One Perlman Drive

Spring Valley , NY 10977

(845) 356-5100 Phone (845) 356-5949 Fax

1  Rockland County is at a crossroads in defining its strategic direction and implementing a related development strategy.

2  There are national and global forces that are far greater than local and regional economies can impact.

3  The time has come for Rockland County to diversify its commercial base and make the county more attractive to all employers.

4  The “driving forces” of Rockland County indicate that economic diversification is possible, by taking advantage of current labor force assets to stem the tide net outbound commuting (-31,326), if it so chooses.

5  Rockland County should build on its labor force strengths including a highly educated and literate adult labor force and a sound primary educational system, as business and labor force attraction.

6  Many employers interviewed said that improving the skills and knowledge of employees was the key strategy in making their companies more competitive.

7  Technical skills - specific to industry, occupation, and employer – are the highest training priority of employers.

8  The apparent disconnect between Rockland County 's highly educated and literate population and the need for employers to have a more highly skilled workforce is not unique to Rockland County .

9  Rockland County must promote its high quality of life while also addressing infrastructure challenges around housing costs and transportation options.

10  Sector based strategies are critical to growing the county's economy, but understanding the similarities and differences have a dramatic impact on workforce, economic, and education policy.

•  Develop a branding campaign .

•  Align workforce, economic, and education policies and systems.

•  Develop an outreach campaign to young workers .

•  Promote entrepreneurialism .

•  Pursue a sector-based strategy to bring together multiple, similar businesses with a common interest in growing together, and consider aligning the strategy with a larger strategy to diversify the employment base.

•  Put the “customer” back into the (customer) “service” economy.

•  Increase career awareness and career preparation by having discussions with the education and training community as well as parents and students about the in-demand occupations in the workplace and the true value of associate degrees, bachelor's degrees, and industry and occupation-specific certification into today's labor market.

•  Turn economic trends at the global and local levels into training opportunities for the workforce and economic development system and education and training partners.  

•  Link to, better understand, and promote larger community issues such as more affordable workforce housing and more transportation infrastructure and options.

 •  Build on the community's inclination towards involvement in addressing the findings and recommendations within this report.