Lauren Berry: Communities have been making investments into their sites, into understanding costs and labor and logistics. Those things are absolutely critical factors in a location decision. Communities that are spending time on those are going to continue to reap the benefits of that.

Amanda Ellis: That’s the voice of Lauren Berry. She is a location analysis and incentives manager at Maxis Advisors. She joins us today with some insider insight on how communities can put their best foot forward when it comes to site selection and winning projects. I’m Amanda Ellis and you’re listening to Inside America’s Best Cities, a podcast for chamber economic development and talent attraction professionals. To learn more about this podcast, visit livabilitymedia.com. And with that, let’s jump in. Lauren, thank you so much for joining us today on Inside America’s Best Cities. We’re super excited to have you.

Lauren Berry: Thank you for having me. I’m excited to join.

Amanda Ellis: I know that you formerly worked in local economic development in Ohio, I believe, and you now work with a site selection agency, Maxis Advisors. So having been on kind of both sides of the table, so to speak, what are some things that economic developers should be maybe more attuned to that are more clear to you now than they were before?

Lauren Berry: You’re right. I spent five years working in local economic development at a chamber, the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber, and absolutely loved my time there. And I actually think that that work and that experience gives me a better understanding of how economic development works and an appreciation for how hard that ground game is. We need all of the partners to win projects, but I have a special place in my heart for all the local economic developers and chamber colleagues. So it’s been interesting and a lot of fun for me to be on the other side of the table. And it truly has been a huge learning experience for me just to understand the consulting world a little bit more and be working directly with clients and advocating for their projects. I think one of the things that I’ve been surprised at is how quickly projects are moving compared to some of the projects that I worked on on the public side. We’re seeing so many clients that just have to make decisions in a much more compressed timeframe. And so it’s never been more important to have all of those pieces in place to make a deal work and make it work quickly. And then I think another thing that we’re seeing a shift in for our clients is the real estate piece. A lot of our clients are prioritizing existing space rather than looking at build to suitor greenfield options where they can. And I think we all know where the industrial market is right now. It’s so tight, especially in a lot of these communities that have seen tremendous growth post COVID. And so that’s driving decisions in a different way I think, than I would’ve seen when I was on the public side.

Amanda Ellis: Yeah, that all makes a lot of sense and ties in with a lot of what we’ve been talking about lately. Actually, our last interview was with Camoin Associates, talking about just the tight real estate market and some ways to respond to that and what communities are doing. And you were also speaking to the tight timeline and just being ready. We did an interview last season with West Virginia about their new core project, the biggest investment in their state history, but they talked a lot about how they were super ready to go and they felt like that really positioned them well for that. So all of that makes a lot of sense. What are some shifts… And you kind of spoke to this a little bit with the compressed timeline and some other things you mentioned, but what are some shifts we’re seeing in how site selectors have traditionally evaluated communities maybe even over the last few decades compared to what they’re evaluating now in 2023?

Lauren Berry: I think in a lot of cases the fundamentals are still the fundamentals, which is good news for communities who have been making investments into their sites, into understanding costs and labor and logistics. All of those things are absolutely still really critical factors in a location decision. And so communities that are spending time on those are going to continue to reap the benefits of that. I think where we’re seeing some changes, labor is a really important one as we’ve seen that market tighten and I don’t think it’s just post COVID. I know when I was on the public side, we saw some of those impacts in our community and we’re spending so much time with clients now looking at labor and the days are gone when you could identify a community and say, there’s plenty of people here and we have no concerns about you filling the roles that you’re hiring for. I mean, those days really are just gone no matter where in the country we’re looking for a client. And so we’re spending time coaching them on how to come into a market and be successful even when it’s tight. And that means paying more attention to different factors, not just labor costs, but things like shift schedules and benefits and all those other factors that go into having a desirable job. So that’s definitely something where I think we’re seeing a bigger concentration of time and resources. And then there are things like ESG factors, environmental and social governance questions. And they’re not necessarily going to be decision-making factors, but they’re certainly important to our clients and they’re on the radar in a much bigger way for a certain segment of projects.

Amanda Ellis: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Part of what sparked my idea for this interview was you put together a really insightful article for area development, Unlocking Labor Analytics, where you talked a lot about what you just started to talk about a little bit. Those quantitative versus qualitative factors and how much weight those carry has shifted. What kinds of livability factors or other specific examples of those qualitative items do you think that site selectors and companies are paying more attention to?

Lauren Berry: One of the things that has actually been a big focus for us is looking at training opportunities. A lot of communities… I mean, you’d really be hard pressed to find a community that does not have a really robust and extensive workforce ecosystem. But where we’re spending more time is looking really into the weeds with those partners, understanding how the programs that they have in place today can be supportive of our clients’ needs. How does that skillset that they’re training on align with our clients’ hiring needs? What are the actual data deliverables as far as how many people are enrolled in those classes and graduating and staying in the area? So we’re spending a lot of time working with those providers to understand that in more detail. And then the other thing that has been a big factor is housing. A lot of our clients, they’re going to be hiring blue-collar type skillsets. And in some particularly more rural communities, there’s not an aggressive effort to add multi-family or different types of housing stocks at multiple price points. And so that’s an important factor. I mean, if our client can’t hire people who live within a reasonable driving distance because there’s nowhere for them to live, that’s certainly a concern. So things like training and housing, again, those fundamental pieces that you might not connect housing directly to site selection, but it’s important and it’s coming on the radar for us.

Amanda Ellis: Yeah, makes sense. I mean, you can’t go to a community if you don’t have a place to live, so that makes a lot of sense. I also liked what you said about in terms of workforce development infrastructure. Pretty much every community is doing something in that area at this point, but that it’s a case of companies have to make sure that the dots align with what they’re trying to hire for and what they’re trying to do. Thinking about communities marketing themselves and telling their stories, what’s your perspective on how they should be doing that? What should they be talking about to increase their chances of landing projects?

Lauren Berry: I think that this is always going to be something that depends a little bit on the client that you’re trying to recruit. And so whenever I have the opportunity to talk to economic developers, one of the things that I love to tell them, and this stems from my time on that side of the table is, “Please ask questions. Please, if I send an RFI out or you know that we’re looking at your community, I want you to be asking as many questions as you need answered to tailor what you’re putting in front of us.” Because at the end of the day, that’s how we both succeed because I don’t want to waste my time or theirs in bringing a client in that their questions aren’t going to be answered. I want to help them put their best foot forward. So that’s consistently my advice. Ask questions so that you know what the goals are of the visit, of the Zoom call, whatever that interaction is so that you can be really tailored and hit on the things that are important to that client. So that’s my top line recommendation. I think it’s always really helpful too, to have case studies. I love seeing communities talk about other projects that they’ve worked on and how they won them and how they continue to execute on that win throughout the process. One example that jumped out to me right away, we had a client looking in a community in Texas and went in with the client. And most of our clients were really concerned about timing to market and the community put a slide in front of us that showed a permitting timeline for one of their most recent projects and showed all of the dates for trading plans back and forth and approvals. And I don’t even remember the exact number of days, but it was one of the best examples that I’ve seen of a community saying, “We can do this for you, and we just did it and we want to prove it to you.” That was very effective.

Amanda Ellis: Yeah, I know a lot of communities too will do all kinds of creative things to try to capture the attention of company. Can you just think of any, I don’t know, really out there fun, creative examples that would be fun to share?

Lauren Berry: Yeah, I don’t know that I’ve had anything that’s been wildly fun or creative. I would say all of those things really help in the sales process. They’re not going to be big decision makers, but it is fun and I know all of our clients appreciate having that personal touch because they’re not just making a business decision, they’re making a decision about where they are going to build relationships in the community and be part of the story of that community moving forward. And so there’s definitely a more personal and relational aspect to it. So the communities that do that well are the ones who can personalize it to the company and to the individuals on the team.

Amanda Ellis: Yeah, and helps you stand out amongst competition that you might have similar offerings, I guess.

Lauren Berry: Absolutely.

Amanda Ellis: So thinking about the talent piece, talent attraction, talent retention, making sure the talent in your community is a good match for the opportunities there and opportunities that are coming available, what are some of the best strategies that you’ve seen groups put to use in that area that you could maybe give some examples of?

Lauren Berry: I think one of the most important investments that a community can make on the front end before you even have a prospect or a project, is spending time building relationships among your workforce development partners so that when you do have an opportunity that requires some creative out-of-the-box thinking or a new training program, you have that person on your team and they’re aligned with the same goals. That is a huge investment. And the communities that do that really well, it shows. And so you can tell which communities on a workforce call, you can tell which ones are used to working together and kind of all new. Who’s on first and who’s in which lanes, and it really does show. And so that’s not sexy, but it really is valuable in making sure that your workforce story is cohesive. And then I think the other thing too, nobody has a crystal ball. So it can be hard sometimes to project exactly what your training needs will be. I think it’s important to have a constant evaluation and reevaluation of your employers’ needs, whether that’s your existing employers or your new employers. Because chances are, if there’s a new technology or a shift in training needs, your existing employers are going to be experiencing that same need that your prospects are. Not in every case, obviously there are some new industries that might not be in your community and will have some unique situations, but for the basics and for the fundamentals, as those technologies and needs evolve, your existing employers are a great resource of that kind of information that can go to your training providers and help them craft new programs and new curriculum and new degrees that will keep your workforce competitive.

Amanda Ellis: I also like what you said about just continuing to be attentive to your existing employers’ needs as well as bringing in new groups.

Lauren Berry: And we’ll talk to them too. One of our favorite things to do is existing industry interviews, and we do those for all of our labor analyses, and we will talk with three to five sometimes more companies, and we’ll ask them, “Who are you working with for training? How does that process work? Is it easy to use? Has it been valuable? Are you hiring the people that you need or are you having to retrain them once they join your team?” So we do some back checking on that as well.

Amanda Ellis: Yes. You’ve offered a lot of advice and great tidbits so far in our conversation, but anything else I haven’t specifically asked about that you think would be really insightful for our economic developer listeners?

Lauren Berry: I think I would just reiterate how important those fundamentals are. There’s a lot of noise, and we’re seeing this on our projects too. There’s a lot of new project requirements. We’re seeing a lot of really significant electrical load sizes for our clients, but I don’t think that anything that we’re seeing in the market requires a complete reevaluation of your economic development strategy. There will be things that you’ll respond to and things that will be new, but the underlying fundamentals are the same. And so for the communities that are investing time in that, investing and building relationships with consultants and sites and labor data and existing industries, those investments really do pay off when you have someone who’s evaluating your community. So that work is hard, and it’s not super exciting every day, but it can really pay off when you win a project. So I guess that’s my advice, is press on. And it’s much appreciated by myself and our team and certainly all the other consultants in this world. I’ve heard it said that economic development is like a family. You are never really out of it and it’s so much fun. Why would you want to get out?

Amanda Ellis: So a lot of keep doing what you’re doing to folks, which is great to hear with small tweaks when you need them. Lauren, can you tell us a little bit more about your agency, Maxis Advisors? Kind of what you all do and what you offer to clients?

Lauren Berry: Absolutely. Maxis Advisors is a location analysis and incentives advisory firm. For 25 years, we have been based in Charlotte, North Carolina with additional offices in the Southeast US, but as of December 2021, we’re now part of the Foundry Commercial family. And so we’re part of that commercial real estate platform, providing our services not only to our clients, but to Foundry’s clients as well. So we’re a small team, but we have wonderful staff. All of us have come out of public-facing economic development roles. And so we know what goes into making a good project and putting all of those pieces together for our clients and for the communities because I think one of the things that makes us really unique with that economic development background, we’re looking for a project that at the end of the day is not just a win for our client, but it’s a win and a fit for the community that they land in. And I think that that’s really been key to our success over the years.

Amanda Ellis: So where are you based?

Lauren Berry: I’m based in Charlotte.

Amanda Ellis: Gotcha. As we head toward wrapping up here, my wrap-up question for guests is always, what city are you based in? And tell us a bucket list item or a fun thing that anybody who were to come to Charlotte should be sure to do.

Lauren Berry: Charlotte is great. I’ve actually only been in Charlotte two years. My husband got relocated down here for his job and I kind of left Ohio kicking and screaming, if you will. But we have loved being in Charlotte. It is just such a wonderful city and it’s a big city and you have all of those amenities, but you have a small town feel. All the neighborhoods are so unique and distinctive. In terms of a bucket-list item, there’s such good food here. You definitely need to spend some time in the food scene in Charlotte, get some fried chicken or some good southern shrimp and crits or get a local beer. There’s so many great craft breweries in Charlotte and in North Carolina as a whole.

Amanda Ellis: Yeah, I just spent some time in… Well, what they’re now branding as the Carolina Core, which is Winston-Salem, Greensboro and High Point. I did a media trip there and got to spend a little time in all three, and it was super fun. And of course, that’s like I guess between Charlotte and Raleigh. So I really haven’t spent any time in Charlotte except the airport.

Lauren Berry: The airport is great, but definitely not an attraction.

Amanda Ellis: Yeah.

Lauren Berry: Absolutely. Well, let me know when you make it here and I’ll send you some recommendations.

Amanda Ellis: Yes, I’ll have to add that to the list. Well, thank you so much, Lauren. I think that’ll be really insightful info for our listeners, the first time we’ve had kind of the site selector perspective on. So really appreciate you spending some time with us.

Lauren Berry: Well, thank you again for having me.

Amanda Ellis: Thanks for listening to the Livability podcast, where we take you Inside America’s Best Cities. At Livability, we highlight the unsung awesomeness of small and mid-sized cities across the country. We also partner with communities to reach their target companies and potential residents through digital content and print magazine programs. If you enjoyed this episode, please follow, rate, and review this show wherever you listen to podcasts. You can learn more about us at livabilitymedia.com. Have an idea for an upcoming episode, email me at [email protected]. Until next time, from Livability, I’m Amanda Ellis, sharing the stories of America’s most promising places.