More Work to Do 
If you follow this newsletter, you regularly hear us talk up the progress Michigan has made but also warn that there's much more work to do to become a Top Ten state.  One item that's high on our to do list is leveling the playing field with competitor states by adopting stronger tools to attract and grow good paying jobs. 
 
Michigan's business climate is a lot better than it was in the 2000's and it has led to creating over 400,000 jobs and growing incomes.  But with average unemployment levels and per capita income $10,000 below Top Ten states, we need to do more.  The fact is that many of the states we compete with have business climates as good or better than ours, plus they have tools we don't have to grow good jobs.  For example, we're one of only two states with a corporate income tax and no tax credits that reward job creation.  Further, our competitors spend up to seven times more than we do to incent job creation.   
 
We can't let Ohio and Indiana grow jobs that should be in Michigan because we got complacent.  Let your state representative and senator know that you support making sure Michigan has the economic development tools to grow those high-paying jobs here. It could be the difference between our children and grandchildren staying in Michigan or looking for opportunity elsewhere.
OUR EVENTS
 
Have you registered? Space is limited.


Thursday, November 10, 2016  *  8:00AM-2:00PM  *  Westin Book Cadillac Detroit

Cost to Attend: $125 (includes breakfast & lunch)

OUR WORK 
World Mobility Leadership Forum Held in Detroit
More than 350 global leaders from 12 countries gathered in Detroit last month as part of the first World Mobility Leadership Forum, convened by Ford Motor Company Executive Chairman Bill Ford. The forum marked the beginning of a worldwide conversation about how mobility solutions can address pressing societal challenges.  Further, it positioned MI to be at the epicenter of the new mobility industries.

In addition to Ford, speakers included General Motors Chairman & CEO Mary Barra; Tesla VP of Product Development Diarmuid O'Connell; Lyft Director of Transportation Policy Emily Castor; Secretary-General of the International Transport Forum/OECD Jose Viegas; Volvo Car Group President & CEO Hakan Samuelsson, and transportation leaders from Dubai, Finland, Canada, Spain and more. 

The event was organized by BLM, MICHauto, the Detroit Regional Chamber, and knowledge partner McKinsey & Company. To view speaker videos, click here

Press coverage of the World Mobility Leadership Forum: 
BLM 3Q 2016 Economic Forecast: MI and U.S. Short & Long-Term Economies Projected to Show Modest Growth
The latest quarterly survey of Business Leaders for Michigan forecasts the Michigan and U.S. economies will experience slower growth over the next six to 18 months. Learn more

EFFORTS UNDERWAY TO BUILD A NEW MICHIGAN
Michigan Broadens Its Ambitions for Autonomous-Vehicle Proving Grounds
Located between the headquarters of Detroit's Big Three auto manufacturers and the R&D laboratories that have sprung up in nearby Ann Arbor, a high-speed testing center, the American Center for Mobility, will fill a critical void and play an important role in getting self-driving cars ready for American roads, state officials believe. In the fledgling autonomous age, this new anchor will allow automakers to examine scenarios too risky for real-world testing, determine how to safeguard data streaming off vehicles, and perhaps even one day explore how drones interact with freight movement. Learn more
Deloitte: The future of mobility: What's next?
Frictionless, automated, personalized travel on demand-that's the dream of the future of mobility.  And the future mobility ecosystem's various elements are coalescing to realize that dream sooner than expected, which means that incumbents and disruptors need to move at top speed to get on board. Learn more
Silicon Valley Startups to Partner with MCity
Three West Coast startups recently announced their partnership with Mcity, a 32-acre site on NorthCampus created to test and improve technology for autonomous vehicles. The companies - PolySync, Zendrive and Civil Maps - will work on technologies including augmented reality, 3-D mapping and smartphone sensors. The partnerships are part of an effort launched last February by the University of Michigan Mobility Transformation Center and the Center for Entrepreneurship TechLab. TechLab encourages collaboration among UM faculty, students and startups to improve autonomous vehicle technology. Learn More 
DATA SUPPORTING THE NEW MICHIGAN PLAN
State jobless rate up for first time since 2009
Michigan's jobless rate edged up during September by one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.6 percent, giving the state its first increase in unemployment for the year. The reason for the increase, however, isn't bad news: it was that 14,000 men and women who hadn't been looking for work started their job-hunts. A total of 11,000 of those people landed jobs, while about 4,000 entered the ranks of the officially counted unemployed. Learn more 
 
High skill, high wage trade jobs abundant
High-skill, high-wage jobs in the skilled trades are abundant in not just Michigan but around the U.S., according to The Manufacturing Institute. Over the next 10 years, two million of the 3.5 million U.S. manufacturing jobs are expected to go unfilled due to a lack of candidates with the necessary skills.  Learn more
Tax Foundation: MI #12 Best Business Tax Climate
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Ranking 12th best for overall business tax climate, Michigan ranked 8th best for corporate taxes,14th best for individual income taxes, 9th best for sales taxes, 47th best for unemployment taxes and 25th best for property taxes. Learn More


SPOTLIGHT ON OUR MEMBERS
Lear CEO sees new Detroit Innovation Center as turning point for company, city
Crain's Detroit Business | October 18, 2016  

In a modest corner office on the fifth floor of a former cigar factory in Detroit's Capitol Park, Matt Simoncini hovers between his desk and the window. The windows are new, though in keeping with the historic styling of the 140-year old building. Simoncini, president and CEO of Southfield-based supplier Lear Corp., is new to the building as well. The seating and electronics supplier officially opened its Detroit Innovation Center recently, an idea to boost technological transformation for the company and a return to the city in which it was founded and the place where Simoncini was raised.  Learn More 
JPMorgan Chase Putting $1.3M Into Detroit Skills Training
CBS Detroit | September 27, 2016  

Financial
 giant JPMorgan Chase says it's investing more than $1.3 million to increase the number of Detroiters receiving skills training for jobs. The grants are part its earlier $100 million commitment to Detroit's economic recovery. The company says the training will be for in-demand jobs and to help strengthen partnerships between job seekers, local employers and training providers. Learn More 
Little Caesars Break Ground for New HQ in Downtown Detroit
Crain's Detroit Business | September 7, 2016  

The plans call for the facade of the nine-story 234,000-square-
foot Little Caesars Global Resource Center to be made out of glass shaped in 14-foot-tall triangles that look like pizza slices, an homage to the third-largest pizza chain in the country.  The new building is expected to house up to 700 Little Caesars employees. This will be the first major new corporate headquarters built in Detroit since the Compuware Building (now One Campus Martius) was built for Compuware Corp. in 2002. Learn More 
IN THE NEWS 
Celebrating 20 Years: The Growth of the Medical Mile
Grand Rapids Business Journal | September 30, 2016 
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Thanks to a substantial amount of reinvestment and philanthropic support, including more than $2 billion worth of research and health care  infrastructure, there is a sense of vibrancy and renewed purpose in downtown Grand Rapids. The hospitals, research facilities and clinical centers that line the Medical Mile foster an economic environment that diversifies the employment landscape in West Michigan and creates demand for supporting industries capable of accommodating this surge in the workforce. Learn More 
When Millennials are Looking for Jobs, Detroit is One of Their Top Cities, LinkedIn Says
Daily Detroit | September 21, 2016  

Those in the millennial generation are taking a good look at Detroit when it comes to searching for a job. LinkedIn released a list of 5 surprising cities that are rapidly attracting millenial job seekers. Number three on the list - and number three in their results - was Detroit.  Learn More

Business Leaders for Michigan
600 Renaissance Center, Suite 1760
Detroit, MI, 48243-1802
Phone: 313.259.5400
info@businessleadersformichigan.com
Business Leaders for Michigan, the state's business roundtable, is dedicated to making Michigan a "Top Ten" state for jobs, personal income and a healthy economy. The organization is composed exclusively of the chairpersons, chief executive officers, or most senior executives of Michigan's largest companies and universities. Our members drive 32% of the state's economy, provide nearly 375,000 direct in Michigan, generate over $1 Trillion in annual revenue and serve nearly one half of all Michigan public university students. Find out more at: www.businessleadersformichigan.com.