SSTI Digest

James Epolito, the former president and CEO of Accident Fund Insurance Co. of America, will become president and CEO of the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC) effective Sept. 1. The current MEDC president and CEO, Donald Jakeway, will lead MEDC's international economic development efforts.

Catering to high-tech companies built on innovation, the nonprofit regional collaboration dubbed SPARK, hopes to transform Ann Arbor, Mich., into more of an entrepreneurial hub and triple the number of technology jobs within five years. University, business, government and community leaders are partnering to provide services to new and emerging high-tech businesses and organizations within biotechnology, information technology, energy, advanced manufacturing, and security. Five primary services to be offered include business acceleration, business outreach, talent development, early-stage funding, and regional marketing and events. The idea for SPARK grew out of a discussion last year with University of Michigan (UM) president Mary Sue Coleman. The university's Tech Transfer National Advisory Board maintained that, in order for the university's tech transfer efforts to reach full potential, the region needed to be a more fertile ground for innovation and business creation with the ability to attract talent and resources. SPARK already has raised $2 million…

Sometimes when people are surrounded by others who share backgrounds, beliefs or opinions, they assume everyone thinks that way -- or should. It is one of the negative side effects or symptoms of the phenomenon known as "group think." It could be easy, for example, for Digest readers deeply immersed in building tech-based economies - surrounded by college-educated researchers, scientists, MBAs, lawyers and engineers - to believe that obtaining a degree after high school is a fundamental key to future economic prosperity. Studies support the idea that the higher level of education attained, the higher one's income will be. We assume the only hurdles are affordability or access and set goals then to double the number of college graduates. Gov. Jennifer Granholm announced during her 2005 State-of-the-State Address a plan to create better-paying jobs as the state recovers from a loss of manufacturing jobs and an overall net job…

The latest in SSTI's annual "Tech Talkin' Govs" series. Five earlier installments of this 2005 review of governors' legislative priorities concerning tech-based economic development are available through the Digest online: http://www.ssti.org/Digest/digest.htm Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, State-of-the-State Address, Feb. 8, 2005 "This Jobs Today, Jobs Tomorrow plan takes dead aim at the challenge we now face...It begins with an unprecedented investment in the future of Michigan – an investment to create 72,000 new jobs by making our state a world-wide center of research and innovation. This year, I will ask Michigan voters to support the 21st Century Jobs Initiative by amending the state Constitution to allow the state to invest $2 billion in bond money to create 21st century jobs – without raising taxes. "...This investment in Michigan’s future will allow us to transform the state that put the nation on wheels into the state that makes those wheels run on pollution-free fuel cells or bio-diesel technology; the state where the research into alternative energies is done…

As the only state to have a net job loss in 2004, Michigan's political leadership recognizes something must change. The state's shifting economy, from one defined principally by its manufacturing sector to one that derives growth equally from knowledge-based industries, is at the center of the matter. Michigan policymakers are challenged to create innovative proposals that preserve one facet of the economy while broadening the other. Recent proposals put forth by the state's Democratic governor and the Republican-controlled legislature appear to be working toward that end. Gov. Jennifer Granholm has made a $2 billion investment to finance R&D in Michigan's research institutions the centerpiece of her Jobs Today, Jobs Tomorrow plan. The Senate GOP has touted its own legislation to promote research commercialization and increases angel investing. Both proposals are aimed at cultivating a climate for tech-based economic development (TBED). Gov. Granholm's 21st Century Jobs Initiative, announced during her State of the State address, figures to be the largest component of her plan to boost…

John Maxson, former president of the Illinois Coalition, was named CEO of The Greater North Michigan Avenue Association.

Marlo Jenkins will be the new managing director of TechTown, Wayne State University's research and technology park.

The Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest has hired Arthur DeMonte as its first executive director. DeMonte was global director of the e-Business Technology Center at Dow Chemical.

Prompted by confusion over the dual rulings in the University of Michigan affirmative action cases last year, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering have released a new report to clarify the legalities and offer options for implementing and sustaining diversity programs within science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. The U.S. Supreme Court rulings on Grutter v. University of Michigan and Gratz v. Bollinger, which upheld the Law School’s admission policy but struck down the undergraduate admission policy, triggered confusion among academic, nonprofit and federal institutions, according to AAAS. Standing Our Ground: A Guidebook for STEM Educators in the Post-Michigan Era proposes eight principles for increasing the participation of minorities in STEM and urges leaders to specify diversity goals within their institutional missions. In formulating the principles, AAAS utilized a discussion from a panel of diversity program architects during a conference held earlier in the year. The report also…

During the recent past, heavy loss of manufacturing jobs has created considerable economic upheaval in several states, particularly the industrial heartland of the country where manufacturing represents more of a state's private payrolls than the national average. Michigan, alone, lost 18 percent of its manufacturing-related jobs from 2000 to 2003, a staggering 163,000 mostly high-wage jobs. Still, the manufacturing sector comprises 17 percent of the total jobs in the Great Lakes state. Stemming the loss of manufacturing operations across the U.S. through improved technological competitiveness and leaner production processes is a goal of many state and federal tax credits, policies and programs, such as the successful NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership and its network of 400 state and regional affiliate centers. A new research paper from the University of Michigan dares to ask whether manufacturing can be a driver for future U.S. economic growth and, if so, if it should be the focus of development policy, based on the economic performance of states with high manufacturing concentrations…

Michigan small businesses receiving state and federal grants for research and development will be able to put more of those funds into their work, with legislation unanimously passing the state Senate last week. A key component of the Senate Republicans' JOBS II action plan, Senate Bill 1116 now moves to Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm. A recent Associated Press article reports Gov. Granholm has not decided whether or not to sign the bill. SB 1116 amends the Single Business Tax Act (SBT) to allow SBT payers to deduct state and federal research grants from their tax base income. The bill's proponents suggest the measure will be a lure to attract high tech businesses to the state and will aid emerging tech firms, many of whom receive much of their start up revenues through federal grants such as the Small Business Innovation Research program. Legislative analysis of the fiscal impact for the bill suggests the cost to the state's general revenue funds will be $500,000 per year. SB 1116 is available through the Michigan Legislature at: http://www.michiganlegislature.org/mileg.asp…

One of the hottest political topics this year is the outsourcing of U.S. jobs to other countries. A Google search on "outsourcing" returns about 4.8 million pages. Reports from Gartner, Forrester Research, McKinsey & Company, AeA, and the Institute for International Economics, among others, have looked at the topic and fed the interest. While the presidential campaigns attempt to deal with the issue, in the last week alone, four governor have taken steps to try and address some aspect of the outsourcing issue. As is typical in technology issues, state action defies party label and geography. Earlier this week, Utah Gov. Olene Walker signed legislation that will provide financial incentives and assistance to state agencies that outsource work to companies in rural Utah. The program will be administered through the Utah Department of Community and Economic Development's Smart Sites program <http://smartsites.utah.gov/>. The legislation can be found at: http://www.le.state.ut.us/~2004/htmdoc/sbillhtm/SB0199S01.htm In Michigan, Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed Executive Directive…