From: Dearborn County Chamber of Commerce Newsletter, Sept.-Oct. 2009

 

Japan Trade Mission

Builds Relationships

For Economic Development

 

By Mike Rozow

Chamber President and Chief Operating Officer of the Dearborn County Economic Development Initiative

 

My words in this space in the last newsletter and in the September Express publication explained how the Chamber and the Dearborn County Economic Development Initiative have stepped up our efforts to increase participation in economic development outreach with the State of Indiana.

 

This continued in September when I joined about 50 other Hoosiers on the Japan leg of a trade mission to China and Japan.  And despite some good-natured kidding I took from a couple friends about my “junket or vacation to the Far East” (two 17-hour flights and four non-stop morning-to-night days of meetings and engagements), I returned with a very positive feeling about our efforts to build relationships that will benefit Dearborn County in the future.

 

Governor Mitch Daniels led the Indiana delegation that included six state officials, six mayors, representatives from Indiana University, Purdue University, and Ivy Tech, and 26 community and business leaders.  Several members of the delegation specifically said they were glad to see Dearborn County making an effort to be more involved with the State in these kinds of endeavors.

 

Indiana joined with other Midwest states for the 41^st Annual Meeting of the Midwest U.S.-Japan Association and the Japan-Midwest U.S. Association.  Governors from Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin were also on hand.  Indiana’s delegation was the largest of the states.    

 

Will business investment result from the trade mission?  I believe it will.  Economic development is a journey, not a sprint.  And this is especially true with Far East countries.  Building relationships for the long-term is absolutely mandatory for success.  Face time is important.

 

Working to Indiana’s benefit is the State’s recent successful courtship of Honda and the auto manufacturer’s expansion to Greensburg.  This serves as a shining example of why Indiana is an excellent location option.  Health sciences and energy are two target industry groups that are high on Indiana’s priority list.

 

My last trip to Japan was in the late 1970s, and I thought you might be interested in some of the changes that struck me. 

 

I had remembered Tokyo being very crowded back then.  This time, not as much.  An incredible transportation infrastructure is adding to their quality of life.  More people are living outside the city.  It is not unusual for a worker to live 70 miles outside of Tokyo and commute to work on a sleek bullet train.  As the U.S. discusses the merits of high-speed rail transit, it was interesting to see close-up how far Japan is ahead of us in this area.

 

The demographics of the Japanese worker are changing.  Forty years ago, a company like Sony provided workers with a job for life.  When they retired at age 55, the company paid salary and benefits.  But life expectancy then was 60 years of age.  Workers now are living into their late 70s, and this is creating challenges and causing much political debate.

 

My first day in Japan produced one of the most memorable parts of the trip.  We spent the entire day with Indiana’s Japanese sister state Tochigo.  We were hosted at the Government Hall and at a luncheon and an evening reception with Governor Fukuda.  We participated in a planting ceremony of tulip trees in Central Park, and it was interesting and emotional to see our hosts reverence for nature.

 

This STRAIGHT TALK column and other STRAIGHT TALK communication through emails from the Chamber and postings on our web site will seek to clarify issues, correct misinformation, and balance discussion on key issues affecting our community.  We welcome your feedback.  Email – StraightTalk@DearbornCountyChamber.org.

 

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