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Comments From YesterdayI don’t know what those people are doing but
they are showing up at the post office with buckets of mail.
I have served on a number of committees lately and they are all trying to fight the same fight.
We are not growing. We are not letting the world know we exist.
We have a horrible “Brain Drain”When someone finishes school they are looking
for a high paying job.
Comments From YesterdayGood area to raise a family – schools are
some of the best.We are gearing things around what we did 20
years ago.Fractured marketing – we have separate
websites.We want educated people with money.We want startups here, better bandwidth,
infrastructure, incubator and incentives for startups.
Mooresville – Progressive and Alive
Manufacturing Solution Center How do you help a small manufacturer move
to a higher level? How do you move an entire region to a
higher level?Sharing Partnerships Connections Opportunities
What is the Future Economy Council?
The FEC is a group that is working to develop transformational leaders in Catawba County, able to understand and utilize the skills of building capacities to create a more resilient economy.
Very Diverse Group
Working with Rick Smyre, Communities of the Future
Master Capacity Builders
Master Capacity BuildersObjectives:To develop new ways of thinking about the futureTo be able to identify trends and weak signalsTo be able to ask appropriate questionsTo be able to listen for value and find new connectionsTo be able to connect diverse ideas and people for
continuous innovationTo understand how to create "innovation networks"To design and evolve parallel processesTo be able to identify and utilize new and emerging
patternsTo be able to think systemically at a higher level of
complexity To be able take appropriate individual and team risks to
develop new ideas and methods
Trends and Weak SignalsFor the first time in human history, children
are authorities on a central innovation – the new digital media. This generation gap has its implications
Universal connectivity. What does that mean?Jobs that do not require proximity.Ubiquitous, unprecedented access to
information.
Trends and Weak SignalsQuestions ????What was it like when we couldn’t get an
answer in 5 minutes or less?Could you manage your staff in 140
characters or less?What is Apple really up to?
FEC DiscussionsJob loss since 2000.Wilmington has an employment change of
17.4% since 2000 as opposed to our -18.8%. What are they doing differently?
What do the following have in common?Williams and SonomaApple ComputersRestoration HardwarePirates of the CaribbeanPhil Specter Murder Trial
FEC DiscussionsWhat did Apple like about the area?
Our manufacturing attitudeCulture of a hardworking workforceQuality of lifeLarge track of land devoted to data centers,
power, water, fiber.Could hire people from the area
FEC DiscussionsDiversification is a key to moving forward It should be noted that in 1999, Catawba
County was thought to be a model for diversity.
Could our success in the 1990s been the real cause of our decline? We were diversified and at full employment in the 90’s and could not attract new business here because we did not have the resource of a workforce to offer.
Did that limit our ability to grow and transition to modern industry from old school manufacturing (furniture and textiles).
Parallel ProcessesHeat, Beat and Treat tradition based. Are we looking at nanotechnology?Manufacturing using natural principles?Energy opportunities? Creative processes?Are we looking at opportunities that make us
more resilient in the future?
Creative Molecular AgeWhat are the talent and creative resources
that are here now?What are we doing to support and encourage
those people?Only a few jobs???Think about the past and all the businesses
that started here in the Hickory area.
FEC DiscussionsStill ranked last in educational attainment. Is that a factor of our schools, a young
population that is not returning here after college, lack of attracting business requiring higher skills, what influences this factor?
Will the fact that Apple is coming here change this? If we continue to attract businesses like Apple will the educational attainment level rise to match it?
Is there a willingness and passion to learn factor in our culture?
FEC DiscussionsOur education system is not weak, it is
performing better than most in the state. Enrollment at CVCC is at an all time high. When students finish their course of study,
then what? Will there be jobs for them? If not, where will they be?
Let’s get personal, think about your church, social group, at work wherever, and think about your friends and colleagues that have had children graduate from college. Where are they now? Are they here or working in some other area of the country?
FEC DiscussionsPart of the comment above was prompted by
the fact that the Hickory MSA 18-44 population has only grown by 45 since 2000 while the 45 + population has grown by 18,589.
Master Capacity Builder TrainingObjectives:To develop new ways of thinking about the futureTo be able to identify trends and weak signalsTo be able to ask appropriate questionsTo be able to listen for value and find new connectionsTo be able to connect diverse ideas and people for
continuous innovationTo understand how to create "innovation networks"To design and evolve parallel processesTo be able to identify and utilize new and emerging
patternsTo be able to think systemically at a higher level of
complexity To be able take appropriate individual and team risks to
develop new ideas and methods
Closing ThoughtsScott Millar was quick to point out that there was a huge disparity between the persons sitting in the room and the average worker in Catawba County. August 2009 Future Economy Council Meeting