Looking to the future, resilience will require evolving our business thinking. I see this as a good thing. The way we have traditionally thought about business has been strictly transactional, with profit as the measure of success. In this transactional paradigm, efforts to grow our businesses demand that we become more efficient (getting supplies cheap, paying our workers as little as we can) or productive (do more work in an allotted period of time). Now, due to COVID conditions, we have experienced the wisdom of forming different kinds of networks and relying on others in new ways. If our suppliers go down, we can’t easily stay in business. Haggling to get the best price from a supplier may not be a resilient strategy. Just-in-time manufacturing as a strategy amidst supply shortages seems unwise. How do we best support our employees when all of our lives have become more complicated and traditional incentives are not nearly enough? These conditions require a change in business thinking, including the design of adaptable frameworks. Where are the opportunities? These are some of the questions that come to mind:
How do we as a community, envision Jefferson County evolving over time?
How might we think and work together differently for mutual gain?
What is economic development post Covid, and what does it mean here in this unique place?
How can we ensure that businesses that we depend on stay open, and transition to another local owner when the current owner is ready to retire?
What gaps does our business ecosystem have that startups might fill, better meeting community needs?
What might a resilient network of interconnected local businesses look like here?
We look forward to exploring questions like these with you.
Our intention over the next six months is to continue growing a platform that can support our role as a hub for business learning and economic thinking. We are starting by accessing data, through our own surveys and the Area Sector Analysis Process to create baseline understanding of our potential as compared to national trends. This data will inform the EDC’s strategic direction and work plan. We will continue to support small businesses, provide resource connections and opportunities to learn, provide a front door for LION applicants, and over time, define our role in the larger landscape that includes housing, broadband and infrastructure projects of various types.
Thank you for your patience. We appreciate you, your creativity and endurance!
Cindy Brooks
Executive Director
EDC Team Jefferson