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Minnesota Magazine 3
<br />
<br />August/September 1!)87
<br />
<br />SE Minnesota Project
<br />Continued from Page 1
<br />physical and institutional infrastructure, and available
<br />natural resources will be processed througk the
<br />consultant's computer model, a set of pre-determined
<br />rules for relating these facts in order to identify the best
<br />mix of industries for the region.
<br />
<br />The area's strengths and weaknesses will be identified
<br />and will influence the outcome. Capitalizing on their
<br />strengths, the communities will have improved
<br />information to encourage n,anufacturers to locate in their
<br />region, as well as an understanding of which types of
<br />existing businesses sho~, prr~:nise for expansion.
<br />Identifying the area's weaknesses could result in a
<br />redirection of efforts to avoid a misfit, or it could start a
<br />new process to correct those weaknesses.
<br />
<br />To identify these strengths and weaknesses, huge
<br />amounts of information must be collected.
<br />Doesn't the Information Society already have data that
<br />could be used in this project? Absolutely. The Minnesota
<br />Department of Trade and Economic Development h:. ~
<br />provided volumes of information collected by federal
<br />agencies and state government. Brian Zucker, an
<br />economics analyst with DTED's Policy Analysis
<br />Division, has been working with this project since March,
<br />providing employment fixtures, occupation data, wage
<br />rates, product lists, existing markets, maps indicating
<br />industry concentrations and other details abstracted
<br />from U.S. Census records, U.S. Bureau of Labor
<br />Statistics data and scare government information.
<br />
<br />"This information is vital." Zucker said, "but there's not
<br />enough of the right information. There are lots of
<br />information gaps. V~% need more and better information
<br />on markets, links, technology changes, occupation
<br />displacement, emerging occupations .... Things are
<br />changing very fas~ now. So da;a from 1977 is
<br />meaningless.
<br />
<br />"This is why the field interviews are so crucial. There's a
<br />lot of important information in the heads of the people
<br />living and working in Southeast Minnesota. It may be
<br />contradictory to the data we've provided, or it may be
<br />complementarb; To ge; a clear idea. of ;heir priorities, the
<br />communities must combine th:s information. The
<br />interviews will heIp do that."
<br />
<br />One of the first points of discussion among the local
<br />leaders was whether the area should be considered as one
<br />region or as a set of sub-regions for development
<br />purposes. A set of DTED computer-produced maps
<br />indicating industry saturation by county convinced the
<br />group that a regional approach was mosb logical.
<br />
<br />Zucker said the maps showed certain counties with a
<br />strong representation in several industries. Industrial
<br />development in Winona County, for example, is ve;y
<br />d/versified, }:e said, with employment outpacing the state
<br />average in printing and publishing, and the
<br />manufacturing of food, high-technology and primary
<br />metal products.
<br />
<br />On the flip side, some areas in the region will survive only
<br />
<br />as bedroom communities, with nearby larger cities
<br />serving as the growth center for their area.
<br />
<br />"This is the reality, simply underscoring the fact that
<br />there is a link, an interdependence, among the various
<br />parts of this region that makes it logical to apply a
<br />regional approach to economic development," Zucker
<br />said.
<br />With survey results processed and computer-produced
<br />analyses in hand, the communities will be able to make
<br />some vital decisions. Does the region need more of the
<br />same types of industry? Would diversifying the industrial
<br />base prove to be a better choice? Is there a need for new
<br />types of industry in the area? Would an existing industry.
<br />flourish if a related industry was brought in?
<br />
<br />After these decisions are made, the next step will be to
<br />compile the names of real companies in the selected
<br />industries to be targeted. These will be companies on the
<br />verge of expansion, or those which can grow by using
<br />Minnesota's market, for example. The communities now
<br />move into the major role in the process.
<br />
<br />Using the regional information and computer profile,
<br />there are two approaches to marketing the region,
<br />according to Zucker. The direct way is to g.., after
<br />companies by selling the region's business climate as it is.
<br />The indirect way calls for recognizing that the region is
<br />imperfect and must first be improved to .make it more
<br />conducive to a particular business or industry.
<br />
<br />"One thing very appealing about this process is that
<br />everyone in the region will be working in concert," Zucker
<br />said. "They'll be telling the same story to their selected
<br />industries, using the same plan. This coherency will be a
<br />'guiding light.' It's very important that all the
<br />participants understand the process, not just be passive
<br />recipients of the list. They must know how to use it."
<br />
<br />Zucker sees a high level of interest in the Southeast
<br />Minnesota Project.
<br />
<br />"Everybody's involved in it -- chamber members,
<br />mayors and business owners;' he said. "This process is a
<br />natural mechanism for facilitating interaction. And it will
<br />serve for future interaction within an already established
<br />framework."
<br />David Speer, Commissioner of ~he Minnesota
<br />Department of Trade and Economic Development, who
<br />participated in a project kick-off in Owatonna this
<br />summer, said, "It's a direction we encourage. The
<br />Southeast Minnesota project i.s a working example of our
<br />department's partnership program."
<br />
<br />Zucker is enthusiastic about his role because it will give
<br />sta~e government a great deal of significant,
<br />up-to-the-minute information on an entire region of the
<br />state, for application in future analysis and projects in
<br />economic development.
<br />
<br />Best of all, it's a "learning opportunity for the
<br />com:r:anities," Zucker said.
<br />"Their t~get list will change in five years." he smd. "But
<br />they will have learned the process and will understand
<br />how decisions are made, so they can become self-reliant.
<br />The), won't need consui~an~s next time." t ¢~
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