News & Updates

Getting Students Job Ready
By Day One

Policy

July 1, 2016

Dr. Elliot Hirshman, President of San Diego State University

Dr. Elliot Hirshman, President of San Diego State University

Over forty Chamber members sat down with the President of San Diego State University, Dr. Elliot Hirshman, at our latest Good Government Speaker Series. The focus of the meeting was workforce development, or specifically: how centers of higher education can effectively train students to become job ready on day one.

Under the leadership of President Hirshman, San Diego State University has raised more than $700 million to support new initiatives including the university’s entrepreneurship centers, which, cumulatively, have made SDSU the 18th “Most Entrepreneurial” university in the nation as ranked by Forbes magazine. By fostering entrepreneurial experiences, SDSU is committed to preparing students for an innovation-based economy and transforming ideas into actual companies.

The meeting was an excellent opportunity for Chamber member business owners to provide input as to what makes a potential hire employable. Business owners are finding it increasingly difficult to recruit talented workers, and spending the time and money to train new employees can also be challenging.

In addition to developing its entrepreneurship centers, the university aims to close this gap by providing workplace experience for its students. By leveraging its extensive alumni network of more than 280,000, SDSU has expanded its Alumni Mentor Program and approximately 3,500 students held internships last year.

“Few things prepare a student to be Day One Ready more than actual work experience and the opportunity to network with future employers… We know from our data and years of research that internships and mentorships provide competitive advantages for our students, and play vital roles in helping them gain employment upon graduation.”

Eric Rivera, SDSU Vice President of Student Affairs

Get Involved

Through its Education & Workforce Development Committee, the Chamber regularly brings educators and employers together for the purpose of advancing San Diego’s workforce. For more information on how you can get involved, please use our contact form below.

Chamber Responds to Trump’s Anti-NAFTA Comments

InternationalNews

July 1, 2016

The following content is from our latest Policy Update newsletter. To get these updates directly to your inbox, sign up here.

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In response to presidential candidate Donald Trump’s comments that he would renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) or inform both Mexico and Canada that “America intends to withdraw from the deal,” San Diego Chamber President & CEO Jerry Sanders issued the following statement:

“The trade policies proposed by Donald Trump are unrealistic, counter-intuitive, and would be damaging to our economy and jobs. As a port and border city, San Diego exports $17.9 billion worth of goods which support more than 110,000 jobs in San Diego. These trade-related jobs are also higher paying at 13 and 18 percent more than non trade-related jobs.

Under NAFTA specifically, California has seen a 290 percent increase in its exports to Mexico supporting 692,240 jobs in the state. Since NAFTA’s implementation, trade volume has more than tripled among its partners and enabled the North American economy to double in size.

With more than 95 percent of our consumers residing outside of the U.S., it is essential that the U.S. continue to open new markets for American goods and services, while creating and sustaining jobs for American workers. This is how we remain competitive and create jobs in a globalizing economy.”

The San Diego Chamber has a long history of advocating for pro-business international policy, including – most recently – facilitating the agreement to finance a new cross-border railroad; assisting the procurement of funds for border infrastructure projects; and expediting the process to expand and modernize the San Ysidro Port of Entry.

Despite the presidential candidate’s rhetoric, the Chamber team will continue its work to improve relationships between business owners in Mexico and the United States, and promote policy to expand San Diego’s presence in the global marketplace.

One Paseo Mixed-Use Development Project Approved

Policy

June 30, 2016

The following content is from our latest Policy Update newsletter. To get these updates directly to your inbox, sign up here.

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The San Diego City Council voted 8-1 to approve the One Paseo mixed-used development project last month. The Chamber team has been highly active in ensuring the project passes, as it will add much-needed housing, retail, and commercial space while providing a model for future development in San Diego.

Additionally, the One Paseo project will also:

  • Provide a true, walkable main street that will connect and complement the existing surrounding uses of retail, offices and housing.
  • Set a new standard for energy-efficient and drought-resistant green communities.
  • Generate thousands of construction jobs as well as permanent, high-paying jobs in this vital commercial corridor.
  • Incorporate needed housing close to where people work.
  • Provide millions of dollars in private investment toward traffic improvements and millions more for an Adaptive Traffic Management system, as well as optimization technology that will reduce travel times on the local roadways.
  • Generate significant taxes and fees for the City and a boost to the local economy that help fund vital public services, including our schools and affordable housing.
  • Help to fulfill the General Plan’s strategy for a “City of Villages” as well as important state, regional and local policy land-use initiatives.

The new mixed-use village will be built on a 23.6-acre parcel located on the southwest corner of Del Mar Heights Road and El Camino Real. 10 percent of the development project’s housing will be committed to affordable units, and a transit shuttle will connect visitors to the nearby Solana Beach Coaster station.

The Chamber looks forward to watching One Paseo lead the the way in green design while boosting San Diego’s commercial real estate industry.

Chamber Hosts Luncheon with Homeland Security

International

June 29, 2016

The following content is from our latest Policy Update newsletter. To get these updates directly to your inbox, sign up here.

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CaptureThe Chamber hosted a luncheon with Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security, Alan Bersin for a follow-up to the previous meeting with Bersin in Washington, D.C. last September.

Bersin asked the Chamber to continue its leadership in the #OneBorder initiative, promotion of North America as a coalition, and continue to educate the public on the importance of cross-border commerce to combat the gap in reality and perception

Bersin also provided an update on the Department of Homeland Security’s work on joint border management, including:

  • Confirmation that Canada, Mexico, and the United States are working to consolidate documents required to travel between the 3 countries in order to facilitate trade, commerce and tourism with the creation of a North American Trusted Traveler Program
  • Confirmation that the 3 governments are working to consolidate programs for commercial trucks for: Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and the Importer Self-Assessment (ISA) & NEEC New Scheme for Certified Companies” (Mexico’s equivalent of C-TPAT), by expanding the Trusted Trader pilot program
  • Creation of a North American Fugitive Program between the three countries
  • Launch of a campaign against Human Trafficking

Economic Update on the Trans-Pacific Partnership

International

June 28, 2016

The following content is from our latest Policy Update newsletter. To get these updates directly to your inbox, sign up here.

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The United States International Trade Commission (USITC) released a report detailing the likely impact that the Trans-Pacific Partnership would have on the U.S. economy and specific industry sectors, including manufacturing (electronic equipment) and technology services. The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a proposed free trade agreement between 12 countries that will reduce the costs of international trade by 1) eliminating tariffs and tariff-rate quotas for imported goods, 2) eliminate or reduce cross-border non-tariff barriers to trade, and 3) reducing barriers to investment in specific sectors.

Main findings:

  • General: The economic model estimated that TPP would have positive effects. By year 15 (2032), U.S. annual real income would be $57.3 billion (0.23 percent) higher than baseline projections, real GDP would be $42.7 billion (0.15 percent) higher, and employment would be 0.07 percent higher (equivalent to 128,000 new full-time positions).U.S. exports to new free trade partners would grow by $34.6 billion (18.7 percent) while U.S. imports from those countries would grow by $23.4 billion (10.4 percent).
  • The manufacturing, natural resources, and energy sector growth will contract by 0.1 percent. Please note that this does not mean TPP will cause a contraction; only that it will grow at a slower rate.The USITC believes the negligible contraction is due to the fact that manufacturing, natural resources, and energy are already liberalized sectors and that under TPP domestic resources will be diverted to other, more profitable sectors of the U.S. economy.
  • Computer services: The e-commerce policies will remove almost all significant barriers to trade and investment and strengthen market access, national treatment, and regulatory transparency. Most of U.S. export gains would likely be to Japan, Vietnam, and Malaysia.

Related links:

Help C-PIP Shine a Light on Policymakers’ Effect on the Economy

Policy

June 27, 2016

The following content is from our latest Policy Update newsletter. To get these updates directly to your inbox, sign up here.

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How is it that law makers are able to cast votes without thought to the effect on the economy? The California Policy Impact Project (C-PIP) aims to help lawmakers see the impact of their actions and we need your help.

The San Diego Chamber has formed a partnership with dozens of statewide and regional business groups with C-PIP to shine a bright light on the direct economic impacts of policy makers’ votes.

For many years, state and local lawmakers have been getting a “free pass” when they cast votes that hamper job creation or stunt economic growth. At the state and local level, policy makers move from issue to issue, seemingly, without regard to the cumulative impact they are having on the economy.

In poll after poll Californians say that “jobs and the economy” are the most pressing issues in our state. Yet often their elected representatives are pursuing an agenda that cuts against job creation. And they are getting away with it because no one is collecting, compiling, organizing, and presenting the downside economic consequences in connection with their votes on these “job killing” bills or ordinances.

The Chamber intends to connect the dots so law makers no longer get that free pass. We need your help to do this. There are three phases to C-PIP.

  • Phase I will require information collection, from your business or company.
  • Phase II will focus on “telling the story.” We will compile the information and present it to the public, lawmakers’ constituents, the media, and social media. This will be carried out by the Chamber communications team in coordination with their counterparts in other business organizations.
  • Phase III will be advocacy focused. We will work with policy makers to address or mitigate the downside economic consequences of their votes. This phase will be conducted by the Chamber policy staff and advocacy team and our counterparts in the other business organizations.

Lawmakers’ decisions, at the state and local level, to vote for extreme minimum wage hikes is a good place for us to begin because these laws are relatively new with long-term and broad industry impacts. There is a clear upside for those who will enjoy the wage increase. Yet the lawmakers’ disregarded the downside impacts: lost jobs, reduced hours, reduced benefits, business closures, stalled expansion plans, exacerbating the youth unemployment crisis, etc. We anticipate other economically damaging measures to come from this legislature and many local governments, so we must organize ourselves in a collective effort so we can replicate this effort on other issues in a sustained and impactful manner. This project will start with the minimum wage impact. And depending on our success in Phase I we will pursue other policies.

So here is how you can help, please go to go to www.C-PIP.org and fill out the simple survey. That’s it.

The survey does not require you to include the name or your company or business. Is does, however, require your email address, first name, and phone number in the event there is a verification need. The survey will only take 5-10 minutes. The questions are mostly multiple choice. However the last question allows an “in your own words” response if you have a “story” to tell. If you are willing to share your story, simply check the box and our communication team with follow up with you.

Member Spotlight: Kumon Math & Reading Center of Point Loma

Member Spotlight

June 27, 2016

Kumon Math & Reading CenterKumon Math and Reading Center of Point Loma is part of the largest after-school math and reading program in the world that unlocks the potential of children so they can achieve more on their own. Kumon has over 26,000 centers in 49 countries and regions and more than four million students studying worldwide.

The Kumon math and reading programs help children master those fundamental skills so critical to their overall academic performance. The fundamental skills instilled by Kumon over time lead to accelerated learning throughout life. Kumon parents find their children performing above grade level, which increases educational opportunities and can open up a new world of advanced and gifted schooling.

FB_Romeo 3-5 copy 2Learn more by attending a parent orientation at the Kumon Math and Reading Center of Point Loma.

Contact:

Roland Ibanez, Instructor/Director
KUMON Math and Reading Learning Center of San Diego – Point Loma
3960 West Point Loma Boulevard, Suite C
San Diego, CA 92110
Phone: 619-738-5200
Email: rolandoibanez@ikumon.com
Website: http://www.kumon.com/SAN-DIEGO-POINT-LOMA
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/KumonofSanDiego

Chamber Hosts Successful Congressional Luncheon

Events

June 23, 2016

The San Diego Chamber hosted its annual Congressional Luncheon Monday at the beautiful Hilton Bayfront Hotel. The event brought together nearly 500 business leaders and government officials, to hear from the luncheon’s featured panel speakers Congressmembers Susan Davis, Duncan Hunter, Darrell Issa, and Scott Peters.

Chamber Executive VP & COO Aimee Faucett moderated the panel and asked the Congressional delegation about their (sometimes heated) views on the upcoming presidential race, homelessness, gun control, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and other federal issues related to the well-being of San Diego’s regional economy. The Congressional delegates also answered poignant questions from the audience during an interactive Q&A session.

Thank you to everyone who attended, including our Congressmembers and our title sponsors: Bridgepoint Education, SeaWorld, and BAE Systems. For more information on the event, we invite you to view our Facebook photo album, visit the #DCinSD hashtag recap on Twitter, or watch our event highlight video below.

We’ll see you again next time!

Chamber Participates in Bush Institute Working Group

International

June 23, 2016

The following content is from our latest Policy Update newsletter. To get these updates directly to your inbox, sign up here.

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International Business Affairs Project Manager Mayra Vazquez attended a Bush Presidential Institute Working Group meeting at the North American Development Bank (NADB) office in San Antonio, Texas. The group contains business, transportation, financial, and academia leaders that meet regularly to analyze the possibility of a North American border infrastructure bank and strategies to expand the current role of the NADB, which currently finances projects in the border regions of the US and Mexico (but not Canada).

A discussion document is in the works and considerations from this working group will be taken into account for a final proposal following additional working group sessions. The Chamber team has worked to strengthen its relationship with both the Bush Institute and NADB in order to include San Diego priorities and educate the local community on two organization’s role in cross-border commerce.

 

County Business Outlook Regains Stability

NewsSan Diego

June 22, 2016

Biz4Cast-Ticker-BlogThe following content is from the June edition of the Business Forecast newsletter, sponsored by Silvergate Bank. To get these updates directly to your inbox, sign up here.

Business Forecast Highlights:
  • BOI moves up a couple points to 21.3
  • Poor long-term trends for hospitality and restaurant segment
  • Government regulations sapping business confidence
  • Overwhelming consensus is that starting a successful business locally is hard work
  • Slightly more than half say they would start a new business in County

Survey respondents say starting a business in San Diego County is difficult

Following three months of erratic business confidence, this month’s Silvergate Bank-sponsored Business Forecast shows modest change in outlook among county businesses from last month. San Diego County’s Business Outlook Index (BOI) rests at 21.3, four points below its all-time average of 25.1. As the BOI ranges from -100 to +100, with zero being neutral, the business community’s outlook does remain moderately positive.

San Diego Business Outlook Over Time

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Looking at long-term trends affecting the outlook, there is evidence of specific impacts by industry and geography. The hospitality and restaurant industry has shown a year-long trend of a weaker outlook which has weighed down local economic sentiment. Geographically, the long-term decline has come from county businesses located outside the City of San Diego.

The short-term trends show that the BOI has recently been flat. Firms in Santee are the notable exception, as confidence there has grown. For members of the Santee Chamber of Commerce, the BOI has moved from a lackluster 12 in the previous quarter to a robust 40 this month.

Minimum wage increases remain the top challenge facing County businesses, as 9 percent mention them. Government regulations in general, changes in the political environment, taxes, and the Affordable Care Act combine to affect another 14 percent. This means that more than one out of every five San Diego County businesses see government as a barrier to success. That takes a toll on business confidence. Those citing government as a challenge report a BOI of 16 and those specifically citing regulations as the challenge post a BOI of only 3.

Last month we saw that sentiment related to hiring was a critical factor dragging down the BOI. This month, hiring, at least among large companies, has rebounded. However, small firms are not nearly as likely to add workers.

This month’s survey asked about business start-ups finding that the consensus is it takes a lot of effort to get a good business off the ground in San Diego County. Seventy-four percent of business people say it’s difficult to start a successful company in their area and 30 percent describe it as very difficult. Only 19 percent rate the process as easy.
 

Survey: How Difficult Is it in San Diego to Start Business?

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Two types of businesses that don’t share the dismal outlook of starting a business are home and garden, and healthcare related companies. Companies in these industries rarely rate starting a business as very difficult. Also, businesses located in the county’s south suburbs tend to be split on the ease of setting up shop successfully. What is interesting is that we find no correlation between how confident a business person is and their perception of the difficulty of starting a company.

When it comes to where to start a new business, opinions are as varied as the options. Likely reflecting a physical tether to the County, a slim majority would start a new company here. However, only 32 percent would start that company in their own city or town. Only 6 percent would look to somewhere else in the state, but another 23 percent would start that company outside of California. There are 15 percent who say, under no circumstance, would they start a new business.
 

San Diego Business Survey: Where would you start your business?

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ABOUT THE BUSINESS FORECAST

The San Diego County Business Forecast, sponsored by Silvergate Bank, is a scientific look at where our region’s economy is headed. The survey for this month’s installment was fielded May 16-31, 2016 by Competitive Edge Research & Communication using responses from 232 randomly-selected members of the San Diego, East County, Alpine, Escondido, Lakeside, Vista, Santee, and National City Chambers of Commerce. All Chamber members are invited to complete the survey either online or over the phone.

The Business Outlook IndexTM (BOI) is comprised of four self-reported assessments regarding the next three months: Will a respondent’s business increase or decrease its number of employees, experience an increase or a decrease in revenue, increase or decrease the number of hours its employees work, and experience an improvement or a worsening of business conditions. For each assessment, definite and positive responses are scored 100, probable and positive responses are scored 50, neutral responses are scored 0, probable and negative responses are scored -50 and definite and negative responses are scored -100. The scores are summed and divided by 4 to get a range for the BOI of -100 to +100, with zero being a neutral outlook. Visit https://sdchamber.org/businessforecast to see past Business Forecasts.

ABOUT SILVERGATE BANK,BUSINESS BANKING REDEFINED

For over 25 years, as a San Diego based community bank, Silvergate provides a rewarding banking experience where the client’s needs always come first. Our business banking experts listen to needs and work to provide customized solutions to support your company’s growth and profit objectives. Our bankers are committed to superior responsiveness, local decision making, and the agility that allows our clients to choose the way they want to bank with us. To learn more, visit www.silvergatebank.com or contact Dino D’Auria at ddauria@silvergatebank.com.