Stephanie Frohman, vice president of Business Development at Economic Development Corporation of Utah (EDCU) recently spoke to a packed house at “Job Club” at the University of Utah. Frohman, a former jobseeker and user of Alumni Career Services, found her current position through one of our job leads some 18 months ago.

Frohman outlined Gov. John Huntsman, Jr.’s “10 Point Plan” for Economic Revitalization for the State of Utah. Huntsman has hired EDCU, a non-profit agency, to work on economic development issues.

The 10-point plan considers the following:

1. Revamping Utah’s Tax Structure
2. Improving the Competitive Environment for Small- and Medium-Sized Companies
3. Recruiting Businesses to Our State
4. Attracting More Capital
5. Promoting Growth in Target Industries
6. Enhancing Utah’s National and International Image
7. Capturing Global Opportunities for Utah Companies
   Promoting Tourism
8. Energizing Economic Development in Rural Communities
9. Making State Government More Efficient

Frohman presented strong examples of Utah’s positive growth and indicated that the business momentum seems to be accelerating. Many more companies are considering relocating their businesses here or opening new divisions. The primary theme of Gov. Huntsman’s initiative is the concept of business “cluster” creation. Cluster development, in targeted industries, links certain natural advantages of the state and fosters growth opportunities utilizing these advantages.

The analogy EDCU and others have chosen to represent the concept of “clustering” is that of Napa and Sonoma counties in California. Growing grapes generated all kinds of ancillary industries to these regions: the bottle industry arose to provide vessels for the wine; bottlers created the need for corks; corks created the need for labels and graphic design; and so on (an interesting analogy considering Utah is a dry state and the wine industry is one that many Utahns would not favor).

Targeted Business Clusters include technology companies, biotechnology/pharma, software/internet, and Aerospace. Utah is home to 2,600 information technology companies, some 300 life science companies bringing $1.8 billion in annual revenues to the state, and is one of the top 10 states in the U.S. in the concentration of aerospace employment; ATK, a $2.2 billion aerospace and defense company, is a primary example.

What is Utah’s business advantage?
Utah is considered an attractive place for many companies for expansion and relocation. Some of the reasons given for this spurred growth are due to a favorable business climate, relatively low cost of real estate, accessibility to a growing labor pool, a well-educated and tech-savvy workforce, employee loyalty, and available venture funding. All of these things combine to create productivity advantages. Some key points:

• For the second year in a row, Inc. magazine ranked Utah as the top entrepreneurial state per capita in the nation. (Inc., 2003 and 2004).
• The Salt Lake area was named the ninth best real estate market in the U.S. (Expansion Management, 2004).
• The Salt Lake/Ogden area has the fastest-growing number of women-owned businesses in the U.S. (Wells Fargo Bank/Center for Women's Business Research Study, 2004).
• Forbes ranked the Provo, Utah area as the sixth best place for business and careers in the nation. (Forbes, 2004).
• Salt Lake City was ranked the third least-costly midsize metro area in the nation for doing business. (KPMG Competitive Alternative Study, 2004).

What are some of the new businesses?
A handful of the new businesses to hit Utah are Quicksilver (Rossignol), with corporate relocation to Park City from Vermont; Encover; KraftMaid; Phasyc; Inline Plastics; Lifestar (with new headquarters); Marketstar expansion; Allconnect, Inc.; and Varian:

• KraftMaid Cabinetry, one of the nation's largest cabinetry manufacturers, has announced its plans to build a new manufacturing facility in West Jordan, Utah. This is the company's second major capacity expansion in two years. KraftMaid recently completed a $25 million capacity increase, expanding each of the company's three manufacturing facilities in Northeast Ohio. KraftMaid will hire about 1,600 people.

• Allconnect, Inc., the leading provider of household relocation services, announced in January 2005 the opening of its new 25,600-square-foot call center in St. George, Utah. The center will eventually employ up to 250 people.

• Varian Medical Systems has announced the expansion of its existing Salt Lake City operations, with plans to build a $10 million, 70,000-square-foot facility for production of flat-panel digital X-ray image detectors. Varian predicts the expanded facility will be operational by December 2006, creating 100 to 250 technically oriented jobs over the next five years.

How does succession management play into economic growth?
This extraordinary growth, coupled with projected baby boomer retirement of CEOs, CFOs, high-level managers, and directors, introduces the problem of succession management and how to address it. With that in mind, Gov. Huntsman has appointed Patricia Steigauf Vaughn as director of Talent Acquisition Program (TAP). The plan is to locate high-level individuals who may have left Utah (as part of the oft-mentioned brain drain) and lure them back to manage businesses here. While this new program is not yet fully formulated, Pat Vaughn has made it clear that the Alumni Association at the University of Utah could prove instrumental in sourcing candidates.

Need more information?
Contact Julie Swaner, program manager of Alumni Career Services, at (801) 585-5036,