Greetings! We hope you enjoy our February 2019 Newsletter!
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Monroe County's Lead Economic Development Organization geared up with a growth strategy for the 21st Century ...
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Facilitator Named for Monroe County Link Plan
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On February 1, we held our first 2019 Monroe County Action Team Meeting. This was held the week that Mother Nature played havoc on our weather but we still managed to have a great turnout and exuberant team!
At this meeting, we introduced a new position, that of Link Plan Facilitator. Florence Buchanan, President and Founder of Customer Experience360 Consulting, will be filling this role. Florence has been a resident of the City of Monroe for over 28 years and was formerly the general manager of Monroe Cablevision. She is also a community volunteer.
Florence is not new to the Monroe County Link Plan as she has been and will continue to serve on the Enhance the Local Image & Brand Pillar.
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We are very excited to have Florence on board in this capacity to add additional assistance to the Monroe County Link Plan Action Team! The individuals on these teams are dedicated to supporting this endeavor but still hold important positions within Monroe County that keep them very busy. Florence will add a layer of support and guidance that each team needs and deserves.
Florence stated, "I am very excited to be working directly with and supporting the Link Plan Pillar Captains and their committees. It is a great opportunity to contribute to the overall success of the project and work alongside the passionate staff and county-wide volunteers whose efforts have made it successful thus far."
Here is a short synopsis of some of the Pillar Teams' efforts for 2019:
- Prepare for Investment is working on creating a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for local municipalities with a focus on growth as they give presentations to municipalities and boards, continue outreach to stakeholders, and research/develop sites to present
- Enhance the Local Image & Brand is focusing on creating a marketing strategy for the entire county while still keeping each municipalities' uniqueness in focus while implementing highway beautification efforts
- Improve Workforce Development & Education is focused on linking the business community to education with their talent needs in mind; a new CTE Director has been hired that will help in growing programs in our schools that meet the workforce requirements of our community, and are working on their next submission of the MI Marshall Plan for Talent
- Grow Strategically & Grow Monroe As A Logistics Gateway pillars are focused on the foreign trade zone with the objective of understanding the business implications and how they impact taxes and tariffs to the advantage of current or future businesses in our county, and are working in unison with the Prepare for Investment Pillar on obtaining approval for the final MOU
- Improve the Quality of Life & Strengthen Tourism Opportunities is working on continuing their efforts at the Battlefield and Corridor East Plan, providing improved signage and wayfinding, and working with Tourism Bureau to market strengths and opportunities throughout the county
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Partnership Update:
Greater Ann Arbor Region & Detroit Regional Partnership
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Part of the Monroe County BDC's goal is to partner with other regional economic development organizations to boost outreach through increased collaboration. This provides several benefits to all organizations involved including region wide attraction, data collection and advocacy. Two of our partner organizations, Detroit Regional Chamber and the Greater Ann Arbor Region (GAAR), have had significant events take place in the new year.
The BDC has partnered in the past with the Detroit Regional Chamber on several projects throughout our county and region. The group recently announced that their business attraction division will be splitting off to form the Detroit Regional Partnership (DRP), an 11 county group that will focus on business attraction. Barry Matherly has been chosen as CEO of this new organization which will continue and enhance the efforts of the chamber's "Destination Detroit" program. Barry brings a tremendous amount of experience as he was the head of a similar organization in Richmond, VA. We look forward to working with the DRP and are excited about the new opportunities this collaboration will bring.
Additionally, the BDC is a member of GAAR. Partner counties include Livingston, Lenawee, Washtenaw, Jackson and Hillsdale counties. The group was formed on a grant from the MEDC and has proven to be extremely beneficial to all organizations involved. On February 8, the partnership met with area legislators to discuss topics pertinent to economic development in our region. As a result of the November election, several new legislators have been sworn in to represent partner counties. The session proved to be extremely beneficial as these legislators were able to learn a bit about our organizations and the issues that are facing economic development today. We are fortunate to belong to a group that works to advocate for economic development at the local, state and federal level.
We are always seeking new opportunities for partnership as advancing attraction, data collection and advocacy allows us to expand the mission and vision of the BDC. Our organization looks forward to expanding on these existing partnerships into the future!
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Monroe County Young Professionals' St. Patrick's Pitch and Pour
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The Monroe County Young Professional's will be hosting a St. Patrick's Day themed Pitch and Pour event at McGeady's Town Pub on March 13. The program will be sponsored by the Monroe BDC/Promedica Matching Fund Program and will allow for entrepreneurs and thinkers to come and present their business idea for a chance at winning the "pot of gold".
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Wage Data from Manpower Employment Outlook Survey Results
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Manpower of Southeast Michigan released an updated copy of their local white paper on Current Market Overview in December 2018. There are a few things to note:
- Current wage data for entry-level manufacturing workers in Southeast Michigan (according to Salary.com). Wages have increased as much a $1 per hour across four major metro areas since the first data was reported in September 2018.
- Employers are reporting a +20% employment outlook with positive hiring intentions across 13 industry sectors, 50 states, and 100 largest metro areas; this results in a 12-year high. The most optimistic intentions are in Transportation & Utilities, (+28%) Leisure & Hospitality (+27%), Professional & Business Services (+25%) and Wholesale & Retail Trade (+24%).
- Unemployment rates across major metro areas and the state are also down significantly.
View the full report here by clicking on the photo above. Questions may be directed to
Stephen Dillon, Business Development VP at Manpower, Inc. of SE Michigan (734-665-3757 x122).
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Just a few more things ...
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Attention Ag and Food Suppliers! - Pure Michigan Business Connect (PMBC) and the MI Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) are hosting the
Pure Michigan Agriculture Summit, bringing you together with buyers in a 1-day matchmaking event. To view the entire list of purchasers and commodities they’re seeking, visit
puremiag.com and click on the
Begin Supplier Application button. Suppliers will be notified if selected for meetings, and scheduled in advance of the event.
Please note that not all suppliers will be selected for the meetings but are encouraged to attend for additional walk-up meeting opportunities and networking.
The summit will take place at the Kalamazoo Radisson on March 19. You must register to attend the event; this is separate from submitting a supplier application.
Registration for the event is now open at
puremiag.com
.
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Gov. Whitmer Delights Manufacturers with Declaration of Career & Tech Ed Month -
Manufacturers are happy that Gov. Whitmer has declared February to be Career & Technical Education Month in Michigan in a bid to expose students and their influencers to the career-tech classes and programs all across the state that teach skills needed for limitless high-demand, high-skill, high wage career opportunities. She says, “Every child deserves and has a right to exceptional public education, and career and technical education is another viable path for our high school students to build strong academic foundations and specific technical skills to succeed in their chosen career path.” The Governor adds, “As parents, educators and influencers, we need to encourage students to explore all career pathways and make sure they know these programs exist.” Read more at the
Talent & Economic Development (TED)
website.
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Gordie Howe International Bridge -
the bridge is designed to meet the Envision Silver rating for the actual bridge lighting and the surrounding roadways to ensure longevity while minimizing environmental impact.
Read more about the lighting and additional environmental benefits on the Gordie Howe International Bridge website (click on picture).
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Financial Support for Manufacturers and Businesses
- To assist in the development of small businesses in Monroe County, the Matching Fund Program was created to provide gap and seed funding assistance for companies. Tim Lake, stated, "by nurturing new companies and those in growth mode, this program will assist with both capital formation and job creation within Monroe County." The application process is open! Please visit
MatchingFundBDC.com to find out more about this funding opportunity. And, spread the word ... these funds are available to help Monroe County manufacturers and businesses.
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We hope you will join us on
Thursday, March 28, 7:30 am
, for our
Annual Investors' Meeting
. Guardian Glass in Carleton will be our host this year. Watch your email for registration information!
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Please feel free to contact us anytime!
(734) 241-8081
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