The Workforce Relay

A column by Gov. Dennis Daugaard

The legislative session commenced on Jan. 9 with my final State of the State Address.

I began my speech by talking about workforce, which will be a focus in my last year as governor.

From the perspective of businesses and employers, our state does not have enough workers in many skilled fields. This is a barrier to economic growth.  We have companies that do not expand, or that turn away business, because they cannot hire enough skilled workers to do the work.

To help with this demand for workers, I am bringing legislation this session to create an interstate licensure compact. Professional licensure standards can hurt the economy by creating a barrier to entering many professions.  Licensure can also make it difficult for professionals to move, because each state has its own licensure requirements.  Clearly, professional licensure plays an important role in protecting the public – no one wants to be operated on by an unlicensed doctor or have one’s house wired by an unlicensed electrician. But we must be sure that licensure isn’t used to keep qualified workers out of the market.

I reached out to the governors of North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and Colorado, and all expressed an interest in a reciprocity compact for professional licensure. The idea is simple: if already licensed in one state, a professional can move to another member state and practice for eighteen months – enough time to earn a license in that state if one chooses to do so. The hope is that a number of western states will establish this compact, which then can spread to other states.

In large part, workforce is an issue relating to education. Our students should receive an education that allows them to find well-paying, fulfilling jobs, here in South Dakota. Fortunately, we are making headway in this area through programs like the Build Dakota scholarship, dual credit and the recently announced partnership with Southeast Tech and Dakota State University to create high-tech apprenticeship opportunities.

We are also taking steps through an effort we are calling “Career Launch,” which expands the availability of work-based education experiences, such as apprenticeships, internships or job shadowing during high school. The best way for young people to find career fields they like – or don’t like – is to experience them.

For example, in Yankton, many high school seniors plan their schedules so that their traditional classes are compressed into half a day – morning or afternoon. During the other half of the day, the student works at a paid internship with an employer in town.  The student receives high school credit, is paid at least $11 an hour, gains exposure to a career field, and learns the foundational skills – like how to arrive on time, dress appropriately and interact with customers and coworkers. This month, we are piloting Career Launch with the Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Yankton and Brookings school districts. We hope to expand this effort in the future to more districts.

I’ve often said over the years that workforce is a marathon, not a sprint. Now, as I enter my final year in office, I am coming to see that it is in fact a relay race. Our predecessors dealt with this issue. Over the past seven years, we have initiated strategies to address it. Some have worked, some haven’t, and some remain to be seen.

Next year, I will pass the baton to my successor, and I hope the next governor will continue to evaluate these strategies, and to try new approaches, so that we continue to make progress.

Who Moves a Tech Company from Seattle to Spearfish?

January 5, 2016

Spearfish, SD – In the summer of 2015, Camp Native, located in Seattle, WA, graduated from 9Mile Labs, a B2B Technology accelerator, and was in the midst of completing a seed round.

Founder and CEO, David Woodbury, had the idea of building Camp Native (a marketplace for finding and reserving accommodations for your next outdoor adventure), in a community that embraced the outdoors.

Camp Native moved their operations from the robust tech ecosystem of Seattle, WA, to a small rural town in South Dakota called Spearfish. Here is how it happened and what has transpired.

Woodbury knew Spearfish, SD, to be a beautiful town of just over 10,000 population on the northern edge of the Black Hills. Spearfish had made several top ten lists from sites like National Geographic and Outside Online. When you combine that with the business friendly tax laws of the State of South Dakota and lower cost of operations, Woodbury thought it was worth looking into.

It started with an email.

Woodbury went to the Spearfish Economic Development (SEDC) Website and emailed the executive director, Bryan Walker, suggesting he was interested in moving the company to Spearfish. Walker responded quickly with some skepticism but obvious interest.

Who moves a tech company from Seattle to Spearfish?

Woodbury and Walker scheduled a call and Woodbury expressed his interest in moving the company, inquired if SEDC could do anything to assist him, and discussed funding relationships that might exist within the region.

Walker connected Woodbury with an Angel fund in Rapid City, SD, and brought the idea of bringing Camp Native to Spearfish to his board. After completing the pitches and a couple of months of negotiations, SEDC made an offer to provide funding for furniture and fixtures to set up an office. On top of that, the Angel fund in Rapid City made an investment as well as a local Angel investor in Spearfish. This was enough for Woodbury to make the leap, and in October 2015, he moved across the country to Spearfish.

It’s been a year since he made the move and he couldn’t be happier. When he’s not working at Camp Native’s HQ — a 3,500 sq ft office space in a historic building on Main St. downtown Spearfish — you can find him mountain biking in the hills, skiing Terry Peak, or enjoying a brew at Crow Peak Brewery.

On any given day at the Camp Native HQ there are 10 total employees working diligently to on board and assist properties with utilizing their growing platform. You can recognize the office by the handful of bicycles parked out front, since most employees choose to commute to work by bicycle. The office is reminiscent of any tech company with ping pong, an open floor plan, and plenty of beer in the fridge. It’s got an energy that draws you in.

But has it been successful?

Camp Native is the fastest growing recreational property reservation platform on the planet. They have signed over 600 properties in less than a year of sales efforts. Woodbury says, “In less than a year we’ve signed more reservable properties to our platform than is offered by KOA who’s been in business for 56 years.” They are disrupting a billion dollar industry from a sleepy little mountain town in South Dakota.

Woodbury is proud of what they’ve accomplished in their first year, “We came in and did things different from the start, we knew what the going rate was for sales personnel in this community and we chose to pay 30% higher base salaries. We offered benefits such as health insurance bonus, gym memberships, and unlimited vacation. As a result, we have an amazing core team, 0% turnover, and advocates of our business across the community. We also make sure to get out as a team and support community events.” With reduced costs of operations the Camp Native team is able to get out and become involved with unique experiences. Woodbury recently took the entire team to the Outdoor Hospitality Conference in Fort Worth, TX, to celebrate their one year anniversary.

Woodbury hasn’t stopped with Camp Native. He’s helped develop another tech startup in the community by supporting another entrepreneur on the technology side as well as launching a digital marketing agency. He’s even moved a key executive from Miami to Spearfish, and is assisting in launching an Angel fund in town. He says, “In Seattle, I’m just another entrepreneur trying to build a company. In Spearfish, we are rock stars, but more importantly we can have an impact on this community and I can see and feel tangible evidence of that.”

“Camp Native is still an early stage business, but many in the community view it as already successful. Camp Native has come in and provided a new way of doing things, they treat their people well, and they are invested in the community. Spearfish Economic Development took a risk when they committed funds to bring a pre-revenue tech startup to Spearfish, but so far it’s paying huge dividends.” – Steffanie Salazar SEDC Executive Director

Although technology can bridge geographic gaps, challenges still exist with operating a tech startup in a small town. Woodbury says that the biggest challenges are access to capital, and a major airport. Woodbury does most of the fundraising for Camp Native outside of South Dakota so it can be costly and time consuming to get in front of the right investors. Even so, it can be done using platforms like Gust, Angel List, LinkedIn, and F6S. At the end of the day, Woodbury believes that the pros far outweigh the cons and he’s glad he made the move both from a personal and professional standpoint.

Story Source: Sqoop