The Future of Mid-America

I recently attended the Mid-America Economic Development Council's annual conference, one goal of which is for economic developers to strengthen their knowledge of the latest trends.

During this conference, I attended a presentation by Edward Barlow, a well-respected futurist and president of Michigan-based Creating the Future, Inc. Besides his frequent interviews with the media, he has testified before Congress on several occasions regarding issues of workforce, transportation, travel and tourism. He is passionate about assisting people to anticipate and prepare for the world of tomorrow.

I found his perspective interesting, insightful and thought-provoking and so wanted to share some of the highlights, in no particular order …

At least temporarily, we're moving closer to a cash-based society versus the credit-based one we've been living in, post World War II and one of the most fundamental issues in the U.S. is that 98% of our youth graduate without one class in personal finance management.

Barlow recommends total K-12 integration of this topic, centered in the math curriculum. Also, community-wide financial literacy support systems should be created, so that people have multiple opportunities to learn about how best to handle money.

Another area of concern for the youth is that 99% are graduating without one course on Internet security. However, frequently children are more familiar with the new communication technologies than their parents, leaving our youth exposed without protection.

Seventy percent of wealth creation is related to human capital. Good, technically-skilled workers are in increasing demand. We need to address anticipated workforce deficiencies, especially replacements for retiring "baby boomers." Some of those approaching retirement have been enticed by their companies to stay employed for a little while longer. The down-side to this is that retention of mature workers may keep the necessary experience base in the workforce but it is accompanied by lack of motivation and need for skills training to maintain competency.

Barlow suggests pairing the mature worker with a young worker so that cross-mentoring can occur. The mature worker can impart their experience while, at the same time, gain from the young worker's high comfort level with new technologies, especially the modern communication technologies.

The emphasis will shift from business attraction to worker attraction, as businesses will move to locations that can provide the necessary skilled workforce. An individual who adopts a lifelong learning approach will be better equipped and more in demand in the workforce of the future.

Mankind's knowledge is expected to double each year by 2015. Consequently, skill enhancement will be as important as acquisition of academic degrees. Businesses will require a real-time capacity to upgrade their existing workforce and train new employees. This will place a demand on educational institutions to create more "specific skil" certificate programs and for businesses to create more "earn-and-learn" opportunities.

Distinct from all other developed nations, the U.S. population is continuing to grow, due to birthrates and immigration (personal note: Contrary to what some news reporters would have us think, the continued immigration indicates that many foreigners believe that America is still the best place in the world to live.)

The increase creates a growing consumer market but developing countries continue to experience instability. These factors are creating opportunities for manufacturing business to return closer to the point of demand. Barlow suggests that long-term, a close-to-consumer, speed-to-market strategy is expected to win.

The "green" approach is increasingly important to business attraction efforts, as companies value sustainability. The bottom line is that individuals, businesses and communities should reduce, re-use and recycle as much as possible and, in doing so, become a magnet for businesses that will also be good corporate citizens.

In the areas of science and technology, the ability to monitor and manipulate at the molecular level is key. In agriculture, designer crops will be in increasing demand.

The U.S. population is expected to grow to 400 million by 2040. The two most significant U.S. demographics for the future are aging and ethnicity. Over time, adult day care will be as important as child day care. By 2042, today's minorities are expected to be in the majority and no community will be unaffected.

Tourism is the "front-door" to economic development as 50% of those who relocate to a community, first visit as a tourist.

These may seem like random thoughts but Barlow covered a vast array of topics in his presentation on "The Future of Mid-America Economic Development" It's a Journey, Not a Destination." I've tried to share just a few points that I'm still pondering over.

Joan Bethell is the executive director at Greene County Economic Development Corporation and can be reached at (812) 847-4500 or jbethell@gcedc.us .