Fargo Economic Development; Brian Walters: Gearing Up For Our High-Tech Future

There’s good news, bad news and more good news for Greater Fargo Moorhead and our economic prosperity.

First, the good news.

Greater Fargo Moorhead is doing better than ever. We have an exceptional base in primary-sector industries that, over the past two decades, have made our economy strong. New and existing companies are creating jobs, our unemployment rate is consistently among the lowest in the country, retail sales are at all-time highs and incomes are rising.

Now the bad news.

Despite everything we’ve done, national experts project deceleration in population, job and income growth in the Fargo-Moorhead metropolitan statistical area (MSA) by the end of the decade. They categorize our economy as mature, meaning we lack a significant base of technology-oriented businesses that will create the majority of US jobs over the next ten years.

Three emerging sectors will be driving that growth: information technology, life sciences and physical sciences. We have started to build a modest base in related industries, thanks to the vision, hard work and cooperation of entrepreneurs, our elected officials and higher education and community leaders. Consider the development of the NDSU Research and Technology Park, the existence here of several high-tech companies, the selection of our community by Alien Technology and the fact that one of Microsoft’s largest campuses is here. All prove that high-tech companies can and do conduct profitable business in Greater Fargo Moorhead.

Even so, today the FM MSA does not compare favorably to other MSAs in most categories that high-tech companies consider when selecting locations. The FM MSA does not even appear in a ranking of the top 127 technology economies in the country.

Fortunately, there’s more good news: We can and are doing something about it.

The GFMEDC recently launched a strategic planning initiative to position our communities to compete for companies in emerging industries. The process includes working groups in the three targeted sectors, existing industries and entrepreneurship; a survey of business, community and education leaders; and meetings with economic development groups throughout Cass and Clay counties.

Each of the working groups will be composed of experts from the private sector, government and education who will closely examine opportunities and develop action plans for exploiting them. The survey will incorporate information and insights gathered through the working groups. It will help fill in the picture of our strengths and weaknesses, as well as opportunities we can pursue to enhance economic potential.

The outcome will be realistic objectives, strategies and tactics for achieving them, and recommendations for infrastructure improvements necessary to make it happen. We expect to present a completed plan to the public later this year.

As we move forward, we will continue to work as hard as we always have to support, strengthen and grow industries and companies that have built our economy.

Two months ago I dedicated this space to the fact that Greater Fargo Moorhead has moved up to a higher level of competition; we’re now up against bigger, better funded communities around the country and the world. We’re in the big game now, I wrote, and it’s time to suit up.

We have recruited big-time players who are putting together a strategic game plan. But it won’t mean a thing without action and that’s what this initiative is all about.

Walters is the president of the Greater Fargo Moorhead Economic Development Corporation. He can be reached at bwalters@fmedc.com.