A survey recently released by the Buffalo Niagara Partnership is showing that the majority of its member businesses have a favorable impression of the Buffalo Niagara business climate, while still holding concerns about the state’s perceived lack of friendliness toward businesses.
Other positives from the 2018 Annual Advocacy and Member survey include 75 percent of respondees saying their current facility meets the needs of the company. But the report, which the Partnership uses to communicate with government and economic development agencies, also highlighted several pain points for businesses both small and large.
The survey, for the first time, focused on sentimental questions addressing how company leaders feel about the current business climate, Buffalo Niagara Partnership CEO Dottie Gallagher-Cohen says. The Partnership uses the results to inform the organization’s Advocacy Agenda, which outlines policy priorities.
“The results came back and we said, ‘Wow, this is helpful,’” Gallagher-Cohen says.
“I think for folks living here, there’s no disputing, you look around the visible business landscape and things are changing here … There are cranes in the sky, the medical school downtown. But you can’t divorce it from continued challenges to do business here,” she adds.
Those challenges include concerns with state, county, and federal regulations, worries about market conditions, and difficulty in finding talent.
Gallagher-Cohen says that minimum wage legislation, paid family leave, and employer-funded health care costs are challenges that need to be addressed in Albany.
But the Partnership can take that information to policymakers and point to it as the voice of small and large businesses in Western New York.
“Our role is to keep pushing and pushing on these things, which may be well-intentioned, but really might have negative consequences.”
According to the survey, 64 percent of respondees hired additional employees in 2017, and 70 percent saw sales or revenue increase. In addition, 66 percent said they plan to add new employees in 2018 and 64 percent plan to expand products and services.
Also of note, the survey showed 44 percent of respondees struggle to achieve a diverse workforce.
That’s why, Gallagher-Cohen says, programs like the Northland Avenue Corridor Project and Employ Buffalo Niagara, a regional, employer-led workforce development initiative powered by the Buffalo Niagara Partnership, are so important for Buffalo.
“We’re extremely excited about what’s happening at Northland,” Gallagher-Cohen says, calling community workforce initiatives like Employ the ‘backbone’ of industries ranging from tourism to healthcare.
The Partnership CEO adds that Employ Buffalo Niagara, is a collaborative effort among business, government, philanthropic, and nonprofit organizations. It is working to put working poor populations that might otherwise be on the sidelines for Buffalo’s growth into sectors like entertainment and tourism jobs.
By coordinating and streamlining the efforts of employers, government agencies, educational institutions and community organizations, Employ Buffalo Niagara is improving the system to provide employers with the qualified workers they need and
connect job seekers to career opportunities in the region.
“Employ will be focused on several industries including healthcare and tourism. Our initial focus is manufacturing, and Northland is a key partner in these efforts,” Grant Loomis, Buffalo Niagara Partnership vice president of government affairs adds.