Create West Virginia

Come Home to WV...and Fill Our Job Openings!

Quickly after Governor Manchin announced his "Come Home to WV" initiative, the Commerce Department has launched its initial effort to get the word out: WV has opportunities for both filling jobs and creating jobs.

The web site www.hometowv.com is live and seeks to connect native West Virginians living outside the state with opportunities that exist today.

Just one example:

CPR Solutions in Charleston, is a medical technology solutions provider for health practices that provides business solutions and support from patient check-in to accounting systems and technology infrastructure. CPR Solutions' growth has presented their CEO, Rob White, with the difficult challenge of filling six highly-paid job openings that combine a need for medical and technical experience.

There are many other examples around the state. So if you know of friends and family members who have considered moving back to West Virginia, please make sure they are aware of www.hometowv.com. And if they have the right combination of healthcare and technology experience, have them send their resume to Rob. <g> 

The effort is none too soon, as many of West Virginia's company's, especially new economy technology firms, are reporting difficulty finding the highly educated, talented employees required to fill their positions.

Ecommerce and the Power of New Money

One of the most important concepts in growing the economic base of a community is to help people understand the critical need to export products/services in order to draw in "new" money flow from outside the community. Too often, the entrepreneurs that we do cultivate think too much in terms of products or services that only appeal to the local economy - often an economy that cannot sustain the business or at the very least has limited growth potential.

However, more entrepeneurs in West Virginia are fixing their gaze on the global market and leveraging simple ecommerce solutions to break through geographic barriers. We need this trend to continue in a big way so that "new" money flows into all parts of West Virginia, especially our rural and economically disadvantaged counties.

Too quick examples:

• Panther Primitives in Gilmer County - For several years, this company in rural Gilmer County has brought the past to life by supplying reproduction tents and supplies for historical re-enactors and collectors. They have become the largest supplier to the niche market of historical tentage and now employ dozens of people. They have been selling their products worldwide via their website for quite some time.
• Rocket Gifts - A new company based in Kanawha County, Rocket Gifts was started by a WVU Tech professor and has quickly grown into an exciting provider of metal-based gift art. Much of the product line is based on licensed imagery from colleges and universities, geographic icons and associations. They have been selling online for just a few months and have been growing very fast.

Both Panther Primitives and Rocket Gifts are role models in how rural economic devlopment can work by tapping into the heritage and innovation already existing in our hills and sharing it with world markets.

Time to Break the Vicious Cycle

A Charleston Daily Mail article today highlighted the fact that West Virginia has never been above 44th in the nation when it comes to the income of the average citizen. For the last 25 years, West Virginia has ranked 48th or 49th in per capita income.

Why can't West Virginia's economy break through? The article provides comments from various academic and government leaders, such as this quote from Cal Kent of Marshall University:

"We're in a vicious cycle." Kent says the state is in a precarious situation: many members of its labor force lack education beyond high school.

Kent said there's a strong correlation between per capita income and the level of education in a workforce... "The real secret in getting per capita income up is improving the quality of the labor force that's there," Kent said.

Industrial and mining jobs are declining, Kent said. That means fewer good-paying jobs for people without higher education.

The article goes on to highlight the "Bucks for Brains" initiative, with positive comments on that from Senator Brooks McCabe: "We need to fund that another $50 million," McCabe said. "And another $25 million two years from now."

The formula for getting out of our hole is fairly well known by now. The question is, will we collectively - through our elected representatives - and through our individual efforts, make the difficult choices and take some risks to break through towards prosperity, both economically and socially?

Elkins Putting Their Quality of Place on Rails

With the American Mountain Theater and Scenic WV Rail Excursions, the Elkins area has experienced some exciting improvements in its "quality of place." The important point about these investments is not only how it draws in tourism dollars (over 300 buses full of tourists are projected for 2008), but how it builds Elkins into a more attractive community for new residents looking for an up-and-coming - yet still small and quaint - locale to build their own business.

The latest news? A rail-themed restaurant by developer Harold Elbon:

The two-story, 250-seat restaurant will have two kitchens, two patios, a gift shop and a lounge area to serve tour groups, train riders and locals, Elbon explained. And with more than 300 tour buses scheduled to stop in Elkins in 2008, according to Elbon, the restaurant should have a number of patrons.

It is exciting to watch the Elkins and Randolph County area embrace their railroad history while launching these entrepreneurial pursuits. We hope other West Virginia communities are watching closely and follow their example!

Generation West Virginia - A New Era for Young Professionals in WV

Part of retaining any important demographic is to ensure there is a strong sense of community for them. Almost any region can be "home" if there are strong relationships in place. Towards that end, Generation West Virginia, a statewide coalition of young leaders and talent organizations, is launching their efforts with a special event April 23 in Morgantown.

Generation WV's goal is to attract and retain young talent, which they define as "21 to 45" (whew, just made it). They are holding their launch event in conjunction with the Leadership WV conference also going on that week in Morgantown. The event runs from 1pm - 7pm and features a keynote by WVU President Michael Garrison.

We encourage you to find out more about this promising effort to build up our base of young professionals in West Virginia. Visit www.generationwestvirginia.com and sign up for the launch event today! 

Fayetteville and Oak Hill - Two Sides of the Wal-Mart Coin

The Washington Times recently documented the impact of Wal-Mart's decision to leave Oak Hill and open up a larger "super center" in Fayetteville. The impact on Fayetteville's city budget has been significant, but Oak Hill has developed a spunky attitude about filling the void.

The town set some revenue aside in a rainy-day fund, aware that Wal-Mart was about to leave. A fortunate increase in banking and contracting taxes countered the decrease in retail-business revenue, Mr. Hannabass said. Revenue actually rose since Wal-Mart left.

"There was a misperception that when Wal-Mart moved out, that was the end of Oak Hill," he said, adding that the town should have been more concerned when Wal-Mart opened than when it left.

Wal-Mart has of course spawned a great deal of study and concern, including its own watchdog group. But it's also putting its huge size and industry influence towards becoming a leader in the green energy movement. Whatever you think of its energy, outsourcing, supply chain, labor and marketing strategies, one thing is for sure: There are proven strategies for a community to thrive with or without a Wal-Mart in your backyard. 

As we've advocated through Create WV, developing a strong "sense of place" by investing in a unique, high quality cultural, entertainment, education and entrepreneurial community will position your region to for success in our global new economy - an economy where people yearn for more than just another big box retail store.

What are your thoughts on Wal-Mart's effect on West Virginia?