Embrace change. My interactions with business and government in Arizona are full of resistance to change.

- “That’s not the way we do it.”
- “The policy doesn’t support that.”
- “We have a new initiative…” that looks the same as what they were doing before.

A specific example: The course on basic computer use in Gilbert Public School District high schools teaches the student to recognize modems, floppy disks and Zip drives. And they are one of the best districts in the state. Even the curriculum does not change to keep up with reality.

The world moves at a much faster pace today. Our institutions of learning and business need to move ahead of that pace. We are not even keeping up, right now.

III.2 Reduce the corporate taxes that incentivize large companies to build their HQ’s elsewhere. Larger companies will bring well-paid employees who will make up the difference in personal income taxes.

III.3 See above, also fund people who are making it happen today. Gangplank is both a physical place and a rallying point for new economy talent. Provide infrastructure and funding to grow these initiatives that are working.

III.4 Texas has a fund to literally close deals with businesses that are moving in, a dedicated fund that would tip the scales in a close battle for new economy businesses might help. Ideally, this fund is built via a trust and a foundation vs hitting the depleted state budget.

IV.1, 2 & 3 Once business arrives or grows from the ground up, talent is required to fuel the grow of the business. Rewiring education to focus on the creative arts, training teachers to develop curriculum that focuses on students generating their own answers vs entirely wrote memorization of someone else’s answers are critical to form the workforce of Arizona’s tomorrow.

We need more than a five year commitment (the length of a real estate down cycle) to economic development efforts to support small, local businesses with capital and services until they grow. Even Microsoft didn’t grow overnight and Amazon took almost ten years to be profitable. Capital should be available to small businesses to help them grow.

Incubators are a help, but they can’t do everything, because people actually should graduate from them. Then what? Entrepreneurs should be revered, or they won’t continue to start things here.

Start with what’s already here: TGen, Gangplank, and the things we’ve already started. Get behind them, before we re-brand or start something new. SUPPORT WHAT ALREADY EXISTS.

Tax breaks are not necessary if businesses make money.

I know i/we are spoiled at gangplank with the talent resources within earshot. I could give you 20 names of talented folks that with some financial cushion to focus for 90 days could turn that idea into a possible business, a business that would pay taxes and hire technical employees at modest to high wages.

Essentially Arizona needs “student loans” or “pell grants” for the entrepreneur. Instead of spending it at ASU, they could incubate their own ideas in a structured mentorship program at places like gangplank.