The wrong top ten

As we have written frequently being highly ranked in business climate rankings seems increasingly to be the goal/measuring stick of economic policy makers and too many pundits. Rather than having a good economy. Problem is Michiganders can’t pay their bills or save for their kids education or their retirement with business climate rankings. What matters […]

Choosing a shrinking Michigan middle class

After the 2010 election I was asked by several publications to write about what I expected to happen to state economic policy. My basic answer was that Governor Snyder campaigned on creating Michigan 3.0 (more knowledge-based), but almost all the legislature was elected on making Michigan 2.0 work again (primarily factories but also farms and […]

Michigan growing the Chicago economy

Three interesting recent articles on young professionals leaving Michigan for vibrant central cities, particularly Chicago. All worth checking out. The first in the Detroit News entitled  “Michigan tries to lure best, brightest back“. The article provides a good overview of why where young talent chooses to live and work matters a lot to the Michigan […]

Low pay driving job vacancies

Conventional wisdom is that there are plenty of  jobs available that are vacant because too few Americans have the skills employers need in an increasingly knowledge-based economy. Not just the STEM professions, but also  technical jobs in manufacturing, construction, health care, etc. President Obama and Governor Snyder are among many business and political leaders pushing […]

Not your father’s job market II

The second recommended New York Times article that portrays the changing way work is being organized is entitled: As boom lures app creators, tough part is making a living. The article chronicles how applications are being developed for devices like the iphone and ipad. The good news as the article reports is the:  “… field […]

Not your father’s jobs market

We continue to act as if the job market should look like it did in the past. With the same occupations, the same pay and benefits and organized around relatively stable full time work for an employer. That job market is in permanent decline. A victim of globalization and technology––irreversible mega forces––and policies favoring employers––including […]