In searching for a theme for 2009, I’ve chosen the popular Bachman-Turner Overdrive song from the early-1970s, “Takin’ Care of Business.” It’s kind of a mantra for the daily grind of working America. But I think the title – and not all the lyrics – speaks to where our attention ought to be directed. Namely, to stay focused on what we do, and do that well. In a few weeks we’ll celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. One of my favorite quotes of his is about a street sweeper, “If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.”
In this time of economic uncertainty we all need to find a rudder. As both Dr. King and Randy Bachman suggest, that rudder is our work, and the care and commitment we give it every day. If you’re in business, you take care of your customers, employees, suppliers, lenders, investors, and of course yourself. Right now this means doing what’s necessary to keep the doors open. It’s no different than what we do as individuals: we each take care of our families, friends, neighbors, and community through whatever means possible. As public servants, we must take care of the public we serve. In economic and community development we literally take care of businesses. That’s our job.
We’ll remember 2008 as the year of major economic adjustment. All U.S. and foreign stock markets were off by about 40%. Commodities including crude oil rose to record highs and have since fallen by as much as two-thirds. Unleaded regular gas has settled in at about $1.63 per gallon, the exact price on the “Low Gas Prices” sign at the corner of Chancellors Run and Great Mills Roads. Who would have ever imagined? Then there’s housing prices, down 15-20% nationally and about 10% locally for the year. Keep in mind that housing prices have not dropped in decades. We learned of the state budget crisis, and budget cuts and revenue measures to deal with it. This story will continue for some time. We also learned about derivatives, hedge funds, and (unfortunately) Ponzi schemes.
But 2008 was a year when lots of business was taken care of. While the nation reportedly spent the year in recession, Maryland continued to create jobs through November, even with unemployment rising. St. Mary’s County was one of the leaders in job growth. Our 2009 Technology Handbook company roster grew by 10, or five percent over 2008. Our Chamber of Commerce memberships have held while others around the state and nation have fallen. The gap between the County’s and nation’s unemployment rates is the widest it’s been in 5 years which confirms we are buffered from national economic trends. This is due largely to the solid employment base of our large employers, especially NAS Patuxent River, but also St. Mary’s Hospital, SMECO, and others.
In terms of future workforce, NAWCAD has made great strides this past year signing Education Partnership Agreements with University of Maryland, College of Southern Maryland, Southern Maryland Higher Education Center, and St. Mary’s County Public Schools to deliver world-class engineering and related technical programs to home grow our workforce. A new Finance Academy brings a business acumen into young minds. A newly-reformed Workforce Investment Board and expanded services of our Jobs Connection program will greatly assist in prepari