One question that’s often posed to me is whether state and local governments should be involved in economic development.
As chair of the Florida Economic Development Council, which supports entities that help businesses retain quality jobs while finding opportunities for growth, and proactively recruiting new businesses, I can emphatically say — yes!
Let me address some common myths about what economic development is and what it isn’t, while helping readers understand how important it is for Floridians.
Myth: “We don’t need economic development.”
Fact: The 2018 Regional Competitiveness Report compared the Tampa Bay region (from Citrus County south to Sarasota County) with 19 peer metro U.S. areas. The report, published by the Tampa Bay Partnership, assessed quantity and quality of jobs in different cities, and this is important because wealth and disposable income are key indicators in quality of life.
While the report ranked the Tampa Bay region No. 1 in job growth, the results showed there’s significant room for improvement in other key indicators.
For example, our average annual wage ($45,434), median household income ($50,540) and number of jobs in advanced industries (6.5 percent) lag far behind peer cities.
This matters because increasing the number of high-wage jobs has the most positive impact on competitiveness and prosperity. Even if you weren’t looking for a new job, higher wages for your fellow Floridians mean more local revenue for services like libraries and schools, and more buying power for local small businesses.
Economic development’s goal is to ensure that residents have a wide selection of quality careers to choose from, that our workforce is trained for those jobs, and that businesses have the support to succeed in the global marketplace.
Myth: Economic development is all about financial incentives to lure big companies to Florida.
Fact: Public/private-funded economic development organizations do not distribute incentives. In fact, most economic development professionals primarily help existing local businesses find talent, and expand product offerings and market share.
A variety of programs — funded through a mix of private and government resources — offer a wide range of activities, such as helping grow exports, training the workforce and providing valuable market research that is rarely available to small businesses.
As an example, locally owned and operated Quality Enclosures relied on research supplied by a statewide initiative called FloridaMakes to increase production of shower doors by 20 percent, while simultaneously increasing sales by $4 million over a 12-month period.
Myth: Economic development priorities are determined in Tallahassee.
Fact: Economic development is driven by local needs because the needs of Sarasota County would differ from other metro areas in Florida.
For example, local economic development professionals are working to grow Innovation Station, a University of Florida initiative in Sarasota. The goal is to meet the employment needs of industry for decades to come, with more Floridians trained in high-wage engineering fields.
Whether it’s attracting targeted industries, helping companies find new export markets or training the workforce, economic development makes a difference every day. And it’s important to continue our support of these programs, because better jobs and wages improve everyone’s standard of living — a key to our quality of life.
Crystal Stiles, director of economic development for Florida Power & Light, is chair of the Florida Economic Development Council.