Posts Tagged ‘Sioux Falls SD’

Talent attraction: If its right for Sioux Falls, is it right for small towns?

July 12th, 2010

Yesterday, Randall Beck, publisher of the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, wrote an editorial calling on Sioux Falls, SD to recognize that its future will be tied to its ability to attract young people. (source - Randall Beck, “Sioux Falls must attract talent,” Argus Leader, July 11, 2010.)  

Although he doesn’t describe it in-depth, the foundation upon which he builds his argument is solid: future economic development will be fueled by the knowledge of the people living in the community and the ability of these individuals to transfer that knowledge into economic activity. If a community does not have enough talent, it had better go out and get it.  That effort is the centerpiece of the Sioux Falls Development Foundation’s new five-year blueprint for South Dakota’s largest city.

Good stuff.  I like it.

The market is no longer “rural”

What caught my attention, however, was Beck’s acknowledgement that Sioux Falls will need to find its next generation of talent in cities such as Minneapolis and Omaha in the future.  Historically Sioux Falls’ growth has been fueled by talent from rural communities across South Dakota, Iowa, and Minnesota.  Beck cites Hollowing out the Middle: The Rural Brain Drain and What it Means for America, a book dear to my heart, to note that those rural communities have nothing more to give.

Sadly, Beck may be right.

 

A great vision for Sioux Falls, but…

I appreciate Beck’s vision for the future of Sioux Falls.  He’s providing leadership in an area where leadership is needed.  But what about those rural communities to which Sioux Falls has been historically connected?  It feels like Sioux Falls is saying, rural communities have no future, so let’s move on.  

But that’s not the message from Hollowing out the Middle.

 

Let’s get back to Hollowing out the Middle

For those who haven’t read Hollowing out the Middle I’d recommend reading the book.  If time is short, take a look at this summary article written by its authors titled “Rural Brain Drain,” which appeared in the Chronicle of Higher Education in September 2009.

The book and article offer great analysis of the issue of why young people leave rural communities.  Although painful to consider, I appreciate the authors’ assessment that part of the problem rests on resource allocation:

“What surprised us most was that adults in the community were playing a pivotal part in the town’s decline by pushing the best and brightest young people to leave, and by underinvesting in those who chose to stay, even though it was the latter that were the towns’ best chance for a future.” (source:  Patrick J. Carr & Maria J. Kefalas, “Rural Brain Drain,” Chronicle of Higher Education,  Sept. 21, 2009.

Although there’s much to be learned from Hollowing out the Middle, the authors only skim the surface of the brain drain phenomena.  The book’s greater value is that it attempts to build a deeper conversation about that issue.

Sadly, we’ve not heard enough of that dialogue in our part of South Dakota.  At times, we’ve attempted to initiate some conversation on ReImagine Rural.  But admittedly, we’ve failed to invest enough energy to generate the type of focus and attention the subject deserves.  (see articles on the subject here.)

A couple weeks ago, I mentioned that I’m interested in seeing attendees at the Midwest Rural Assembly pick up the conversation where Hollowing out the Middle leaves off.  I’ve had a few conversations with people about how that might be facilitated, but nothing has been planned as of yet.  Stay tuned if you are interested.

Whether the conversation happens at the Midwest Rural Assembly or at other venues, it must include a discussion about whether or not talent attraction strategies, which are typically reserved for urban populations, are effective in small, rural communities.  Clearly Sioux Falls believes it’s not too small, but what about the more typical small, rural communities that proliferate throughout the Midwest?

Personally, I feel it’s an option for many, but we’ve got some learning to do before we’ll get good at it.  And there’s no time like the present to get started. 

Photo Credit:  bowena - Flickr  (BTW - S.F. has done a nice job of reinventing its downtown, including efforts to redevelop the State Theater)

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Posted in Community Development, Economic Development, Rural | Comments (0)

OTA Sessions: Let’s make it a rural thing

February 4th, 2010

“Chris” received a gold star for his comment on my last post.  While referencing the social media presentation Lindsey and I gave to Miner County residents, Chris highlighted the OTA Sessions conference being held in Sioux Falls, SD on March 25th and 26th.

The conference looks so enticing that Lindsey and I rushed to sign up. It looks so valuable that I’m calling on other passionate supporters of rural communities to attend. 

What is OTA?

What “OTA” stands for is a mystery.  I think its secrecy is part of the organizer’s creative marketing strategy.

But the list of speakers leaves little doubt concerning the quality of the event.  Chris Brogan, Mitch Joel, Julien Smith, Spike Jones, Jonathan Harris, and Scott Monty may not be well-known in the stuffy board rooms of corporate America, but they are rock stars in the social media and creativity worlds.  Their participation alone is enough reason for me to highly recommend the conference.

But as the OTA Sessions website describes, a larger purpose serves as the conference’s backdrop:

 ”The OTA Sessions are a chance for all of us Midwesterners to shatter the perception that creativity and thought leadership live solely on the east and west coasts.”

In other words, conference organizers are calling on us to “deny the lie” that all the smart, creative people have left the Midwest.

Ah, yes.  Brain Drain. 

We’ve been talking a lot about that term lately.  I’ve questioned the idea of banishing the term from our vocabulary because it negatively portrays the reality of rural population movements.  We’ve also been talking about how we can transform small, rural communities so that fewer talented young people leave. (See this post titled “Can South Dakota’s small towns be cool“)

What about a rural Focus?

Although OTA is intended for all creative types in the Upper Midwest, I’d like to issue a special challenge that creative people in small, rural communities attend.  It will be a great opportunity for us to learn from some of our nation’s thought leaders, as well as a chance for us to network and learn from each other. 

As I stated earlier, Lindsey and I will be in attendance, both at the conference and at the networking event the evening before.  If you chose to attend, I hope you will drop us a line and help us connect at the event. 

This may be the most influential group to grace the stage of a conference in South Dakota.  Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.

Oh, heh.  I almost forgot.  Early registrants receive a discount AND 3 free books from the authors.

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Posted in Economic Development, Rural, Training and Events | Comments (3)