North Carolina Economic Development Board Strategic Plan
Listening Tour Survey

The North Carolina Department of Commerce and the north Carolina Economic Development Board are developing a new comprehensive 10-year Economic Development Strategic Plan. We would like your advice. Please help us by completing this short survey. We will incorporate the survey responses and the input from the eight statewide listening sessions into the final plan. We want as much input as possible so....

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* 1. What industries or areas of focus do you see as most important to the future success of your region? (Please check as many as you feel are important)

Agriculture

Plastics

Food Processing

Information Technology

Business Services

Health Services

Automotive

Energy

Furniture

Educational Services

Bio-Pharmaceuticals

Hospitality & Tourism

Transport & Logistics

Financial Services

Aerospace & Aviation

Medical Devices

Textiles

Military

Construction Services

I don't know

Other (please specify)

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* 2. How important are exports and investments from foreign companies to your region of North Carolina?

Very important

Somewhat important

Not very important

I don't know

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* 3. What have you experienced, or are you hearing from employers, about the quality of your regional workforce? (Please check as many as you feel are true)

Overall the local workforce has good skills.

Employers have trouble finding people with the right technical skills.

Employers have trouble finding people with good "soft" skills.

Employees have good skills but need retraining for specific job requirements.

I don't know.

Other (please specify)

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* 4. We hear that there is a gap between the skills of North Carolina's workers and the jobs that are available from the private sector. What do you think the reason for the mismatch is? (Check as many as you feel are true)

There is a mismatch between what is being taught in K-12 and the skills employers have identified as necessary to be successful in the workplace.

There is a mismatch between what is being taught in higher education and the skills employers have identified as necessary to be successful in the workplace.

People are less mobile and less likely to move to where jobs are being created.

Demographics, as the population ages and there are older people in the workplace, they lack the new skills necessary to be successful.

There is a communications problem. People looking for work are not aware of businesses looking for their skills.

I don't know.

Other (please specify)

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* 5. Governor McCrory's administration is committed to improving the state's business climate, what do you think we can do that will help businesses in your region? (Please check as many as you feel are important)

Reduce business taxes

Reduce government regulations

Invest more in local infrastructure

Provide more access to capital

Invest more in job training

Invest more in education

I don't know

Other (please specify)

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* 6. What is the most important role of state government to grow the North Carolina economy and create more jobs? (Please check as many as you feel are important)

Aggressive marketing and branding to recruit new business

Provide technical assistance to existing businesses to help them grow

Provide capital to small businesses to help them grow

Train and retrain workers

Stay out of the way and let the market determine business success

Help businesses export to create new customers

Provide incentives to attract companies in growing sectors

Provide incentives to specific industries such as film or sports

I don't know

Other (please specify)

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* 7. What is preventing more people from starting businesses in your region? (Please check as many as you feel are important)

Low demand for goods and services

Lack of capital to start businesses

Lack of people who want to start a business

Overly restrictive regulations

Confidence in the economy

I don’t know

Other (please specify)

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* 8. What are the most important measures to evaluate economic development success? (Please check as many as you feel are important)

Improvement in the overall state economy

Number of new jobs created through recruitment or expansion

Number of new companies created

New private investment

Rise in worker wages

Return on incentive investments in new tax revenues

New jobs and investment in our most distressed communities

Reduction in poverty rates

Reduction in unemployment rate

Increase in gross state product

Increase in state exports

Population growth

Other (please specify)

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* 9. As we develop this new state economic development plan, what advice would you give us?

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* 10. I live in _____________________ county.

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* 11. I work in __________________ county.

Please encourage your colleagues and business associates to let us know what they think by going to https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/KPNNHNW and filling out a survey.