Chamber of Commerce Holds Economic Outlook Breakfast
April 13, 2018
.jpg)
PUBLICATION: Daily News-Record (Harrisonburg, VA)
DATE: April 10, 2018
HARRISONBURG — The local economy is performing well, a group of about 50 area business leaders were told Tuesday morning, but continuous efforts are needed to maintain the momentum.
That was the good and cautionary news Brian Shull, Harrisonburg's economic development director, and George Anas, his Rockingham County counterpart, provided during the annual Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce Economic Outlook Breakfast.
Anas said the market's low unemployment rate is a blessing but can become a curse if companies can't find the labor they need.
"We've got to rethink education in our society," he told the crowd at the Spotswood Country Club. "We need to have conversations with our middle schoolers, find out what their personal interests are, and we need to stop talking about education as a four-year degree.
"We need to identify their areas of interest, put them on a pathway to give them what they need so when they graduate or get a certification from [Massanutten Technical Center] or an associate degree from Blue Ridge Community College, they have a skill set that is employable."
Harrisonburg and Rockingham rank second in regional population growth percentage statewide since 2010, and Shull said local companies have absorbed those workers. The area's unemployment rate was 3.2 percent in February, well below the state average, and the labor participation rate was 66.9 percent, well above the state average.
The metro area had the highest percentage of job growth statewide in the third quarter of 2017. The 1,600 jobs added locally included 900 in the service sector and 500 in manufacturing.
"People are moving in," Shull said, "but they're finding jobs."
Enticing Entrepreneurs
Economic development, Shull said, once was a two-pronged effort. He spent his time trying to attract companies to Harrisonburg and getting city companies to invest in their operations here and expand.
But business creation has become a more important aspect of his job as localities try to attract entrepreneurs launching a startup.
The effort has sparked various ways to encourage entrepreneurs, including student business competitions and James Madison University's business accelerator. Shull said nine teams worked on business plans last summer in a Center for Entrepreneurship accelerator program at JMU, and six of those companies are generating revenue.
The city is helping startups and young companies via a small business loan program, he said. The revolving loan fund has provided $286,000 in short-term loans at a 4.75 percent interest rate to 14 companies, including the Breakfast Bus, Restless Moons Brewing Co. and Rocktown Realty.
"They wouldn't have been bankable when they first got started," Shull said, "so we're helping them get to that stage."
The private sector is helping foster entrepreneurship locally, too. Shull said the Shenandoah Valley Angel Investors, a group of 29 local business leaders, has invested $4.4 million in 13 area companies.
Harrisonburg and Rockingham County haven't attracted any major new companies in recent years, but they've done well on the expansion front. City and county officials tracked nine businesses that announced expansion plans in 2017, making investments of $91.7 million and creating 261 new jobs.
Workers, said Anas, are the key to those decisions.
"You're seeing our existing businesses expand here," he said, "because they know they can find the labor."
Looking Ahead
Biosciences, information technology, cybersecurity, health services, food processing and advanced manufacturing are the sectors Harrisonburg and Rockingham County economic development officials want to attract to the region, Anas said. The industries tend to pay well and require the type of labor that aligns with the area's assets.
Along those lines, the broader Shenandoah Valley region is working aggressively to enhance its presence with key decision-makers.
The effort, said Anas, included a familiarization tour last week for seven consultants who help companies narrow their list of potential locations. The site-selection officials were flown here on one of Gov. Ralph Northam's planes and shown some of the area's assets.
The region's demographics often hamper its attempts to lure more commercial development, Anas added. But that data is skewed by various factors, including the high number of college students who have little to no income, so the area is more attractive than it looks on paper.
"What we've discovered is if we can get them here and they can see it for themselves," he said, "they kind of have this 'Aha' moment. We're working together to do more of that."
The Hotel Madison and Shenandoah Valley Conference Center, scheduled to open soon, is among the new assets that can help those efforts.
Shull said the Virginia Chamber of Commerce and state economic developers association have booked conferences there, and a technology conference is slated for September.
To view WHSV News Release Video, please visit http://www.whsv.com/video?vid=479329473
DATE: April 10, 2018
HARRISONBURG — The local economy is performing well, a group of about 50 area business leaders were told Tuesday morning, but continuous efforts are needed to maintain the momentum.
That was the good and cautionary news Brian Shull, Harrisonburg's economic development director, and George Anas, his Rockingham County counterpart, provided during the annual Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce Economic Outlook Breakfast.
Anas said the market's low unemployment rate is a blessing but can become a curse if companies can't find the labor they need.
"We've got to rethink education in our society," he told the crowd at the Spotswood Country Club. "We need to have conversations with our middle schoolers, find out what their personal interests are, and we need to stop talking about education as a four-year degree.
"We need to identify their areas of interest, put them on a pathway to give them what they need so when they graduate or get a certification from [Massanutten Technical Center] or an associate degree from Blue Ridge Community College, they have a skill set that is employable."
Harrisonburg and Rockingham rank second in regional population growth percentage statewide since 2010, and Shull said local companies have absorbed those workers. The area's unemployment rate was 3.2 percent in February, well below the state average, and the labor participation rate was 66.9 percent, well above the state average.
The metro area had the highest percentage of job growth statewide in the third quarter of 2017. The 1,600 jobs added locally included 900 in the service sector and 500 in manufacturing.
"People are moving in," Shull said, "but they're finding jobs."
Enticing Entrepreneurs
Economic development, Shull said, once was a two-pronged effort. He spent his time trying to attract companies to Harrisonburg and getting city companies to invest in their operations here and expand.
But business creation has become a more important aspect of his job as localities try to attract entrepreneurs launching a startup.
The effort has sparked various ways to encourage entrepreneurs, including student business competitions and James Madison University's business accelerator. Shull said nine teams worked on business plans last summer in a Center for Entrepreneurship accelerator program at JMU, and six of those companies are generating revenue.
The city is helping startups and young companies via a small business loan program, he said. The revolving loan fund has provided $286,000 in short-term loans at a 4.75 percent interest rate to 14 companies, including the Breakfast Bus, Restless Moons Brewing Co. and Rocktown Realty.
"They wouldn't have been bankable when they first got started," Shull said, "so we're helping them get to that stage."
The private sector is helping foster entrepreneurship locally, too. Shull said the Shenandoah Valley Angel Investors, a group of 29 local business leaders, has invested $4.4 million in 13 area companies.
Harrisonburg and Rockingham County haven't attracted any major new companies in recent years, but they've done well on the expansion front. City and county officials tracked nine businesses that announced expansion plans in 2017, making investments of $91.7 million and creating 261 new jobs.
Workers, said Anas, are the key to those decisions.
"You're seeing our existing businesses expand here," he said, "because they know they can find the labor."
Looking Ahead
Biosciences, information technology, cybersecurity, health services, food processing and advanced manufacturing are the sectors Harrisonburg and Rockingham County economic development officials want to attract to the region, Anas said. The industries tend to pay well and require the type of labor that aligns with the area's assets.
Along those lines, the broader Shenandoah Valley region is working aggressively to enhance its presence with key decision-makers.
The effort, said Anas, included a familiarization tour last week for seven consultants who help companies narrow their list of potential locations. The site-selection officials were flown here on one of Gov. Ralph Northam's planes and shown some of the area's assets.
The region's demographics often hamper its attempts to lure more commercial development, Anas added. But that data is skewed by various factors, including the high number of college students who have little to no income, so the area is more attractive than it looks on paper.
"What we've discovered is if we can get them here and they can see it for themselves," he said, "they kind of have this 'Aha' moment. We're working together to do more of that."
The Hotel Madison and Shenandoah Valley Conference Center, scheduled to open soon, is among the new assets that can help those efforts.
Shull said the Virginia Chamber of Commerce and state economic developers association have booked conferences there, and a technology conference is slated for September.
To view WHSV News Release Video, please visit http://www.whsv.com/video?vid=479329473
