WorldCity Business Magazine

Education & Talent Are the Power Formula

by Suzy Valentine

The late business icon Sir James Goldsmith is credited with first coining the phrase: “If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.”

When he said it, he could have been summarizing one aspect of a workforce crisis that risks stunting South Florida’s growth.

Pay that trails the national average is just one of a myriad challenges that include a limited supply of work visas, insufficient workforce housing and poorly educated job candidates.

But how to improve the quality of a well of workers that is more talent puddle than talent pool?

Some observers are aware the phenomenon brain drain has a complement, the crap tap: the notion that as the best leave, the worst pour in.

At the heart of the problem is the public school system. We won’t attract the highest level executives until there are schools here they think will educate their children well.

In turn, we won’t create homegrown prospects until the institutions are here also. It provides scope for public private partnerships.

Colleges and universities need to build on this by gaining in reputation and by striving to be among the best in the country.

That way they will attract the best candidates but the efforts go hand-in-hand with the creation of jobs to retain those quality students.

Schools should tailor courses to the needs of the business community logistics companies being among the examples cited.

There is also a growing high-tech hub in South Florida that needs tech-savvy graduates to service its needs.

Another late knight, Sir Winston Churchill, advised against talking to “the monkey when the organ grinder is in the room.” It seems the two need each other, peanuts or not. WC

John Price, CEO of InfoAmericas

Miami’s ability to fulfill its economic potential as a global city relies upon the quality of its workforce, but the city faces two major threats to staffing up for the growth opportunities its gateway status provides: immigration and education.

The skill sets required for a Latin American hub economy in Miami cannot be sourced from the United States alone. Just as London has imported talent from Europe to remain the continent’s leading financial hub, so must Miami continuously import skilled labour from Latin America to bolster its hub position.

The existing U.S. cap on H-1B visas (100,000 or so) is a fourth of pre 9/11 levels, leaving South Florida companies scrambling for talent.

Where would London, Dubai or Hong Kong be as gateway cities if their national governments severely restricted their ability to recruit?

Politicians in Washington, D.C. do not distinguish illegal immigration from the arrival of skilled technicians and managers in their debate over migrants. Their inaction threatens Miami’s immediate future.

Another looming threat to Florida is its inadequate public education system. Florida is not educating the workforce for its promising industries. Instead, the state imports considerable talent. But that strategy has shown its limitations, creating a transient rotation of skills that are costly to recruit or, in some cases, cannot be sourced due to reactionary U.S. immigration policies.

In survey after survey, companies running Latin American regional headquarters bemoan a lack of skilled personnel. Miami’s booming logistics sector employs more people than any gateway sector in South Florida and logistics service providers need engineers and mathematicians while Florida languishes 41st nationally for science and engineering graduates per capita, according to the 2006 State Competitiveness Report, from the Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University in Boston, Mass.

In spite of record investment, Florida’s universities trail the U.S. average. In the U.S. News & World Report annual ranking of the country’s top universities and colleges, the state’s best institution is the University of Florida, ranked 47th. Its rival school, Florida State, came 110th.

Underpinning Florida’s 2nd tier university standing is a sub-standard public grade school system. Florida continues to rank in the 30s or 40s out of 50 states at the elementary, secondary and high school levels in fundamental skill areas such as English and Math. An important source of underperformance is the lack of financing. In 2004, Florida’s per pupil school funding was ranked 47th out of 50 states.

As an adjunct professor at Florida International University, I saw the shortcomings of students from South Florida’s public high schools against foreign and out-of-state high-school graduates. These 3rd & 4th year university Floridians could not analyze, think critically or construct a written paragraph in English or in Spanish. It is disingenuous to dub Miami’s public education Third World in quality because students from Jamaica, Venezuela, Paraguay and Peru are putting Miami graduates to shame in their own universities.

Good educational standards should be the concern of not only parents, who often foot the bill, but of business and political leaders whose futures rely upon the economic growth of Miami.

Eugenio Beaufrand, Vice President Latin America, Microsoft Corp.

It is well accepted that Miami’s strategic location, together with its growing multicultural, economic and political links to the region has made it the gateway to Latin America.

The city has served as Latin American headquarters for many multinational companies seeking the benefits that this unique set of characteristics offers. Although we all recognize these strengths, Miami must now focus on understanding the challenges it faces to compete and further advance in the international marketplace if it is to truly become a world-class city.

Miami is a fairly young city when compared to other established global cities. Its rapid growth has taxed its transportation, residential and commercial infrastructure.

On the other hand, the talented human capital gathered in this metro area provides an opportunity to engage better with the world in this new knowledge economy. Therefore, it is key to focus on expanding its current infrastructure to support the enormous growth it has experienced and continue strengthening education and the development and attraction of human capital. High-tech can play an enabling role in these areas.

Fernando Campo, Vice President, Latin America & Caribbean, Citrix systems

Miami is on its way to establishing itself as an international commercial center, but there is still work to do.

With increasing international trade, there is competition and the pressure to become more specialized.

Miami must address issues to maintain its position and take the city to a higher level to gain recognition with other top international gateways. Two key issues that need attention are education and industry diversification.

Without doubt, developing a qualified and skilled workforce is pivotal to Miami maintaining its edge.

Miami must, therefore, reevaluate and make significant improvements in its public education system, focusing principally on the junior high and high school levels.

At the higher education level, Florida International University and the University of Miami have gained recognition in recent years for their international business programs.

However, both universities need to strive to be international centers of excellence that can attract top students from around the world.

In turn, Miami needs to have attractive job prospects to keep the students here.

To create these positions, local leaders must become aggressive and entrepreneurial in diversifying the industry base in South Florida by drawing
higher paying jobs.

Miami is increasingly becoming recognized for fashion, tourism, entertainment, international banking, real estate and technology industries. It is now time to focus on establishing creative incentives to establish a hub for other services, health care and security, given Miami is a key entry point to the United States. Enhanced security at points of entry will significantly contribute to increased trade and will boost the economy

In short, Miami can compete with other international gateways but must stay focused on priority issues and create partnerships with different stakeholders to take the city to the next level.

Rui da Costa, managing director, Latin America & Caribbean/vice president, Technology Solutions group, hewlett-packard

Since Miami is already considered a business and trade center for the Americas, perhaps we should then concentrate on upgrading our cultural and educational systems to world-class levels.

In that regard, education should be a focus and building one flagship institution, a cornerstone. Florida International University should be the establishment striving for world-class recognition.

As a member of the Advisory Board of FIU’s School of Business, I have been closely connected to the university over the past few years.

I have learned not only to appreciate the outstanding academic achievements of this institution but to respect the high rankings it has received.

Indeed, FIU’s International MBA has become one of the most respected programs of its type, ranked 7th in the United States.

Dean Joyce Elam and outstanding faculty must take credit for reaching out to other top universities around the world to develop a curriculum with a global perspective.

The FIU School of Hospitality and the School of Journalism and Mass Communications have also received outstanding top-10 U.S. rankings for their programs.

In years to come, this community should support FIU in its efforts to become a center of excellence in global research and education. If we can succeed in establishing it as a flagship institution of higher learning at the global level, the branding and exposure it will bring to South Florida will be invaluable.

Joyce Elam, executive dean, College of Business Administration, Florida International University

At the core of every great city is a highly educated workforce, employed in high-value sectors and workplaces. Research has shown that educational attainment increases incomes and raises productivity, while reducing problems such as crime, welfare dependence and lack of access to medical care.

For Miami to join the ranks of the great cities, the educational attainment of our residents must increase. Based on the 2006 U.S. Census, the percentage of residents in Miami-Dade with a college degree is 25 percent. This is not only below the national average of 27 percent, but also below that of New York City at 32 percent, Boston at 40 percent, Atlanta at 42 percent, the District of Columbia at 45 percent and Raleigh at 50 percent. Providing access to reasonably priced, high-quality higher education for Miami-Dade residents is critical to Miami’s future success.

But providing access to higher education is only part of the solution. Residents must be prepared to succeed when they enter college. SAT scores are commonly used to measure how well students are prepared for college. The Miami-Dade Public School District reported the average SAT score for students taking the exam in 2006 to be 927. This compares with an average SAT score in Florida of 996 and a national average of 1028.

For Miami to join the ranks of great cities, we need to prepare our residents better to succeed in college. This preparation will pose a special challenge for our educational institutions and will require some innovative approaches given the unique demographics of our community. Fifty percent of Miami-Dade residents are foreign born. This figure compares with a high of 36 percent in New York City to a low of 7 percent in Atlanta.

Key to Miami’s quest to become one of the nation’s great cities is for our community to value education. Realizing this value will require dedicated leadership along with a strong financial commitment from the state, Miami-Dade, local governments and the business community.

Larry Lemanski, Vice President for Research, Florida Atlantic University

According to the Economic Development Corporation of South Florida, the region is home to more than 1,000 life science businesses and institutions that employ nearly 20,000 people and generate more than $4 billion in revenues.

In 2005, Florida Atlantic University was ranked 10th largest biotechnology center in the nation by Ernst & Young’s Beyond Borders report. We have researched Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, arthritis and age-related macular degeneration. The centers are contributing to Florida’s economic growth by creating spin-off companies and training a biotechnology workforce.

Two California-based premier non-profit research organizations, the Scripps Research Institute and the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, chose FAU to house their state-of-the-art biomedical research facilities.

Their presence has already begun to encourage collaborations with businesses, organizations and universities the kind of relationships that foster the development of a technology hub. We may not be there yet but we are getting there.

We were recently selected to participate in an international IBM super computer project, the Latin American Grid (LA Grid). This new grid technology connects the worlds fastest and most powerful computers, allowing computers of all types to communicate. The South Florida bioscience corridor is gaining national and international recognition and continues building upon the momentum of attracting world-class scholars, scientists, industry and businesses to the thriving region. We are at the cutting edge and at the forefront of making the region a world-class research center.

Luis Dominguez, CEO, Unisys Latin America

Miami, and by extension South Florida, should establish a program to attract high-tech companies through state and city incentives.

The focus here is to include the return on investment for companies to locate in the region. The incentives should be benchmarked against other locations.

South Florida should make better use of its universities. Universities could come together with corporations to form smart partnerships by bringing together education and students as a low-cost yet highly educated labor supply that would work with technical institutions and companies to drive new products and services. These products and services should be focused on the Latin American market as well as the Southern region of the United States.

Some of the possibilities are the joint creation of lower cost models for
hosting key applications and providing disaster recovery capabilities.

Smart partnership concepts (through Florida universities, U.S. and/or global technical companies, Latin American technical companies and local government) would define key flagship solutions to improve economic competitiveness, social programs or other key initiatives.

One flagship could be the design and implementation of a smart school program using technology to bring access to worldwide content to students, creating a more marketable and competitive labor force.

A second example could be the implementation of a government multi-purpose smart card that would provide multiple services to the country’s population.

The type of applications that could be used are national identity cards, immigration cards, driver’s licenses, vehicle registration, voter identities, ATM cards, electronic cash wallets, passports and health records.

All of these applications on one card (platform) would not only be economical but also would allow all of these services to be provided faster, more efficiently, more securely and could be used as infrastructure to foster even greater interaction in government-to-government transactions, business to business, or people to government transactions.

This infrastructure is as critical as the implementation of roads and railways were to the industrial revolution. It will help leapfrog systems and countries into the future.

In summary, Miami and South Florida need to bring together key assets, business leaders and government officials to create a plan to position Miami as a door to the international market specifically focused on Latin America.

This plan must offer next generation value to the markets that are needed to compete on the world stage. Miami’s location alone is not sufficient to accomplish this.

We must combine political capability with savvy, market, industry, and next generation business leaders. Together they can create vision, value propositions and roadmaps to success.

This is how Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Indian cities have achieved their goals. I was part of this plan and saw the transformation. Together we could create the future.

Jos Antonio Ros, International President, Global Crossing

South Florida is ranked among the top telecommunications centers in the world, based on volume of traffic. In an era where quick and reliable communications is imperative, Miami must continue investing in cutting edge technology and in attracting highly qualified personnel. Maintaining a skilled, adaptable and creative labor force is an obvious requirement if Miami wants to achieve global status.

This requires a significant improvement in the public school system, especially at the junior high and high school levels.

It means providing workforce housing and addressing all the infrastructure issues, such as transportation links, that will impact the employees the region’s companies are trying to attact.

To meet the standards and expectations of other well-known international gateways Miami must update airport facilities, retain skilled workforce and professionals, proactively address affordable housing, continue investing in technology, and improve its public school system.

Tony Villamil, CEO, The Washington Economics Group

Miami is rapidly transforming itself into a leading global region of the 21st century, but challenges remain for reaching the global status of New York City, London or Hong Kong.

A leading global city or region sets the standards for other areas and these include not only trade volumes and financial metrics but the knowledge intensiveness of economic relationships with other global regions. A leading world city or region excels in cultural and educational outcomes relative to competitors.

There is no question that Miami is a top trade and business center of the Americas.

This is measured by the volume of trade, Latin American visitors and international banking transactions with our Caribbean Basin and South American neighbors.

The region has the most international banks in the United States after New York City.

Miami is the largest metropolitan area of the United States with a majority Hispanic population facilitating educational and cultural exchanges with countries in the Americas.

We are rapidly evolving into a knowledge-intensive region, with expanding clusters providing exportable services on a global basis. Examples include life sciences, higher education and professional business services.

As an economist with more than 25 years in Florida and Latin America economic consulting, I have seen Miami evolve from transshipment center into a global-oriented, economic metropolis. Today, South Florida houses campuses of universities from the United Kingdom, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela. This growing higher education cluster, with leading international programs at Florida International University, the University of Miami and other universities with a local presence, is pushing Miami into a world-class city.

But there is still much to be accomplished.

Miami needs to develop a multilingual and highly skilled workforce, a world-class higher education system and a multi-modally connected and efficient transportation system.

Miami has suffered since 2001 from enhanced U.S. Department of Homeland Security regulations that have impacted activities including expansion of international banking institutions and growth of foreign visitors and foreign students to our universities.

These are challenges that can be met with appropriate public policies and through joint cooperation between private and public sectors. We are moving in the right direction, but Miami isn’t yet a leading global city. Someday, it will be and the process has started.