If you’ve ever wondered what others think of you, participate on a radio show.
It’s a risk, but it was a risk that paid off for Virginia today on WNPR Connecticut Public Radio out of Hartford, Connecticut.
Liz Povar, the Virginia Economic Development Partnership’s Director of Business Development, was invited to discuss Virginia’s success in attracting business on the station’s live radio show, “Where We Live.”
The topic: economic competitiveness during the recession.
According to WNPR, more than 80,000 jobs have been lost in Connecticut to the recession. The station interviewed state Senator Donald DeFronzo, who, among other Senate Democrats, has unveiled a short-term plan to create 16,000 jobs in the state. University of Connecticut Economist Fred Carstensen also was a guest on the show, and urged Connecticut to adopt a long-term economic development strategy.
Before Virginia was included in the conversation, UConn’s Carstensen shared a story about a friend who looked at Virginia as a possible location for his business. The economist described his friend’s experience as “extremely good,” adding that he got a quick response, received valuable information in a timely fashion, and was “enormously impressed” with Virginia’s ability to provide tailored training programs to meet a business’s unique needs.
You don’t get a better introduction than that, particularly from the competition and especially when it’s offered for free.
Povar discussed Virginia’s sustainable business climate that focuses on maintaining competitive business costs, and the Commonwealth’s efforts to provide a workforce development system that connects the entire spectrum of Virginia’s workforce to the needs of business through Virginia’s education partners.
Povar also cleared up a misperception that Northern Virginia is the only region of the Commonwealth to be successful in economic development. Not so. While Northern Virginia is strong in its own right, Virginia’s regions offer many different strengths. This diversity allows the state to tout and match a variety of regional assets and skill sets with different target sectors, making the Commonwealth stronger as a whole.
Listen in on the discussion at http://www.cpbn.org/program/where-we-live/episode/wwl-connecticut-jobs-when. Fast forward 37 minutes and 44 seconds for the Virginia stuff. It’s pretty clear that others view Virginia as the state to beat.
Bring it on.