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Qualified WorkforceGrowth potential, stability, longevity and diversity – those words describe the Southwestern Michigan Corridor’s workforce as well as our business environment.
Our strong legacy of manufacturing, and the enduring Midwestern work ethic that thrives here combine to produce a stable and productive workforce qualified in OEM, assembly, plastics technologies manufacturing, and tier-one and tier-two metalworking.
Consider our:
• Regional pool of some 568,000 workers in the nine-county Michigan-Indiana region.
• Strong manufacturing employment tradition where 50 percent of the workforce is experienced in all productions occupations from automotive to computers to commercial refrigeration to washing machines.
• Eleven percent of the workforce – some 50,000 workers – are experienced in warehousing and distribution.
• Loyal, stable workforce in which 76 percent of workers own their own homes.
• Affordable, productive workforce with a per capita annual income of $23,000 – that’s just slightly below the national average. Our people are ready for new opportunities.
Recent Reports
• Business Facilities, one of the economic development field’s oldest publications, recently awarded four gold Economic Development Achievement Awards to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
One of the awards was for the Michigan Technical Education Centers (M-TEC). These centers are designed to attract, train and retain a highly intelligent and flexible workforce to work in the technical fields. They also help the state’s workforce training system respond quickly and accurately to the needs of businesses. Thanks to their efforts, Michigan now ranks 4th in the nation in high-tech business employment.
• For five of the last six years, Site Selection magazine has ranked Michigan #1 for the most new and expanded facilities in a calendar year. The other year, Michigan ranked #2, right behind rival Illinois by only three projects.
• Site Selection magazine recently gave Michigan the overall #2 ranking for business climate – right behind North Carolina. As part of this ranking, Michigan received the #1 ranking in four of the five categories: total new and expanded for 1999 through 2001; total new and expanded corporate facilities for 2001; total new and expanded facilities per one million residents for 1999 through 2001; and total new and expanded facilities per 1,000 square miles.
Diverse Business and Technical Education Resources
An increasingly critical predictor of business success is a company's ability to maximize its workforce's knowledge, skills and potential with the right education.
In Southwestern Michigan, your business will tap into abundant educational resources -- schools, universities and training centers -- to help meet your talent recruitment, workforce retention, and education and training needs.
Our emphasis on lifelong education begins with a strong commitment to superior primary and secondary schools. And with 32 post-secondary institutions serving the area -- including the University of Notre Dame and extentions for Purdue and Indiana University-- you'll have quick access to all the workforce services you need to meet the challenges of growth, expansion and diversification.
Technical Training
Let Southwestern Michigan's custom-tailored technical training programs keep your workers a step ahead of the latest techniques, technologies and emerging processes through --
• Michigan Technical Education Center M-TECsm, (Niles, MI) Providing high-skill training in a brand new, state-of-the-industrial-arts 44,000-square-foot facility that simulates the industrial environment.
• Indiana Institute of Technology (Fort Wayne, IN) A small, private independent college specializing in undergraduate education in Engineering, Computer Science and Business, including a new Associates of Science degree in E-Commerce.
• Lake Michigan College – Napier Avenue Campus (Benton Harbor, MI) A 262-acre campus that features a lake, natural area, athletic fields, nature and jogging trails, and lighted parking areas. The campus is also home of the Mendel Center for Arts and Technology, a performing arts center with the 1,500-seat Mainstage Theatre and the 246-seat Hanson Theatre.
• Lake Michigan College at Bertrand Crossing (Niles, MI) One of the most technologically sophisticated campuses in the area, the small college offers registered apprenticeship training programs certified by the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training.
• Lake Michigan College at South Haven (South Haven, MI) Lake Michigan College’s newest campus offering programs in Associate in Arts and Associates in Science in 16 areas, pre-nursing, early childhood education, business administration, and graphic design.
• Berrien County ISD Education for Employment (Berrien Springs, MI) Offers the area’s young people an intense programs of academic and employability skills needed for workplace success.
• Indiana Vocational Technical College (South Bend, IN) An open-access, two-year technical college offering courses, degree programs, training leading to certifications, continuing education and customized training opportunities for businesses and industries.
No matter what your needs, we'll find a training program and provider for you!
Wage Surveys
Michigan Works
“WISE reports” and “Best Practices Library”
http://www.miworks.org/
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©2005 Southwest Michigan Economic Growth Alliance, Inc.
1105 N. Front Street, Niles MI 49120 ph: 269-683-1833 fx: 269-683-7515 contact@michigan-business.info |
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