Cleveland (my hometown), and Detroit are attempting to restore the 20th century greatness that is synonymous with Henry Ford, Andrew Carnegie and other past titans. Midwest cities big and small are scrambling to address the ravages of home foreclosure and an eroding tax base. Cleveland and Northeast Ohio civic leaders recently announced $18 billion in major construction and capital improvements for the region. Major investors have committed to redeveloping downtown Detroit. There is even progress being made relative to minority contractor participation relative to such projects. Is this enough to sustain 21st century urban revitalization?
Although I am encouraged by all of this investment, talent attraction is also essential to sustainable growth within a region. In a tech-driven, global, and knowledge-based society, this talent is also inherently diverse. I am speaking of integrating a new diversity paradigm that goes way beyond the performance indicators of racial and gender quotas.
At Visibility Marketing Inc., we recently launched our SmartInclusion approach to communication planning and stakeholder engagement. SmartInclusion is about creating an international human capital ecosystem whose ultimate outcome is regional growth and economic development. It means that continually improving the cross-cultural IQ among the masses is inherent to regional sustainability. Attracting immigrants and new migrants is fundamental to population growth. It means that old folks have to stop chasing the young talent away to New York, Chicago, or even Austin, Texas for that matter. SmartInclusion is a rising tide lifting all demographic group’s boats.
It starts by telling a compelling narrative of forthcoming prosperity, holistic inclusion, and substantive collaboration. New immigrants and institutions need to be able to quantify the value of an adjacent African-American neighborhood. A recent college graduate needs to be able to know that a leading edge tech startup in Cleveland is a viable possibility. And a Latina needs to know that business collaboration with the Chinese community is part of the natural landscape.
If this all sounds crazy, then just take a road trip to Toronto, Canada.