Nov. 25, 2008

   A Publication of the Economic Development Corporation of Utah
CEO Jeff Edwards

President's Message

EDCUtah Investors are Some of the Best Companies in Utah for Employee Satisfaction


A recent edition of Utah Business magazine featured some of Utah's best companies to work for in terms of employee satisfaction. These companies are trend setters and examples of doing business the smart way, by keeping employees happy. Each of the businesses featured encourages great performance from their employees by providing meaningful recognition, excellent benefits and a positive work environment. Four of the companies featured are EDCUtah Investors. They are:

  • Prince Perelson and Associates --achieved success through incentives, such as company trips, cash prizes and gift certificates, company paid workshops and advanced training courses.
  • Workers Compensation Fund -- has enjoyed great success with optional health coverage plans such as cancer policies, in-house safety programs and ergonomics personnel that work to ensure employees have healthy work environments.
  • Mountain America Credit Union -- provides employees with a self-funded, short-term disability program and company-sponsored wellness events. Additionally, employees have access to an online university with career enhancing modules.
  • Select Health -- vests employees in its pension plan after five years of service. Employees also have access to Intermountain University where they can take a variety of personal interest classes, such as money management and parenting tips.

These EDCUtah investors deserve our applause, as do the other companies featured in the November 2008 issue of Utah Business. The entire story provides some great examples of businesses taking care of their greatest assets-- their employees.

Also, The Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University recently released its Eighth Annual State Competitiveness Report. This report identifies strengths and weaknesses in economic performance among the 50 states and the good news is Utah is ranked second for competitiveness. The Beacon Hill Institute considers a state to be competitive if it has in place the policies and conditions that ensure and sustain a high level of per capita income and continued growth. While the current worldwide economic outlook is troubling, Utah continues to fair well as evidenced by another positive national report. Please take some time to read the report about Utah's competitiveness and the economic impact on our State's economy.

Today's Economic Review includes our feature story, about our recent participation in the CoreNet Global Summit, held earlier this month in Orlando, Florida, and links to many of the ED-related news stories from the past week. As always, if you have comments, suggestions or topics you'd like to see in the Economic Review, please contact us by clicking the "Comments" link on the bottom of this page. Enjoy!

Jeff Edwards

Jeff Edwards
President and CEO

Feature

EDCUtah Team Keeps Utah
'Top of Mind' at CoreNet


Over the past 10 years nearly 90 percent of the high-level, high-paying company relocations that have come to Utah have originated through site consultants, a group of highly specialized professionals who often handle the early details in business relocation decisions.

To stay "top of mind" within the site consultant industry, EDCUtah conducts semi-annual site selector events in Utah and actively participates in the semi-annual CoreNet Global Summits, which bring together site selectors, corporate real estate executives and economic development professionals from around the globe. The most recent CoreNet summit was held earlier this month in Orlando, Florida.

"Our goal was to ensure that Utah is at the top of each of these site consultants' list of preferred locations," says Jeff Edwards, EDCUtah president and CEO. "We've been attending CoreNet for many years and the relationship-building opportunities are incredible."

During the three-day summit, EDCUtah economic developers met one-to-one with site consultants that have previously done business in Utah and also worked to gain face time with other industry leaders. Todd Brightwell, vice president of business development, says the summit was a lot like speed dating, as his team met with more than 20 site consultants in rapid succession.

"We wanted to let them know what is going on in Utah and also promote EDCUtah's site selector events, which are very successful," he adds.

CoreNet draws hundreds of exhibitors and several thousand influential site consultants and corporate real estate executives, so the event is an important part of EDCUtah's economic development agenda. EDCUtah's booth was part of the larger Mountain States Booth, which also included booths from Idaho and Wyoming. Brightwell says the larger space gave EDCUtah better placement on the show floor and drew in more attendees than it might otherwise have achieved in an independent booth. EDCUtah's booth promoted the SURE Sites program and the addition of the 100th certified site to the database.

"CoreNet was a great show, although attendance was down this year. A lot of changes are happening in the site selector and corporate real estate sectors, so it was important for EDCUtah to build upon its industry relationships at the event," says Edwards. "There was a lot of talk among site selectors about the economy and a lot of consultants have shifted to retention work rather than relocation efforts as businesses look to reduce expenses and increase efficiencies at existing locations."

Keynote addresses at the summit focused on alternative workplace practices, green development, sustainability and "Telepresence"—the next generation of communication technology.

Edwards says the summit's economic development roundtable was also highly informative, as 230 economic development professionals gathered to discuss what factors will have the greatest influence on economic development success over the next five to 10 years, and how economic development organizations can do better jobs of presenting the location advantages of their communities.

Watch future editions of this newsletter for more information about the site selector industry and EDCUtah's site selector events.

CALENDAR


Dec. 17:  Holiday Open House 4 to 6 p.m. at EDCUtah

Jan. 13, 2009:  Entrada at Snow Canyon Country Club;  reception 6 to 8 p.m.

Jan. 14:  Washington County Economic Summit, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., Dixie Center, St. George, UT www.whatsupdownsouth.com

March 24-26:  JEC Composites Show (Paris, France) http://www.jeccomposites.com/jec-show/

EDCUTAH INVESTORS

Current Investors
Why Be an Investor?
Board of Trustees

 

Investor Spotlight:
CB Richard Ellis, Inc.


Utah's commercial real estate brokerages often serve integral roles in economic development activities around the state and EDCUtah is fortunate to share close working relationships with many of the state's largest commercial real estate firms. As we continue our series of Investor Spotlights, EDCUtah will spotlight its investors from the commercial real estate sector and their important relationship in our economic development efforts.

This week's Investor Spotlight highlights CB Richard Ellis, Inc., which has a staff of 100 employees in Utah and offices in Cottonwood and Provo. In 2009 the firm plans to occupy the fourth floor of 222 Main, soon to be Salt Lake City's first LEED Silver-Certified high-rise.

Mark Bouchard, senior managing director, says CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) is a Fortune 500 company and the largest commercial real estate brokerage firm in the world in terms of size and revenue. It employs approximately 30,000 people worldwide, has offices on every major continent and provides services in nearly every sector of commercial real estate industry. Founded in 1906 in San Francisco, the 102-year-old company is now headquartered in Los Angeles. CBRE has been an EDCUtah investor since 1984.

"We look at EDCUtah as an important part of economic development expansion in Utah, and how we interact with EDCUtah is very important to us," Bouchard says. "Our partnership with EDCUtah is extremely valuable to CBRE."

While economic conditions look bleak in many parts of the country, Bouchard says Utah will remain a great place to do business thanks to its pro-business environment, public/private partnerships, diversification, well-educated workforce and conservative nature.

"Utah, on every statistical measure, is faring better than most places around the country," he adds.

Most commercial real estate clients are going to be fairly cautious about expanding right now, but Bouchard says Salt Lake's Class A market should continue to do well because the sector is not over built. What's more, he expects continued expansion in the healthcare and government sectors, which will help provide some balance.

"Everyone in our industry is focusing on communicating with clients regularly, and making them aware of what is going on in the greater market," he says. "We can't communicate enough and we are making sure we deliver the message that in Utah the glass is half full, not half empty."

In The News

Economic Development Headlines from the Past Week

Utah Ranks 2nd in Latest Beacon Hill State Competitiveness Report

- Utah again ranks in the top 10 among the 50 states for competitiveness, as measured by the Beacon Hill Institute's annual State Competitiveness Report. (Beacon Hill)

Charlotte Pipe: A Utah success story

- When Charlotte Pipe and Foundry decided to expand, it needed land with easy access to rail and highway transportation. The company found that and more at the largest new rail-served industrial park west of the Mississippi: Port 15 Utah in Cedar City. (Business Facilities)

Utah could be a rare safe harbor during recession

- As the United States spirals into an all but certain recession, Utah will be a good place to ride out the storm, a prominent economist suggested Wednesday. (SL Tribune)

World Trade Center Utah earns honorable official certification

- World Trade Center Utah (WTCU), a partner of the Governor's Office of Economic Development (GOED), has earned official certification by the World Trade Centers Association, headquartered in New York City. (Utah Business Magazine)

New company means more jobs for Utah

- Utah will benefit from about 100 new jobs as Mozy Inc. of Pleasant Grove is absorbed into a new company that was announced Monday. EMC Corp., Mozy's parent, said it was blending Mozy and Pi Corp. of Seattle into a company that will offer online backup for digital files from computers or other devices and, eventually, ways to use and share those files. (SL Tribune)

Report: Logan has lowest crime rate among metro areas

- Among metro areas, Logan, Utah, north of Salt Lake City, had the lowest crime rate, followed by State College, Pennsylvania, and Ithaca, New York...(CNN--last paragraph)

Grow America: National entrepreneur organization launches

- Recently, during the "Unleashing Ideas: Igniting High-Growth Entrepreneurship in Utah" conference, Alan E. Hall, noted entrepreneur, venture capitalist, community leader and philanthropist, unveiled Grow America, an organization dedicated to helping entrepreneurs succeed across the United States. (Utah Business Magazine)

Pakistan seeking Utah business ventures

- Pakistan's ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani, touted his country Friday as a promising arena for Utah business owners eager to expand internationally. (SL Tribune)

ATK successfully test fires first stage of Kinetic Energy Interceptors

- Alliant Techsystems successfully test-fired a Kinetic Energy Interceptors (KEI) first stage solid rocket motor at its Promontory, Utah facility. The KEI weapon system, under development by the U.S. (Utah Business Magazine)

Population's rise slowed in 2008

- Utah for years grew by more than 80,000 residents annually--the equivalent of adding a new city the size of Ogden. But it slowed down this year, adding only about 58,000 people, the equivalent of adding just a Taylorsville city or Tooele County. (Morning News) (KCPW)

Utah's population reaches 2.76 million

- The Utah Population Estimates Committee announced that Utah's population was an estimated 2,757,779 on July 1, 2008--up 58,225 or 2.2 percent from July 1, 2007. "In 2007, we increased our population at the rate of 10 people an hour. (Utah Business Magazine)

3 properties join AAA's Four Diamond list

- Three properties have been added to the list of Utah's Four Diamond Award-winning lodges and restaurants, according to AAA Utah. The state now has 15 Four Diamond-rated lodgings and 10 Four Diamond restaurants. Zermatt Resort and Spa in Midway, Goldener Hirsch Inn in Park City and The Paris restaurant in Salt Lake City are the new Four Diamond properties. (Morning News) (SL Tribune) 

Salt Lake making small businesses aware of resources

- Salt Lake City leaders are hoping to help small businesses survive in today's struggling economy by making sure business owners are aware of the resources available to them. Bob Farrington, the city's economic development director, Thursday unveiled a new initiative that includes a printed and online guide of city and community programs that offer planning, consulting and financing help to small businesses. (Morning News) (SL Tribune)
(KCPW)

Agreement paves way for development

- In the latest move concerning St. George's new replacement airport, the City Council voted Thursday to enter an interlocal agreement to fund improvements on the land where the current airport sits. (The Spectrum)

Utah entrepreneur: Find a niche and capitalize on idea

- "America is in big trouble in our economy because big companies have become greedy," Alan Hall, an evangelist of entrepreneurship told members of the BYU Management Society on Wednesday. (The Spectrum)

Utah's tourism industry welcomes visa waiver for South Koreans

- Utah's recent emphasis on attracting South Korean tourists received a boost Monday.
Residents of the Asian nation and six other countries no longer will have to get visas if they want to spend up to 90 days in the United States for business or pleasure. (SL Tribune)