The Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce is working hard to convince Miller Brewing Co. and Molson Coors Brewing Co. executives to locate their combined headquarters in Colorado, rather than Milwaukee.
Denver's effort received a huge a boost from a rather strange place Thursday: from Milwaukee's business community.
Five of the Milwaukee area's most prominent chief executive officers were featured in a panel discussion on "Global Wooing" Thursday by the Public Policy Forum. The five CEOs took turns ripping Milwaukee as a terrible place to do business.
The CEOs jointly described Milwaukee as a region with a broken public education system, runaway health care costs and an anti-capitalistic mindset. They said Milwaukee's taxes are too high, and the region doesn't know how to market itself, suffers from a lack of leadership, has wasteful government spending and doesn't provide enough tax incentives to attract and keep businesses and create jobs.
And when they were done criticizing the region as a terrible place to do business, they piled on and did it again. And again.
Paul Purcell, CEO of Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc., criticized Milwaukee Public Schools and called for more charter schools and choice schools. "We need to fix MPS," he said.
Purcell also denounced Wisconsin's "bureaucracy and tax structure."
John Shiely, CEO of Briggs & Stratton Inc., was asked if he would consider building a new manufacturing plant here.
"We probably wouldn't, to tell you the truth," Shiely said.
Shiely criticized the collective mindset of Milwaukee, saying the region is more likely to have a great-grandson of "one of Milwaukee's socialist mayors" denounce the gap in salaries between CEOs and front-line workers than it is to encourage the creation of wealth.
"That shouldn't be … You just don't hear the 'two Americas' rhetoric (down South)," Shiely said.
Rick Armbrust, CEO of Oilgear Co., said he is warmly welcomed and embraced by Chinese government officials when he visits that country.
"Come to Milwaukee … And you don't find that," Armbrust said.
Likewise, Tim Sullivan, CEO of Bucyrus International Inc., said he was courted by local governmental officials when he visited Idaho and Texas to consider plant expansions there. By contrast, in Milwaukee, "It was like bouncing off the walls trying to get someone to talk to … We don't do anything other states do. We have to emulate these other states to try to attract and keep companies."
Jeff Joerres, CEO of Manpower Inc., said, "We're not breaking rules to say, 'Come here.'"
Purcell said his company has difficulty persuading top young talent to come to Milwaukee, where employers increasingly are facing the additional challenge of finding employment for the spouses of job candidates.
"In Chicago, they have 15 opportunities, and in Milwaukee, they have one," Purcell said.
Purcell said Milwaukee should stop trying to compete with Chicago and should instead collaborate more with the Windy City and Madison.
Purcell drew applause from the crowd of more than 200 business and civic leaders when he said southeastern Wisconsin needs high-speed rail to be more competitive.
Joerres said the region needs to do a more effective job of promoting its image to the" 25-year-olds" in other markets.
"In many ways, we're not known for much … What if you put in light rail?" Joerres said. "I think as a city, we've got to get out in front."
Joerres read aloud a national news story about a company that moved its headquarters to North Carolina.
Shiely, who said Milwaukee has a bad "tone," told a story about the cheaper labor his company finds for its plant in Kentucky.
When asked about the need for taxes to support quality-of-life initiatives, such as public parks, Sullivan said local governments were inefficient and duplicative.
"We are squandering millions of (dollars) of federal money," Sullivan said.
Meanwhile, the folks at the Milwaukee 7, the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce and the Spirit of Milwaukee are doing all they can to try convince companies such as Miller/Molson Coors to put their headquarters in Milwaukee.
Good luck with that, now.
Dean Amhaus, president of Spirit Milwaukee, attended the Public Policy Luncheon and listened to the CEOs' comments.
"Do we have things we need to address and grow and change? Absolutely. That's why Milwaukee 7 was created, to address that. One of the first things was to get us all on the same page, so when someone did call us, they didn't have 35 phone numbers to call. Milwaukee 7 has only been around two years. Places like North Carolina have been doing this for decades. The other thing is places like North Carolina use a huge amount of government dollars to do that. Ours is mostly privately driven," Amhaus told SBT after the forum. "We are our own worst enemy. We have to move past the glass is half empty to the glass is half full, and I think we've made significant progress. We will continue to keep championing the positives. Time in and time out, we have people come to the Milwaukee region, and they are amazed to see what we have got going on here, and they are quick to sing our praises."
The forum also was attended by Jeff Sherman, president of OnMilwaukee.com, which is one of the strongest voices of advocacy for the region. After the event, Sherman called for a more positive dialog among its corporate leaders.
"We heard many valid 'criticisms' today, but we are tired of hearing CEOs complain about the 'bad tone' in Milwaukee," Sherman said. "Let's tell the positive Milwaukee stories and dive in to address the negatives."
Steve Jagler is executive editor of Small Business Times.
16 Comments
It is hard to argue with any of the criticisms leveled by the CEO's. Instead of blasting them for speaking the truth, lets take the problems they point out and fix them. How? It starts with true leadership (maybe those CEOs themselves?) and realistic plans for changing these problems one-by-one.
As a good example, we can look to the growth of Indianapolis, which has had a mayor champion their growth into a regional center and a major-league city.
Are there great things about Milwaukee? Yes, just as there are problems. If we want to fix these problems and create a pro-business climate there has to be a plan, and the commitment and leadership to see it through. If these problems aren't addressed, we might as well not try to compete for business and resign ourselves to the drain of resources and jobs. Are we up to the challenge?
The CEOs aren't the enemy here - they speak the truth. Our only enemy here is the big gumnit folks in Madistan and Milwaukee.
Incredible. Incredible. I am so sick of these blowhards complaining about Milwaukee. What a joke. Taxes in the Milwaukee are lower than the taxes in Chicago. They're lower than the taxes in Minneapolis. They're comparable with most other larger Midwestern markets. What's more, our cost of living is affordable, the quality of life is good, our university system is top-notch, we have (or had) a great park system. In cities such as Atlanta and Denver, the local business communities are LEADING the charge to build things such as commuter rail. The businesses are lobbying FOR more taxes, because they see the investments as seed money to grow their companies. We have too many cheap, conservative dinks who just put their hands over their ears and cry "our taxes are too high" as a reason to shoot down every good idea that comes down pike.
As for their love of how business is done in China and down South ... Do we really want to live like those people? Would that be progress? From these CEOs' perspective, it would.
These guys have every right to say what they said, though there might be some level of political ax grinding going on here.
But the point is is they bemoan lack of leadership here's news -- aren't you all leaders?
Like it or not, government is a major actor in our economy and we can either work with it or act like it's our enemy. Smart people do the former and that's what successful economies do.
The other need is more people who understand business need to find there way into government. Because of the needlessly adversarial stance of business towards government here in Wisconsin that is what happens.
It's time for cooperation. We are wasting too much of our energy -- and opportunities.
Let's not kill the messengers, and let's not praise the cheerleaders.
Let's ask: Who is our quarterback? Who is our "go-to" guy?
Not a go-to-committee, go-to messaging center, go-to interactive dvd, or go-to party planner...
Whose head is on the line to make Milwaukee grow? Who gets fired when
Miller leaves town? No one, that I can see.
Which means we accept failure. And failure is not an option for Milwaukee.
Milwaukee is a great place to live, drink, party, enjoy the arts-- in short, to live.
To work? Create jobs? That's a bit tougher.
"Iron belt" cities all across the nation are going through the same thing-- it's not unique to Milwaukee. But some cities seem a bit freer with capital, more attuned to the creative class, and more willing to take advice from the old horses that have already made mistakes or made money.
The only problem with the leadership in this area, especially politically is that voters have lowered their standards to come to expect to get punishing taxes and very average services: i.e. Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors, MATC, etc.
Those who argue that some how the quality of life here is so much better for the high taxes we pay have not spent any time living in other places to realize that we are over taxed and underserved from roads to schools to civic promotion.
Steve, these CEOs are wise to voice their frustration, perhaps it will shock voters into asking questions of the political leadership.
As for Miller/Coors, they know the score and will have spoken to these same people whether they speak out publicly or not.
Our small business is thriving, growing everyday in southeast Wisconsin!
So here we have it. Business leaders bemoaning our expensive health care system (among other things) and all while business associations like WMC, NFIB, and the various Chambers are doing everything possible to block the one fix that would put our business climate on the map: Healthy Wisconsin.
Sounds to me like they are getting what they deserve.
The Republicans should quit pushing their insurance industry windfall, health savings accounts, and start negotiating with the Dems for a package we can all live with. And while that kind of cooperation could cost them some campaign contributions from insurers, this state's economy would be the winner.
"The CEOs jointly described Milwaukee as a region with a broken public education system, runaway health care costs and an anti-capitalistic mindset. They said Milwaukee's taxes are too high, and the region doesn't know how to market itself, suffers from a lack of leadership, has wasteful government spending and doesn't provide enough tax incentives to attract and keep businesses and create jobs."
What more needs be said? Those of you who disagree or fail to grasp the ongoing urgency to eradicate the Neanderthal, Stalinist socio-economic philosophies deeply entrenched in Milwaukee and Wisconsin for over forty years, destroying any hope for a happy future, are either:
1) Delusional to the point of personal impairment and community detriment
2) Woefully under-educated regarding the fundamentals of economics
3) Living off grand-dad's trust money
4) Unionists/socialists willing to see Wisconsin burn before entertaining free market principles
5) Or, to speak plainly, just plain dumb as a box of rocks.
I have lived in Milwaukee most of my life, but spent key years at the beginning of my career in both high growth new cities and innovative old cities. I came back to Milwaukee because I love her, but I've spent most of the past 15 years frustrated and grinding my teeth at the rampant and pervasive incompetence that oozes regulations, decrees, proclamations, taxes, and ever-increasing layers of ineffective bureaucracy and just plain nonsense promulgated by our "leadership regime." Despite all the hoopla made over new urbanism, gentrification, downtown condos, Park East, Third Ward, The Valley, etc., the fundamental and necessary changes to keep Milwaukee viable are still a distant ship's smoke on the horizon.
Milwaukee could be competitive...and even superior. Milwaukee could be a wealth creation machine. But it will never happen while the same crowd (many of whom are now finally dying off, thank God) that engineered the destruction of MPS, the exodus of wealth from the city, the pre-eminence of the policy of minority "nanny-ism" and a stupefying surge in "anti-poverty" government programs that resulted in decades of Milwaukee's dependence on federal and state taxpayer largesse, are still around. They are; and to make matters worse, Milwaukee's utopian/socialist tradition has cultivated a strong discipleship following these destructive policies, many of whom represent our current leadership in all three branches of government; Jim Doyle, various holders of Milwaukee area assembly and senate seats, various judicial positions, most of the county board and common council. These individuals, more often than not, embody most if not all of the five accursed characteristics enumerated above. Consider the following:
1) The Pabst City TIF Fiasco
2) The recent state budget debate embarrassment
3) The patently lame indecision involving KRM
4) The stalled Park East redevelopment
5) The VA grounds debacle
6) The love affair with and harmful deference to public employee unions
7) The inability to reform a 70 year old liquor license quota statute that prohibits economic development and protects a business monopoly defended by the tiny and disproportionately influential (some would say unethically influential) Tavern League.
I could add to this list until the cows come home but the facts remain as obvious and blunt as the remarks of our own business leaders. Milwaukee is failing via a form of collective suicide. But I, for one, don't intend to go quietly and will be looking to work with business leaders to develop a new Milwaukee school of leadership and economic thought aimed at de-throning the status quo by championing wealth creation and the creative class in our marketplace and insisting on excellence and professionalism in government stewardship. I strongly encourage all to read the January 2004 Wisconsin Policy Research Institute Report, "Wisconsin's Quiet Crisis" (available via this link, http://www.wpri.org/Reports/Volume17/Vol17no1.pdf) so that the first step toward understanding the scale, scope, and urgency of our problems can at least be a consensus starting point for turning my favorite city around. There is so much to do and so little time...let's get it together Milwaukee.
I agree with most of the comments by the CEO's about Milwaukee's problems. We need more candid discussion, not less, by our leadership (both public and private) about how to solve the real problems they spoke of. However, I'm still waiting to see leaders from the business community actually challenge our governmental leaders publicly and directly about these issues (where was the business leadership in Milwaukee County when Scott Walker wanted to make the parks department more efficient?).
The Small Business Times editor's comments are indicative of how the press, government officials, the ruling democratic party, and government employee unions don't want to address these problems. Milwaukee needs to be unleashed from its past of big, inefficient government (i.e. Scott Walker's battle to trim county govt.), high taxes (i.e. check our property taxes against Denver's), anti-growth policies (i.e. the anti-freeway expansion Milwaukee city council), and anti-business attitude (i.e. rejection of BuySeasons.com in the valley).
Indicator's of this region's decline are stagnant income and population growth. Those that think everything is fine need to travel- several metro areas in the rest of the country are passing us by and we are now becoming more like Des Moines and Omaha in terms of population and economic power, and less like Minneapolis and Charlotte.
A test of the business community's will is coming very soon. The same old obstructionists are going to try to cut back school choice in Milwaukee again. Action by these CEO's will speak louder than words at some conference.
Finally, as to light rail and high speed rail- maybe we could afford these and have true demand for them if we created a dynamic economic environment in this state by unloading some of the burdens noted above.
Comments by these CEOs and these other comments by conservatives who agree with them show exactly that we are own worst enemies. Every time anyone wants to do anything progressive in this region, the people stuck in yesterday - i.e. Belling & Sykes and their sheep-like followers - screw it up. And nothing gets done. We need to move into the 21st century, and these dinosaurs are holding us back. We will forever be stuck ... Because any idea that involves any public investment will be shot down by these near-sighted morons. Meanwhile, the business communities in other towns, like Atlanta, Phoenix, Minneapolis and Denver, are LEADING the charge for things like light rail. It won't get done here, because there are still enough dorks in this town that hold things back for everyone else. With them still callling the shots, Milwaukee will never reach its full potential and will never be able to compete by attracing the diverse, young, creative class.
I might add that the business associations that are blocking health care reform are very often sellers of health care insurance. In my mind a conflict of interest, but their members seem not to have caught on yet.
John, you are 100% correct. Our problem is the natural fight for wealth, and for the most part, as a capitalist, I support that.
But too much of a good thing has gotten out of hand. That fight now includes the elites wanting to become even more elite, and they are willing to pay off our politicians to get laws changed to ensure the faster transfer of wealth into their pocket. Not all, but enough to damage the economy.
That our politicians are willing to accept these gratuities and bend the laws to allow it, is not just unconscionable, but it has severely degraded our local and federal economy.
But the elites are getting ahead and the politicians are getting re-elected, all while the little guy keeps falling behind. And then we wonder why the buyers have no cash to invest in our state.
This will remain until we get the corruption out of the political system and politicians start voting for their people instead of their pocketbook.
Regarding John Wolters comments- Milwaukee and southeast Wisconsin will not magically start growing in population and jobs if we get light rail. Wolter's believes that we need to follow the "progressive" path- isn't that what we have had for over 50 years in this area with democratic party control of the city and county administrations in Milwaukee? That is why we have oppressive property taxes, failing and unaccountable public schools at MPS, and bloated, unresponsive governments. Cities such as Denver and Atlanta can afford light rail because they are starting from a low level of taxes and they have more dynamic and vibrant economies. When we get to their level of growth and taxes I'll be all for adding a light rail system.
Wolters and Lohman are typical of the growth obstructionists in this area. They believe we need even higher taxes, more government, are anti-freeway, and are annoyed at other people's success. Lohman talks about the political influence of big business and wealthy people. True to some degree (as it is in Atlanta, Denver, Phoenix...)- but where is the outrage about the larger influence of public employee unions on our local and state governments? Lohman wasn't outraged that WEAC was exempt from the Healthy Wisconsin proposal made last year.
As the comments above agreeing with the CEO's state- we need honest discussion of the issues- and from both sides.
Thanks for spelling my name correctly, Bill, but don't count me as either pro or con light rail. Haven't studied it and won't, thus I won't take a position on it. Call me anti-roads-to-nowhere, if you will, but I support a strong infrastructure. Just not road waste, or any payola that wins road contracts.
Do I support Healthy Wisconsin? Absolutely. It'll add $15 billion in payroll taxes and eliminate $17 billion in health care premiums. To most of us with a calculator, that's a $2 billion reduction in business expenses. I'd hardly call that obstructionist. It'll bring new businesses to the state and keep old businesses here. That means more jobs and greater wealth. If WMC were not making profits on selling employee health care insurance, I think they'd welcome it.
I'm not an expert on the WEAC exemption to HW, but David Riemer (one of the framers) insists that they are NOT excluded. But frankly, if the public gets the same 100% coverage that teachers get, I could give a damn. It's a wash.
As to an "honest discussion," let's start with stating my position correctly. I don't like political corruption, though apparently you do. So be it. We disagree. Call me a "corrupt politician" obstructionist, but I've done the math. It's killing Wisconsin.
The executives of Miller/Coors know more about doing business in the city/states they are considering than the collective wisdom of everyone on this site. Do you really think the pros/cons of locating in Wisconsin are a secret? Steve, could you tell me when is the right time for local CEO's to tell you what you want to hear?