Local Business Local Jobs Survey Results

Results of The Beacon Council's annual Local Business Local survey also
show high satisfaction with Miami-Dade's access to U.S. and international markets
Miami-Dade Florida, September 15, 2008
The Beacon Council, Miami-Dade
County's Economic Development organization, today released the results of the Fifth Local Business Local Jobs Survey. The annual survey is conducted to receive feedback from the business community regarding their thoughts on our local business climate and how it is affecting their company. The information collected will assist The Beacon Council in determining priorities, as well as areas of concern which need to be addressed.
The survey provides local companies with the opportunity to share their views on issues important to their company and about Miami-Dade County's economy. It is important to regularly gauge the opinion of the local business community about the environment they operate it. The survey results are utilized to tout the positive aspects of Miami-Dade County
and make sure that those issues that received negative responses are addressed by community leaders. Administered by The Doug Williams Group
from April through July 2008, the survey was sent to over 2,000 companies. Of these, 117 companies responded, giving the survey a 6
percent response rate.
Results
Questions on the survey dealt with forward-looking topics such as prospective hiring, revenue growth, and facility expansion and
relocation. The respondents were positive overall about their companies' prospects for the coming twelve months. Some key findings include:
*Seventy-six percent of the respondents were optimistic about their company's revenue for the next 12 months.
*Fifty-eight percent of the respondents stated that they would keep their company in Miami-Dade County.
The companies were also asked to rank their satisfaction level for business, quality of life, education and workforce issues as they relate to the operation of their company. Respondents gave high satisfaction
marks to U.S. and international market access, as well as to quality of life issues related to sports, recreation and leisure activities. Issues
that had low satisfaction rankings included housing; commercial insurance; primary public education; commercial real estate;
transportation; recruitment of employees; permitting and Miami International Airport.
The respondents were asked about the importance of business, quality of life, education and workforce issues for the operation of their
businesses. The top three issues that were ranked as most important by the respondents were: 1) availability of skilled professional ...