Michigan Can't Innovate Without Manufacturing

A recent study by researchers at Carnegie-Mellon and MIT reinforce growing concern that a loss of manufacturing jobs adversely impacts a nation's strength in innovation, research and development.  For example, the migration of manufacturing from the United States to Asia could be having a significant impact on which advanced technologies are commercialized.  There is evidence that the shift is curtailing the development of emerging technologies in areas such as optoelectronics and advanced materials for the automotive industry according to a study.

For years some have advocated that Michigan should "diversify" its economy away from its core automotive and manufacturing sectors as a way of insulating itself from economic volatility and to grow its innovation sectors.  But this study adds more evidence that manufacturing is critical to our nation's future and that Michigan would be well served to retain and grow as much of it as we possibly can.

Businesses are “bringing it” downtown!

In a move that solidifies their commitment to the city of Detroit, Business Leaders for Michigan members Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, DTE Energy Co., Quicken Loans Inc. and Strategic Staffing Solutions, in coordination with Compuware Corp., recently joined Mayor Dave Bing to announce more than $4 million dollars in loans and rent subsidies to encourage their employees to live in downtown Detroit. Nearly 16,000 employees from the five companies are eligible.  

Already, employees are clamoring to apply for the incentives. Each of these businesses has based its headquarters in Detroit, demonstrating their dedication to the city. Enticing their employees to remain downtown after 5 p.m. is a phenomenal next step in continuing the momentum of economic investment in Detroit.

The five-year program, Live Downtown, allows first-time home buyers a $20,000 forgivable loan. New renters can receive a $2,500 allowance for their first year and $1,000 allowance for the following year. Current renters are eligible for a $1,000 lease renewal, and employees who already own a home in the city can receive matching funds for exterior home improvement projects up to $5,000.

Neighborhoods eligible for the program are: Corktown, Downtown, Eastern Market, Lafeyette Park, Midtown and Woodbridge. Increasing the population density at the city’s core is crucial to strengthening the city of Detroit. The investments by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, DTE Energy Co., Quicken Loans Inc., Strategic Staffing Solutions, and Compuware Corp. will help to create a downtown that is not only workable, but also livable.

For more information, visit www.detroitlivedowntown.org. 

Strategic Staffing Solutions Brings Jobs Back to Michigan!

All across the state, leaders are beginning to build a New Michigan. BLM companies are a vital component of these changes, making key investments and creating jobs in our core communities.

For example, Michigan-based Strategic Staffing Solutions (S³) has opened a Detroit Development Center (DDC) and Call Center that allows companies to “in-source” to Downtown Detroit, instead of shipping them to an offshore location. The DDC and Call Center operations have created more than 270 new jobs in the last year.

The DDC is the hub for S³’s Web and IT application development and maintenance services. The DDC also houses S³’s Call Center, which offers help desk and customer contact, testing, software development, and desktop support. 

Of S3’s approximately 1,800 employees worldwide, 600 are now located in Michigan.  The majority of these employees work in downtown Detroit.

“We feel S³ has an obligation to create jobs where we are headquartered,” said Cynthia J. Pasky, S³ President and CEO. “We create a lot of jobs all over the world, but I have a personal commitment to Detroit. It also makes good business sense for us; given the way we do business, we need to be near a robust transportation system. We can get anywhere, to any of our customers, in a day.”

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The Turnaround Has Begun!

Several years from now, we will point to May 12, 2011 as the date Michigan began its economic turnaround.  That’s when the Michigan’s legislature voted to end the Michigan Business Tax and replace it with a new, simple, fair corporate income tax.  

Michigan is expected to go from having the 48th worst business tax system in the nation to the 22nd best, according to the Tax Foundation.  Simply put, it makes Michigan’s business climate more comparable to the state’s we most often compete with for jobs.  But that’s not all.  The legislature also ended the days of double taxation on small and medium-sized businesses.  

Of course, taxes aren’t the only thing that influences where jobs are created. There are literally dozens of factors that determine economic growth in Michigan.  But taxes do matter.  The states growing jobs and incomes the fastest are places where both their tax rates and costs for doing business are generally much better than Michigan. 

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BCBSM Investment Generates Results in Michigan’s Core Communities

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan has embarked on an effort to relocate 97 percent of its workers to Michigan’s urban areas, leading to more than $200 million in economic benefits and the creation of hundreds of new Michigan jobs.

In Lansing, BCBSM’s subsidiary, Accident Fund of Michigan, constructed its new national headquarters in a renovated power plant and newly-constructed annex building along the Grand River downtown. The venture is being carried out alongside the company’s migration of approximately 3,000 employees into downtown Detroit’s Renaissance Center, and the renovation of the Steketee’s department store in downtown Grand Rapids into the headquarters of BCBSM’s West Michigan Operations.

“What we’re focused on right now is the health of Michigan,” said Tricia Keith, BCBSM’s Vice President, Corporate Secretary and Services. “For us, that’s not just physical health; it’s about the health of communities, the health of cities, and the health of the business economy. We were able to take action to help support that.”

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