Joe Snell
Caterpillar, HomeGoods, and Comcast have something in common other than announcing thousands of new jobs in our region over the last few years. They have all hired site selectors to assist with their expansion and relocation decisions.
Site selectors are highly experienced real estate and corporate relocation specialists who research, analyze and recommend communities that would be the right fit for a company’s growth plans. This is a critical audience for Sun Corridor Inc.
Through these site selectors, we can reach and influence major corporations to relocate or expand their business here — meaning thousands of new job opportunities, not to mention new customers and suppliers for business.
In March, Sun Corridor Inc. hosted the 2017 Site Selectors Guild Conference. This elite group of site selectors provides location strategy to Fortune 500 corporations across the globe for every industry, sector and kind of job.
After a competitive selection process, and for the first time, guild members chose Tucson and Southern Arizona for their annual conference. It’s like hosting the Olympics of economic development and we don’t have to build a stadium.
The conference was one thing. Additional weekend activities hosted by Sun Corridor Inc. board members and stakeholders showcased firsthand the beauty and business assets of Southern Arizona. We put to work nearly 100 local partners who met one-on-one with these site selectors, selling Southern Arizona.
What does this mean to you?
As a result of the conference, new economic development projects have landed on our plate. Opportunities like a new Raytheon, a new Comcast or a new HomeGoods might land in our region.
The last few years have seen an improvement in the economy due to site selector-generated projects and others. In addition to the companies mentioned earlier, Raytheon, Lucid Motors, ADP, World View, Vector Space Systems, Hexagon Mining and others have also announced thousands more new jobs.
Success like this only continues with strong assets and quality of life in our region. You can help by advocating for initiatives and projects that propel us further. Investing in infrastructure and fixing our roads is one strong example.
We have nationally ranked schools, and need to further support education initiatives to ensure every school is strong. A quality education must be available to each and every child, with the goal of providing the right skills for working in one of these new companies.
Anyone can be an ambassador. Sell this region to your clients, suppliers and job applicants. Tell the person next to you on the plane why Southern Arizona is the best location to do business in the country.
As a community, we can’t take our foot off the pedal. Every decision we make should be considered as to whether it will advance our competitiveness, economic success and quality of life for ourselves, our families and our neighbors.
With the economy back on the upswing and our pipeline full, it’s imperative that we remain aggressive.
You play a role in contributing to that success.
