Mississippi Business Journal’sTop Stories of 2012

Here are the Mississippi Business Journal‘s Top Stories of 2012 as published in the December 28, 2012 edition (subscription required):

Kemper County Coal Plant fights to survive;

Mississippi River levels plummet;

Republicans strengthen hold on state government;

GreenTech Automotive launches MyCar;

Hurricane Isaac lashes Gulf Coast;

Twin Creeks leaves state holding an empty bag; and

Bryant signs “high-gravity bill.”

Which jobs are growing and shrinking in your community?

One of the things that I stress to local economic developers and to mayors is the importance of understanding the local economy and how it fits into the region and to the world.  As the overall economy is “reset” it is useful to know which type of jobs in the community are growing and which are shrinking.

My column in the Mississippi Business Journal this week discusses the importance of a business retention program.  And while business retention is important for local leaders, it should be remembered that many jobs are not moving somewhere else they are disappearing altogether.  Many jobs will reappear.  Newspaper jobs, for example, will innovate.  For example, who would have ever heard of a video journalist 20 years ago?  Or even five years ago?  The point is that jobs do not necessarily always go away, they innovate into something else.   That’s why retraining is so important in many industries.  The person need not go away if the job goes away.

Below is an image that I retrieved from Scott Nichol’s LinkedIn blog entitled “LinkedIn Winners and Losers: Industry Trends During the Great Recession. It discusses how our economy has evolved during the five years.  A related blog on this subject worthy of reading is Mike Masnick’s Economic blog entry entitled “How Job Loss Really Works: Jobs Loss Isn’t Really Job Loss.

Finally, study the blogs mentioned above and the chart below, and then ask yourself this question: What would such a chart look like for the jobs in my community?

Ten things I learned from visiting small town libraries.

Recently I had the opportunity to visit eight libraries in rural towns in Mississippi during the course of one week.  These libraries ranged from a two-room facility smaller than some master bedrooms to a full-service, modern library that offered a full range of activities for the community. Here are 10 things that I learned about rural libraries:

1.  Each small town library is unique.

2.  Patrons are flocking to their local libraries to use the Internet.

3.  Job seekers are using the library to find employment, build resumes and even learn job skills.

4. There are after-school issues and opportunities.

5.  Libraries are becoming more involved in their communities.

6. Community rooms are being used by the community.

7.  The personality of the librarian is important.

8.  Elected officials and other funders do not have library cards.

9. Technology will have dramatic change on libraries.

10.  Libraries are safe places.

Gone are the days when a person went to the local library to do nothing more than check out a book and return it or renew it two later. Small town libraries have become a provider of numerous services to their communities.  Their future will be one of expanding those services even more.  The communities that support those services will be more vibrant, educated and engaged.

My column in next week’s Mississippi Business Journal will discuss each of the above points.

Swoope and Wade on Economic Development “Coopertition”

(December 14, 2010)

Mississippi Development Authority Executive Director Gray Swoope and former Alabama Development Office Director Neal Wade made a joint appearance today at a Mississippi Economic Development Council luncheon in Jackson, Mississippi.

They discussed how Alabama and Mississippi have cooperated and competed over the past few years on projects that involved both states.  One of the more captivating parts of their presentation was an inside look at trips they took together to European automakers.  They also showed a video featuring Governor Haley Barbour and Governor Bob Riley that was used in a recruiting effort for a site on the Mississippi-Alabama line.

It was a fascinating inside at international recruiting by the two states.  I’ll have more in my next Mississippi Business Journal column.

 

Mississippi Executive is 2009 Ms. Senior America 1st Runner-up

Congratulations to Barbara Travis, a Mississippi Beauty who happens to be the Executive Director of the Mississippi World Trade Center (or is it the other way around?), for placing 1st Runner-up at the 2009 Ms. Senior America pageant, which was held in Atlantic City October 4-8.  Barbara was crowned 2009 Ms. Senior Mississippi in June.  She has also been named as one of Mississippi’s Leading Business Women by the Mississippi Business Journal.

Congrats also to Paula Burke Lee, a classmate of mine from the Jackson Central High School Class of 1966, who was named Miss Congeniality in the 2009 Ms. Texas Senior America pageant.