all of their business operations. Companies in the United States have offshored manufacturing operations overseas for four decades in order to save costs, but now many think it is time to bring operations closer to home. Swift County is an ideal location to affordably onshore manufacturing operations. As a result o...

Recruiting and Retaining Today’s Manufacturing Workforce

Thursday, January 21, 2021

AD: How has COVID-19 changed the employee experience in manufacturing, and what facets of this should organizations retain going forward? Zenk: Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, employees have been experiencing a drastically different work environment. Thousands of manufacturers across the U.S. and around the world were deemed essential during the pandemic, and their production lines haven’t stopped. They’ve continued to produce essential goods that the global community relies on — from the food we eat to the clothes we wear and cleaning supplies we use in our homes. As some manufacturers increased output and others reconfigured operations to satisfy urgent demands...

Trends in Office and Industrial Parks

Wednesday, January 20, 2021

Of course, the big factor impacting office and industrial parks going into 2021 is COVID-19. The pandemic has reduced business production and workforce (through illness, social distancing, and remote working), disrupted the supply chain and cash flow, and brought about significant investments in technology. Across the nation, the demand for suburban office parks is rising as more skilled workers move back to suburbs, due to concerns about housing costs and quality of education — they also feel safer from COVID-19 and the civil unrest that is happening in some larger cities. “The most notable shift is toward lower-intensity spaces, where getting int...

The Future of the Workforce Is a “Better Normal”

Tuesday, January 19, 2021

The world as we all knew it changed earlier this year with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Seemingly overnight, everything that we used to think was normal had changed, and things that once were deemed impossible for the workplace became the “new normal.” Now, seven months later, most of us have gotten used to this “new normal” — embracing the work-from-home lifestyle, using new technology, wearing masks, social distancing, and connecting virtually. But what comes next? Eventually this pandemic will end, a vaccine will be readily available, and we will attempt to return back to our “normal” lives. Bu...

E-Commerce Growth Surge Sparks a Logistics Free-For-All

Monday, January 18, 2021

E-commerce has exploded in recent years, but as COVID-19 emerged the sector has seen unprecedented growth. While many industries battled disruptions, e-commerce provides opportunity. E-commerce and logistics companies are accelerating planned innovation and restructuring initiatives to stay ahead of the curve — if that’s even possible — spurring the implementation of three to five years of advancements in a span of just five months to keep up. It’s akin to upgrading the jet while traveling at Mach speed. This significant growth in online sales shows no signs of slowing, with Deloitte forecasting e-commerce sales to increase by 25–35 percent year-over-year during this upcomin...

Sustaining Industrial Labor Needs During and After the Pandemic

Friday, January 15, 2021

While the COVID-19 pandemic continues to accelerate consumer and workplace trends that were, in many cases, already under way pre-pandemic, challenges and opportunities in finding, training, and retaining an efficient industrial workforce remain constants for distributors and manufacturers. Effective site selection decisions hinge on a complex cost/quality balance of labor, logistics, and location. It is critical that occupiers remain vigilant in fostering a workplace and workforce that delivers on performance objectives while meeting current and future pandemic-driven challenges. With labor costs making up as much as 70 percent of warehouse operating expenses, the focus on workforce potential in existing an...

Supply Chain Execs Respond as Pandemic Creates E-Commerce Surge

Thursday, January 14, 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed our lives, and each one of us likely has a personal story to tell that underscores that fact. But there are also stories to be told of sweeping changes that virtually all of us have felt. One of those is the altered state of the global supply chain. The supply chain is, after all, an element of daily life that has an impact, either directly or indirectly, on just about everyone on the planet. The pandemic put a spotlight on the critical nature of this industry. Truck drivers and warehouse employees became everyday heroes o...

Certainty and Predictability Are the Winning States’ Hallmarks

Wednesday, January 13, 2021

State business climates are exceedingly competitive in 2020, if Site Selection’s latest Business Climate Ranking is any indication. For the first time ever, two states claim the top spot — Georgia, which now has an eight-year run in first place, and North Carolina, which missed tying Georgia last year by just two points. What’s more, there are two additional sets of tied states in the Top 10, Texas and South Carolina in fourth place and Alabama and Arizona in seventh. Half the ranking is based on a survey of corporate executives and site selectors (asked to identify the states they believ...

SEO For The Savvy Economic Developer

Tuesday, January 12, 2021

Authors don’t write books for librarians, they write books for readers. So why are economic developers creating websites just for search engines? The sole focus on search engine rankings has moved economic development website marketing away from the true intended purpose - connecting communities to business owners and expanding economic growth opportunities. Economic development professionals desire more traffic. But that goal is getting in the way of making sure the users actually find the information they are seeking. We confuse the search engine rankings and analysis with success when the primary goal is still to deliver relevant content from the user. Th...

Five Predictions For The Manufacturing Industry In 2021

Monday, January 11, 2021

There's no shortage of articles that will opine about how tumultuous 2020 was for the economy, jobs, and industry as the world grappled with the impact of COVID-19 on business and daily life. However, there's reason to be optimistic, especially in manufacturing. Despite 60% of manufacturers feeling the impact of COVID on operations, a recent survey of senior leaders of manufacturing and distribution companies noted significant or modest growth in company revenue during the pandemic. Demand for products is surging, requiring new and innovative production methods, and many manufacturers have stepped up to the plate. As we close out the year, we'll better understand jus...

The Home Office Vs. the home office

Friday, January 08, 2021

In Washington, like everywhere else, a major reevaluation of workspace and quality of life is unfolding. Imagine building an expansive new corporate campus, then deciding since the onset of COVID-19 to sell it and disperse HQ functions. That’s what REI is doing with its newly completed campus in Bellevue, Washington. The company is instead following a distributed work model for its HQ functions. Four days after Facebook launched a new college-only online space for students called Facebook Campus, the company completed the purchase of a real one, buying REI’s just-completed campus in the Spring District neighborhood for $390 million. It’s one of several investment...

Talent Accelerator Program is a Welcome Mat for Foreign Investors

Thursday, January 07, 2021

In February 2020, Navien, Inc., a leader in condensing technology for water heaters and boilers, announced it would invest $77.5 million to establish its first U.S. manufacturing and assembly operation in the former Lumber Liquidators facility in James City County, which will create 180 new jobs. The company is tripling the footprint of the existing building, bringing it to nearly 900,000 sq. ft. Virginia successfully competed with Illinois, Maryland, and Pennsylvania for the project. Navien, Inc., a U.S. subsidiary of Seoul-based KD Navien, is one of the fastest growing companies in the home comfort sector in North America. Why Virginia? “The clos...

Where Aerospace Manufacturers Are Gravitating in 2020

Wednesday, January 06, 2021

PwC’s Aerospace & Defense practice has issued the seventh edition of its Aerospace Manufacturing Attractiveness Rankings. It does so at “a precarious moment in the industry’s history,” according to the report’s introduction. “By April 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic had plunged commercial aviation into crisis mode, with global revenue passenger kilometers (RPKs) nosediving by 94% compared to the same month a year earlier. International flights ground to a near-complete halt. By June, RPKs were down 87% against the year-ago period. Meanwhile, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) forecasts that 2019 levels will not be restored until 2024.” Aircraft and their many component...

County provides extra funds for healthcare

Thursday, December 31, 2020

Health providers at the front lines of the COVID-19 fight in Swift County received a financial boost from the county board of commissioners at the Nov. 17 meeting. Commissioners allocated $75,000 each to Appleton Area Health and Swift County-Benson Health Services. It also allocated another $15,000 to Countryside Public Health. Read full article.

Minnesotans donate in record numbers to Give to the Max

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

Minnesotans donated a record $30.4 million to nonprofits and schools during the annual Give to the Max campaign, surpassing the previous record of nearly $22 million set in 2019. GiveMN Executive Director Jake Blumberg said donors gave money to more than 6,100 organizations, which is also a record. "What we were hoping donors would do and what we directly asked over and over again for donors to do was to expand their generosity this year," he said. Read full article.

3M Partnership Deal Focuses On Cleaner Aircraft Interiors

Tuesday, December 29, 2020

In the wake of the pandemic’s effects on air travel, Maplewood-based 3M Co. has teamed up with California-based Safran Cabin to design and create safer and cleaner aircraft interiors. Safran Cabin produces jet cabin interiors with components including overhead bins, lavatories, galleys, and more. The company has 25 sites across the globe, operates in 10 countries and has more than 9,500 employees. 3M’s aerospace division already produces a range of adhesives, films, and sealants used in aircraft design. The company’s Transportation and Electronics business segment accounted for $9.6 billion in sales in 2019; that translated to 29.9 percent of the company’s tota...

Hello Iron Range! attracting workforce to Northeast Minnesota

Monday, December 28, 2020

Being a Workforce Strategy Consultant is all about making connections and developing solutions to help employers find the employees they need to grow and thrive in Minnesota. One of the most exciting projects that I have been working on is Hello Iron Range! a talent attraction website designed to promote the Iron Range and help businesses recruit and retain talent to the region. My partner in this project has been Beth Pierce, Executive Director from Iron Range Tourism. The project was funded with support from the Blandin Broadband Initiative and the Iron Range Tourism Bureau. The purpose of the site is t...

Jobs in Demand: Assemblers and Fabricators

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

With over 320,000 jobs, Manufacturing is Minnesota’s 2nd largest-employing industry sector. One of the top-employing occupations in this industry happens to be assemblers and fabricators. In fact, according to DEED’s Occupational Employment Statistics data, there are over 31,700 assemblers and fabricators employed in the state. Such workers are employed in a wide variety of areas, including everything from transportation equipment manufacturing to computer and electronic product manufacturing to medical equipment and supplies manufacturing. Simply put, assemblers and fabricators assemble finished products and the parts that go into them. More specific tasks may include reading and interpreting schematics and blueprints, positioning or alignin...

Celebrating the Holidays in Swift County Safely During COVID-19

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

The holiday season has kicked off in Swift County and now is an excellent time to join family and friends, virtually or from a safe distance, as we gather to celebrate and create new memories. Our vibrant community events are one of the many reasons community members enjoy living and working here. Though celebrating the holidays looks a little different this year due to COVID-19, our Swift County businesses and residents have joined together to spread a little holiday cheer while keeping social distancing protocol intact. The City of Murdock put together a Santa Truck 2020 “COVID-Style” event so local childre...

Veterans Virtual Career Fair Resources Offer Valuable Job Search Information

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

The Minnesota Veterans Virtual Career Fair is over, but the resources offered and connections made through the online event are continuing to benefit current and former military members and their spouses, as well as Minnesota employers. Here's what we've heard from two participating employers, 3M and Andersen Windows and Doors, both gold sponsors of the event. “As a fellow veteran, and 3M hiring manager, it is wonderful to be part of a local event that encourages companies to highlight opportunities for veterans,” said Jennifer Loveland, Enterprise Operations Black Belt and member of 3M’s employee resource group. “At the same time, it creates a central place for veteran...

Startups Key to Minnesota Post-Virus Economic Recovery

Monday, December 21, 2020

First, I’d just note that we gathered state leaders, partners and startups from across the state last week for a virtual event to celebrate the one-year anniversary of Launch Minnesota, a program designed to accelerate startups. You can find out more in Launch Minnesota’s First-Year Progress Report. I’d like to share a message I wrote – which appeared in the Star Tribune on Sunday – about the importance of our startup community to Minnesota’s economic recovery. To say that 2020 has been a challenging year for the Minnesota economy would be an understatement. In the first three months of the COVID-19 pandemic, we lost a stunning 385,000 jobs. We'v...

Swift County may soon have another tool to encourage the expansion of affordable workforce housing options in Swift County.

Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Swift County may soon have another tool to encourage the expansion of affordable workforce housing options in Swift County. HRA and RDA Executive Directors are proposing an ordinance to the Swift County Board that will establish a county-wide housing trust fund; a permanent and continuously renewable source of funding to help meet the housing needs of moderate, low income and very low income households. The trust fund is expected to provide loans and grants to individual property owners, homeowners, for-profit and nonprofit housing developers and governmental units. “It’s something we hear all the time – when people are considering a jo...

WHY ECONOMIC DEVELOPERS NEED TO MARKET THEIR OPPORTUNITY ZONES NOW

Tuesday, June 01, 2021

One Year After The First Wave Of Pandemic Jobs Losses, U.S. Adds Nearly A Million Jobs In March

Monday, May 17, 2021