The State of the Triad Region...

Today, the Piedmont Triad Partnership, our regional economic development organization and the Triad Business Journal held the State of the Region address at Elon University and to celebrate a few of the Triad's "Power Players".  This event an overview of the local economy, where we currently are as a region and the cities that make up the region, such as Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Kernersville, High Point and others.  It was a good report, but like anything else, there is always work to do. Ted Abernathy with Economic Leadership and a friend, gave a great economic report.

A few key takeaways for us include the following:

• the region is poised for growth, particularly manufacturing such as aerospac
• strong infrastructure such as highway connectivity, railroads, airport & an inland port
• strong leadership - what are called "tribal leaders"
• local economic development organizations that are working together
• NC's housing prices and the Triad's as a whole are outpacing the national average
• Jobs, wages and GDP are leaders in the nation

The key takeaway for the next number of years and will directly impact our ability to compete, grow and sustain will be our workforce and talent supply.  Places like High Point Andrews have put in place efforts like the Aviation Academy which directly helps trains students for work with great Triad companies, like HAECO - which operates globally.  The NC Chamber is also leading an effort statewide called NC Certified Work Ready Communities which basically tells manufacturers that your region is open for business with a well-trained workforce.

We commend the Piedmont Triad Partnership and the Triad Business Journal for their program today.  It was well worth the time and we would encourage you to go to others.  We've added some pics below for your review.  Happy to discuss in more detail!