Inclusive growth is an economic and
moral imperative that is permeating
sophisticated economic development
organizations nationwide. During
2019, EDC will continue to work
with its steering committee to set
regional targets and employer-focused
recommendations around the other two
inclusive growth goals: small business
competitiveness and affordability.
At the Indianapolis Speedway
The group has streamlined its efforts to focus on three main goals: building a strong local talent
pipeline, equipping small businesses to compete, and addressing San Diego’s affordability crisis.
Many Inclusive Growth Steering Committee members also attended the leadership trip to
Indianapolis, which created a heightened sense of unity and purpose. Moving presentations
from Indiana leaders, namely Cook Medical and Ascend Indiana, reaffirmed the importance
of rethinking talent acquisition efforts to create more sustainable pipelines between local
talent and employers.
In San Diego, Hispanics represent the fastest growing population and will soon become the
largest demographic group by 2030. Yet 85 percent of Hispanics in San Diego do not hold a
bachelor’s degree and are vastly underrepresented in innovation economy jobs. Meanwhile,
San Diego companies rely on expensive talent attraction methods which cannot alone fill the
growing demand for skilled STEM talent.
For our economy to remain sustainable,
we must focus our efforts on building
a strong local talent pipeline, in which
San Diego residents have the resources
necessary to fill the jobs of our growing
economy.
EDC recently released an interactive web
study – talent.inclusivesd.org – which
illustrates staggering data points that
ultimately informed the regional goal to
double San Diego’s annual production
of skilled workers to 20,000 by the
year 2030. To support this goal, the
Inclusive Growth Steering Committee
developed a set of recommendations
around transparency, engagement, and
investment for employers to adopt and
implement, each doing their part to reach
the 2030 goal.
Setting out to solve the region’s complex
challenges is easier said than done.
There is no a one-size-fits-all solution,
but one thing is clear: the future of San
Diego’s growth and success will largely
depend on collaboration between key
partners from companies, universities,
philanthropy, and local government to to
ensure inclusive practices are integrated
into future decision-making. And if there
is any region that can come together
to build an economy that reaches
and includes all of its residents and
employers, it’s San Diego.
To learn more about this effort, visit
www.inclusiveSD.org.
Access to Jobs by Race and Ethnicity 2
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