LANSING – The biggest issue facing Michigan’s continued
growth is a glaring lack of talent in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math
to fill the rapidly growing job openings for these skills, Steve Arwood,
President of the Michigan Economic Development Corp., said in an interview.
Michigan weathered the four-year recession that drove
General Motors and Chrysler – two anchor businesses for the state’s economy –
into bankruptcy. Now, Arwood told MITechNews.Com Editor Mike Brennan, interest
in the Michigan auto sector is at an all-time high. New initiatives, such as the
research and development into the driverless car, have helped revitalize the
auto industry today.
“The diversity of technology coming out of the industry,”
Arwood said. “It is really exciting. It is leading us to a place where a lot of
people have said we should go. The potential there is unlimited. Seventy-six
percent of North American auto R&D is done here.”
But threatening the viability of the state’s vibrant
technology sector is the lack of trained and skilled people to fill all these
new STEM jobs, he said.
“We need the skills and talent,” Arwood said. “It is not a
capital issue. It’s not a finance issue. It’s ‘where do I get five people that
can do this now’? How do I work with a community college to get the right mix
of people?”
The other issue, he said, is how do we get young people
interested in STEM careers? How does Michigan grow the next generation of folks
who will carry this technological growth forward?
When asked how difficult is it to retain and attract talent
to Michigan, Arwood responded those problems are slowly improving.
“The classic example is those of high school age during the
great recession,” Arwood said. “We gave a whole group of students a front row
seat to that. They formed an opinion of the opportunities in this state. And it
wasn’t positive. We have to work doubly hard to make sure we are making the opportunities
here for start-ups here, well known.”
Arwood said his youngest child just graduated from college.
When she was a freshman, she didn’t think there would be many opportunities in
Michigan when she received her degree. Now she is working at Public Sector
Consultants in an office building next to the MEDC.
“We have to market inward now,” he said. “Whether a company
needs 10 welders or 10 highly trained engineers, we have to keep our talent in
Michigan.”
Arwood added: “I think on an economic basis, we stack up to
other states on the baseline tax, and regulatory issues. We have a business
friendly attitude. I think it’s solving the talent issue that is the problem. Solving
the talent issue is the next step in economic development. All states have the
same issue. If we can turn talent to our advantage, we will come out ahead.”
Part of attracting and retaining talent is these skilled people
between 25 and 35 want to work near where they live, Arwood said. For instance,
in downtown Detroit, where so many young people have flocked to be part of the
technology start-up boom, there is what he called the missing middle. Rental
units available in downtown Detroit are leased as quickly as they come on the
market. So the MEDC has begun focusing programs on this live-work dilemma.
Still, Michigan’s four-season climate does help retain and
attract many young people, particularly in the Upper Peninsula. A technology
zone has been created in the UP around the Houghton metropolitan area where
young people are developing software and deciphering big data.
“The population there is getting younger and younger,” Arwood
said. “They want to be where there is 300 inches of snow in the winter. But if
you look at both ends of the state – we’re doing really well all over on a core
basis. The question then becomes how do we (MEDC) continue to effectively help
that growth?”
This growth is just not confined to highly skilled
technology sectors, and the auto industry, Arwood said. Another growth center
for the state is its value-added agriculture, which now is the state’s No. 2 or
3 industry after autos. Tourism and Agriculture jockey for the runner-up slot.
“We work closely with our friends at Department Of Agriculture.
A couple months ago we announced the largest pork processor would come to
Coldwater. That then develops trucking and cold storage. It develops the
value-added supply chain. We then need to grow more feed. Grow more hogs.”
Healthcare is thriving in Michigan as well. Healthcare
centers such as Detroit, Ann Arbor, and Grand Rapids are leading the way,
generating thousands of high paying jobs.
The Pure Michigan tourism promotion campaign has also done
wonders for burnishing Michigan’s image and helping to keep tourism as one of
the state’s top business sectors.
“I see a strong future for that. We’ve just issued a Request
for Proposal to rebuild the Travel Michigan website. You have to be a leader in
this stuff to make sure we don’t lose our position.”
When asked if he could go to the legislature and get
anything he wanted for the MEDC, Arwood responded: “I would very strategically
beef up the amount of money we have for training, retraining and making sure
people have the opportunity for better training for in-demand jobs to insure
that we were able to create a business-centric approach to this. I also think
we need retraining all the way down to High School making sure our young people
and their parents, understand the career opportunities available in Michigan.”
A well-rounded workforce is the largest advantage Michigan
can have in its competition with other states for business and talent.
“Fundamentally, we kind of devalued a lot of our technology skill
centers around the state,” Arwood said. “If I could create the perfect world post
two years beyond high school, I would ask Are you in a career? Are you career
ready? Do you have what you need to get an in-demand job and get a better
opportunity? If we can measure that and see we are doing a great job with that,
Michigan’s economy would be in great shape for decades to come.”
