Attracting businesses depends on five ‘building blocks’

Bob Challinor, Desert Valley Times

Recruiting businesses to a community is a trial-and-error process without a holistic community-based approach, said a speaker from the Nevada Commission on Economic Development.

Joe Locurto, director of Rural Economic Development with NCED, told an audience of 25 Wednesday that communities need to use five economic development building blocks to achieve successful business recruiting.

Locurto was part of the entire NDEC staff that acquainted Mesquite business owners, city officials and council members with programs offered by the commission. The three-hour seminar was held at the CasaBlanca.

NCED assists communities, local governments and businesses with a wide scope of services – marketing, corporate site selection, grants, business development, product development and employee/entrepreneur training are some of the programs – throughout the state.

NCED followed up its morning session with afternoon individual business-to-business assistance. The staff concluded its Mesquite visit with a tour of the community Thursday.

“We take our division directors into the community and have realistic discussions about your needs,” said Michael E. Skaggs, NCED executive director. “Our agency has gone through two rounds of budget cuts and probably will go through one more. It’s time to get more efficient and get back to the basics.”

Locurto said communities need to use leadership development; workforce development; community capacity building; existing business development and entrepreneur development to gain successful business recruiting.

“Mesquite is young enough to take a look at where others have made mistakes,” Locurto said. “And it can see what worked in other places.”Leadership development involves a shared community vision, some sort of leadership institute, a youth leadership program, active civic organizations and volunteer programs plus community leadership recognition, Locurto said.

“Leadership development could come from talking to high school students about business development,” he said. “The leadership institute could be within the school system or the community.”

School-to-careers and summer intern programs; on-the-job training, an adult literacy curriculum; a local training institution with technology; a human resources managers network and local workforce development program drive workforce development in the community.

“You want trained employees,” Locurto said. “It’s extremely important to have something in the schools for training. Have career days. Expose students to what it takes to get into specific businesses. Offer technical training.”

Community capacity building is infrastructure and services available in a community for recruiting and growing new businesses, Locurto said.

“It’s high-speed Internet, cultural and recreational opportunities; adequate affordable and workforce housing; adequate public safety protection and health services,” he said. “It’s extremely important to have these.”

Many times a community will recruit a business but neglect to help develop it, Locurto said.

“The business owner will say, ‘they did a great job helping me get here, but we haven’t seen them since,’” Locurto said. “It’s important keeping in touch with the businesses when they’re here. Set up meetings with local businesses and see what their needs might be.”

NCED has business assistance resources available to businesses, from energy inventories to a manufacturing assistance program.

Equally important to recruiting businesses is entrepreneur development. Locurto said entrepreneurs who start businesses in their own community and who receive support through local assistance programs are much more likely to keep their businesses in town.

NCED has business assistance programs, educational programs and a mentoring program. Locurto recommended having a community capital group, an entrepreneurs network group, business challenge competitions and business incubators.

“Mesquite does a great job marketing the community,” Locurto said, adding that a successful recruiting business recruitment program requires a favorable government atmosphere and local and state incentives.

“The more you can add to that (incentives) pie, the more you can get and keep businesses,” he said.

“I don’t do anything without a strategic plan,” Skaggs said. “The building blocks Joe talked about are just a strategic plan. If you share that strategic plan with us, we can help you so much more. We know exactly what you’re trying to do.”