Jobs: The impossible becoming possible
Industry clusters making progress
In 2003, the RJI organized local industries into groups as a means of igniting
and tracking business growth. These groups — known as “clusters” — comprise
industries that have the greatest potential for job creation in the
Fresno-Madera region.
In other markets, the concept of clustering has proven very successful as
leaders from industries within the cluster work collaboratively to create an
environment that expands existing opportunities and attracts new businesses.
The industry leaders working with the RJI set a goal to create 25,000 to 30,000
net new jobs for our region by the end of 2008 — higher paying jobs with annual
salaries averaging at least $29,500. The RJI Implementation Plan, drafted in
2003, provides the job-growth goals established by each participating industry
cluster within Fresno and Madera counties.
The original clusters identified by the RJI include construction, advanced
manufacturing, water technology, call centers, advanced logistics and
distribution, tourism and healthcare. How is the concept working?
Construction
The construction cluster was created in response to the steady rise in
employment opportunities in the Valley’s very active construction field.
To ensure the strength and growth of the construction industry, the Construction
Industry Partnership was established by employers, unions, trade associations,
educators and public-agency leaders. “For years, we’ve had to import workers to
meet construction growth. Through the Construction Industry Partnership, we’re
raising our local skill base,” said Doug Reitz, a project executive for Harris
Construction Co. This partnership seeks to improve the industry as a whole by
focusing on workforce development, public policy and improved collaboration.
Other achievements include the launch of an industry Web site,
www.CentralValleyConstruction.org, the formation of an ad-hoc committee to work
with the City of Fresno to improve the working relationship between the city
and the industry; and the adoption of the industry by the Fresno County
Workforce Investment Board as one of four industries targeted for federal
training dollars.
Advanced Manufacturing
Advanced manufacturing refers to highly flexible, short- to medium-run
production, as opposed to high-run assembly-line production. The advanced
manufacturing cluster was created to maximize the potential of this industry in
Central California.
“Many people don’t realize Fresno has a significant manufacturing base. The
manufacturing cluster does...and the RJI is helping us grow our base,” said
co-chairman of the manufacturing cluster Ray Dunn. To capitalize on the
opportunity to expand and improve in the region, local industry leaders
established an informal association dubbed the Central California Regional
Manufacturing Partnership.
Achievements include the completion of plans for an Advanced Manufacturing
Center, for which fundraising is now in progress.
A Careers in Manufacturing Technology (CIMT) internship program has been
implemented, recently enabling 18 students from Fresno City College and Reedley
College to serve as interns with local manufacturers. Industry leaders are
working with Fresno State to develop a supervisor training certificate program.
Additionally, a cluster Web site is in development and will include a searchable
database so local manufacturers can improve their access to local suppliers.
Water Technology
Central California’s water technology industry comprises manufacturers,
distributors and dealers of a wide range of water-related equipment from
irrigation supplies and sensor technology components, to pumps and electronic
controls.
The water technology cluster has formally organized itself into the
International Center for Water Technology (ICWT), which represents more than
500 businesses, nonprofits, public agencies and individuals from around the
world. The ICWT seeks to make Central California the world leader in
technologies that enable water reuse, conservation, energy efficiency, lower
cost innovations, improved water quality and water exploration.
Grant funding has been received to establish the International Center for Water
Technology at Fresno State. It has also received a $310,606 grant from the U.S.
Department of Commerce to assist local water-technology manufacturers in
promoting their products worldwide. The grant will enable the ICWT to host
inbound trade missions, develop a promotional DVD, conduct market research and
establish a water conservation demonstration site in Chile, among other
activities.
Other ICWT achievements include the organization of trade missions to Chile,
Mexico, Argentina and Brazil, which have helped Valley businesses learn to
export their products. The group is also organizing an International Water
Technology Summit, which will establish the San Joaquin Valley as the world’s
leading center of water technology. Additionally, the ICWT will continue to
develop export opportunities, participate in the cluster’s joint marketing
activities and work to continue the CIMT internship program. “I didn’t used to
think an ‘industry cluster’ made sense for water technology,“ said Claude
Laval, founder and chairman of LAKOS Corporation. “But now, I’ve seen the
difference it makes: Clusters do support economic growth.”
Information Processing
The RJI is focused on developing regional expertise in the information
processing industry — for example, occupations that provide “back-office”
support to large organizations.
Within the information processing cluster, the call-center industry has
organized itself into Fresno Call Centers — an association committed to
strengthening the competitiveness of area call centers and making the Central
Valley a more attractive region for call centers that are expanding or
relocating. Occupations in this industry with the greatest growth potential are
systems analysts, adjustment clerks, bill collectors and medical-records
technicians.
Among the industry’s achievements is the launch of its own Web site www.
FresnoCallCenters.com, the ongoing development of a call
center/customer-service program in partnership with the State Center Community
College District and Fresno State; and the launch of a new industry cluster
focused on software development.
Leaders are also developing a van-pool service for the industry and
extended-hour daycare operations, as well as working with the Fresno-Madera
Medical Society to address the abuse of paid medical leave.
Advanced Logistics and Distribution
The advanced logistics and distribution cluster was created to fulfill the
industry’s growth potential, which exists due to the region’s strategic
location and relatively low cost of doing business. The cluster includes
companies in the air cargo, trucking, rail transportation, warehousing and
wholesale/distribution industries.
Achievements include the securing of funding for North Avenue improvements — an
important transportation corridor for the warehouse/distribution industry.
Additionally, industry leaders advocated for the upgrading of Highway 99 to
interstate status, including safety and capacity improvements. As a result of
region-wide efforts, Caltrans has developed a business plan for improving
Highway 99, and state officials are working to identify resources to complete
the improvements. Gov. Schwarzenegger has earmarked $1 billion for Highway 99
improvements in his proposed infrastructure bill.
The industry has been adopted by the Fresno County Workforce Investment Board as
one of four industries targeted for federal training dollars. Fresno City
College will soon launch a certificate program designed to meet the industry’s
needs.
Leaders have developed collateral material, are currently working to develop an
industry Web site, and will participate in the Measure C campaign.
Tourism
There is tremendous potential to grow the tourism industry in the Fresno region.
Currently, visitors can choose from many unique attractions including
agri-tourism, amusement parks, casinos, historical sites, museums, national
parks, outdoor recreation, performing arts, shopping and more.
Among the goals of industry leaders is to establish a Regional Tourism Authority
to create and implement a regional marketing plan that engages all industry
stakeholders. Meanwhile, the RJI has secured funding from the City of Fresno to
produce a video promoting tourism in Fresno and fund a full-time staff position
at the Convention and Visitors Bureau to focus on extending the stays of area
visitors with tour packages.
Healthcare
The healthcare cluster was formed to create a network of hospitals, training
centers, clinics and other health-related services that will improve the
industry’s competitiveness and help make Central California a healthier region
overall. There are many sectors that form this cluster, ranging from specialty
hospitals to medical insurance companies and private medical practices to home
healthcare services.
The shortage of skilled personnel has allowed for only modest progress toward
the clusters job-creation goals.
The healthcare industry has been adopted by the Fresno County Workforce
Investment Board as one of four industries targeted for additional training
dollars. The board has conducted initial training analysis on 10 high-demand
occupations and has received $400,000 in federal funds for healthcare training.
Industry leaders are developing a regional plan for healthcare training, working
with the Hospital Council and area educational institutions through the
California Partnership for the San Joaquin Valley.
Additionally, the RJI supports UC Merced’s plans for a regional medical school
and biomedical research institutes in the San Joaquin Valley.
New clusters gain momentum
In addition to the established job clusters originally identified by the RJI,
several new clusters have emerged, each with the potential for considerable
industry growth. These include food processing, innovative energy and software
development.
Food Processing
The San Joaquin Valley’s food processing cluster encompasses public and private
organizations that are engaged in research, development, manufacture and
delivery of goods and services related to the production, sales, marketing and
distribution of food.
The industry includes meat and poultry, dairy, fruits and vegetables, beverages,
baked goods, candy, and seeds and nuts.
Since food processing was not included as a job cluster in the RJI
Implementation Plan, no job-growth expectations were identified.
Among the industry’s recent achievements was the development of a grant proposal
to implement the “San Joaquin Menu” — a program to promote the consumption of
healthy foods grown and produced in the Valley — to be piloted in the Fresno
Unified School District.
The industry also adopted Fresno State’s Institute for Food and Nutrition
Innovation project as the home of its research and development programs.
The cluster is investigating a partnership with the Manufacturers Council of the
Central Valley — an organization supporting food processors in the three
northern counties of the San Joaquin Valley.
Innovative Energy
On average, the San Joaquin Valley uses 20% more electricity than other areas of
the State, putting our region at a competitive disadvantage on many fronts. The
RJI‘s innovative energy project is designed to address this issue by maximizing
the clean-energy potential of local industries. The project is intended to
serve as the first step toward the creation of a local renewable energy/clean
tech cluster. “Clean energy presents the Valley with an historic opportunity to
address its economic and environmental challenges and shape its future,” as
stated in A Clean Energy Roadmap for the Greater Fresno Area to be released in
March 2006.
While the innovative energy project has no job-creation goals of its own, the
project is expected to generate jobs by attracting manufacturers of clean
energy to the region and will aid the RJI’s other clusters in meeting their own
job-creation goals by helping them reduce their energy bills and achieve
greater energy independence.
The project’s first initiative is to identify energy-efficiency improvements for
several clusters of the RJI — part of a larger statewide program called the
California Local Energy Efficiency Program (CA-LEEP). Navigant Consulting Inc.
oversees the entire project and provides the expertise in identifying each of
these energy-efficiency improvements.
The second initiative is the completion of a “community road map” that outlines
strategies for accelerating plans for improved energy efficiency and adoption
of renewable energy in the Fresno region. The roadmap was completed in November
2005 and implementation is under way.
Software Development
The software development cluster consists of small- to medium-sized businesses
whose primary function is software development, as well as a variety of
programmers and programming educators. The cluster has established three
committees to focus on workforce, marketing, and business growth and
development.
Since software development was not included as a job cluster in the RJI
Implementation Plan, no job-growth expectations were identified. And while the
cluster is too new to assess its progress, leaders are optimistic that the
cluster will succeed in growing the industry.
“The software development industry is passionate about being action-oriented, we
really want to make a difference and help grow our industry in Fresno,” said
Ian Duffield, Famous Software. “We really can become a center for innovation
and entrepreneurship in Fresno…if that’s what we decide we want to be.”
Currently, committees are working on a number of projects, including the
development of an internship guidance/peer mentoring program for all education
levels and a skills inventory to assist businesses in finding temporary help.
An industry directory and Web site are in development to raise awareness of the
Fresno region’s software-development industry.
Working together to build a more vibrant economy
In addition to the clusters, the RJI has eight task forces that are working on
creating a more attractive environment for employers in all the clusters,
including physical infrastructure; technology infrastructure; workforce
readiness and workforce development; customer service; innovation; livability;
financing; and government affairs and communications. These task forces are
working on issues that affect all the clusters, such as broadband access,
interstate designation for Highway 99, and state and federal funding for key
initiatives.
The clustering concept, coupled with the supporting task forces, shows early
signs of making an impact, resulting in job growth and an economic multiplier
effect that benefits the entire Fresno region. While the full effect won’t be
felt for several years, there is reason for optimism as industry leaders
enthusiastically work together to build a more vibrant local economy.
For more information, visit:
www.fresnorji.org
www.fresnobc.org
www.workforce-connection.com
www.fresnoedc.com
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