ED Profession

Has State and Local Economic Development Lost its Ability to Innovate? Can We Practice what We Preach?

We are at a pivotal point in our history that compels a thoughtful assessment of ED strategies (innovation in particular) and reevaluation of America as an actor in global politics and soon-to-be second-largest economy. The post-WWII Age has exhausted itself. Transition into a new world era has major implications for how we conduct state and local economic development. “Can We Talk?” The Journal expands its mission in March to include a FREE online introduction to the History of American State and Local ED.

Use Three Wave History at Your Peril: Rediscovering Past American State and Local Economic Development

American state & local economic development enjoys a long and meaningful history yet is largely unknown to economic developers. Why? Our professional past has been collapsed into vaporous and ideological-laden “Three Waves”. Three Wave history polarizes and misinforms us about our three hundred year heritage/professional experience.
Isn’t it time we discover who we are as a profession?
The Four Eras of American state & local ED are an excellent start to appreciating the value of our professional history.

Breaking Up [Paradigms] is so Hard-to-Do

President Trump’s challenge compels us to confront the Forgotten People problem swept under the rug by economic developers current paradigms: innovation, knowledge-based economics, university-led economic development, and “gazelle” clusters and occupations. The January article redefines Forgotten People, presents an alternative way to “do” economic development at the state and local level and offers four thought-provoking programs that involve nothing less than a new approach to economic and community development–a community-based, community rebuilding, Back to the New Deal, service sector-focused skills-development employment.

SLOW GROWTH AND POPULIST PUSHBACK: The Times They are a ‘Changing

“The times they are a-changing”.The article outlines the link between populism and slow economic growth. Free trade is the accepted paradigm of global finance and trade. Free trade is characterized by a “lag and shift” dynamic that has made life for our “Forgotten People, the working and lower classes. hell, hence the rise of a hostile populism. Look for no real help to those who are hurt by free trade from these ideologies and paradigmatic economic development strategies. Class and culture distinctions create a serious gap between conventional economic development strategies. Economic development can close that gap by offering jobs, training, and place-based redevelopment to improve the lot of the Forgotten People.

Chambers of Commerce: First Wave Magicians of Main Street

Can you believe up to now no one has written a modern history of American chambers of commerce? Not until Chris Mead recently published his one-of-a-kind Magicians on Main Street. So let’s use Magicians of Main Street and investigate how well the conventional wisdom concerning the FIRST Wave of economic development holds up. If the First Wave doesn’t prove accurate–what does it say about the other two waves?

Economic Developers: Ignore the Glitz! Focus on What Matters

The core idea behind this series of articles is to help local economic developers navigate and function effectively within their communities–sort of an on-the-job helpful advice. In this issue, we deepen our understanding of the Policy/Practitioner World nexus building upon two elements introduced in the first issue. To penetrate more deeply into the local situation, we will also introduce a new concept: “the policy cycle”. The thrust of our article/series is to move from the glitz–concentrate on making programs work–concentrate on developing programs that address community concerns. problems, and opportunities as they see and feel them.

What the Heck is Going On with Local Economic Development?

I’m amazed how little is written about what goes on at the state and local levels.

Most of us work in a community or at the state level and our daily professional lives are a lot more complicated than simply “creating jobs/clusters”, “preparing knowledge-based workers” or “developing disruptive entrepreneurs”. OK–there is the usual flood of blogs describing new policy issues, incredibly brilliant programs, and cutting-edge economic development strategies. But there is precious little about what it is like to work in sub-state economic development. There is seldom anyone who writes about how things get done locally and how a local economic developer can function effectively. That is what this issue is about.

Is Joel Kotkin Economic Development’s Martin Luther?

The book jacket describes Joel Kotkin’s the New Class Conflict as a “call to arms and a unique piece of analysis about the possible evolution of our society into an increasingly quasi-feudal order”. The image of Kotkin as Martin Luther posting his famous 95 Theses came to my mind Using metaphors gleaned from the medieval world, Kotkin, the iconoclastic but extraordinarily insightful master of Curmudgeons, describes a new ruling class he believes dominate much of contemporary America. What has this got to do with economic development? Plenty! Kotkin’s description/critique of this New Class and its devastating consequences to our society and economy delivers a powerful blow to several prominent economic development strategies. Anyone in economic development can’t ignore this book–no more than the Pope could ignore the Protestant Reformation.

The Road Less Traveled: For Economic Developers who have the Courage to be Different

As an economic developer you’re not supposed to do it–pick winners, that is! Can’t really be done, we’re told–just like timing the stock market. This advice is a truism and like all truisms, it’s true up to a point. No doubt it is correct that one cannot consistently pick winners and avoid losers.  There’s one problem […]

Do Economic Developers know what they are doing? The Curmudgeon in Wonderland!

Do Economic Developers know what they are doing? The Curmudgeon in Wonderland! Have Economic Developers fallen into a rabbit hole? Have they lost sight of what it is they are supposed to be doing? Is creating jobs as a goal a sure way for the Queen of Hearts to say “Off with your Head”?
The Curmudgeon, having considerable experience with the Alice in Wonderland world of economic development, offers a host of reasons why having job creation as your goal for economic development programs and strategies ensures madness, disappointment and worse for your agency, for the community and for your career. In the Curmudgeon’s Wonderland-world economic developers do a whole lot more than mere job creation—it’s time we rethink just what it is we are doing as Economic Developers! Save your profession, help your community and increase your odds of career survival

The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of!

The Curmudgeon has followed Rybczynski since he first read, HOME, back in the 1980’s. Occupationally Rybczynski is an architectural critic but he is much more than that. His written works have been excellent and critically acclaimed and his latest work, Makeshift Metropolis, ought to be read by serious scholars and practitioners alike. Makeshift offers a […]