I figure if I am going to have a blog about economic development, entrepreneurship, and the like, it might help if I actually WRITE about that stuff from time to time. Until now, I’ve written only about my trials and tribulations of being a widower. Hopefully, this post will be a first step to changing that.
So…. is there an economic resurgence in the near future in the United States? I think there is. There are so many factors that seem to be pointing that way that I think it is only a matter of time before the US economy hits a tipping point and just takes off. Below are just a few of these factors.
1) Onshoring
You’ve heard of offshoring… the process by which American manufacturing jobs transfer overseas where labor costs are incredibly cheap (i.e. – China). Onshoring refers to some of those jobs coming back to the US. Various factors are leading American companies to bring manufacturing jobs back home, such as the high cost of transporting finished goods from foreign countries, rising labor costs in foreign countries, and product quality / safety issues in certain foreign-made goods. For example, did you know no smartphone has ever been manufactured in the US until Motorola opened a plant in Texas in 2013? A manufacturing rebirth can only mean good news for the US economy.
http://www.informationweek.com/mobile/mobile-devices/motorola-touts-made-in-usa-smartphone-plant/d/d-id/1111493?
2) Entrepreneurship on the rise
A recent study by The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor states that participation in entrepreneurship in America is the highest it has been in 15 years. The study says that at least 13% of American adults are involved in some form of entrepreneurship. The article linked below, however, does not offer reasons as to WHY the rate has risen so high. I have my suspicions, but I will save that for another post (maybe). Suffice to say, I don’t think it is all due to ABC’s “Shark Tank”.
http://news.yahoo.com/career-thats-growing-popularity-entrepreneurship-102358579.html
3) Crowdfunding
In that article above on entrepreneurship, it listed a limiting factor to entrepreneurs as having access to adequate start-up funds. Due to the Great Recession of the last few years, banks have been very reluctant to loosen the purse strings to any but the most credit worthy of individuals. But where there’s a will, there’s a way. Crowdfunding sites, such as Kickstarter, have popped up to allow entrepreneurs to take their case straight to the general public. Present your product or business idea, set your funding goal, promise a sample or other goodies to prospective donors, and then sit back and watch the donations roll in. A host of start-ups that might not have gotten off the ground due to frozen credit markets now had a chance to prove themselves, and to contribute to the American economy.
http://www.kickstarter.com/
4) Universities got it going on
Universities have always housed research programs, which begat new ideas, new technologies, etc. Which begat new patents. Which in some cases begat new businesses. Lately, though, it seems as if universities have stepped up their game. The process from idea to business has matured. Universities still have robust research programs. But now, schools sport a formal patenting process, business plan competitions, knowledge transfer, business incubators, business accelerators, partnerships with local industries, mentoring by seasoned executives, access to venture capital funds, and on and on and on. The number of high-quality start-ups coming out of our colleges and universities is increasing, and due to the support system in place, a higher percentage of these start-ups are bound to succeed, thus having an increasingly positive impact on the American economy.
It’s an exciting time to be an entrepreneur. It’s an exciting time to be in economic development. Barring another war or recession, it seems to me that the stars are aligning for an American economic renaissance. Only time will tell.
Until next time…
Brian
mywaywardmind 