Resilience Attracts Business

As recruiters evaluate how the economy is influencing the communities they serve and the companies they promote, a term that might have come up is “resilience.”  What resources help one community survive when one area of business closes shop?  Which accounts that you work with continue to find ways to grown even though nationwide business is down?

As you plan ahead for these uncertain times, resilience might be something you want to think more about.

At the nonprofit Urban Land Institute, researchers are trying to identify the qualities that lead urban areas to manage setbacks during changes in the economy. When an area proves this resilience, it is very attractive to investors who want to create more jobs in an environment that can prosper amid uncertainty.

The Urban Land Institute (ULI) has published a report calledResilient Cities:  Surviving in a New World that looks at the principles of resilient cities as well as the issues and solutions related to building resilience in European cities.  According to the report, resilience should be a main goal for all cities, since international institutions and the private sector are attracted to cities that are better prepared to handle uncertain times.

The report focuses on identifying continuity and adaptability as key aspects of resilient cities.  Resilient cities are able to use trying events as opportunities for positive change.  They can adapt to changes by ensuring that infrastructure and land use are flexible to changing demand and consistent with global and societal imperatives.

“With over half of the global population now living in urban areas, building resilient cities is more important than ever,” says the report.  “Long-term resilience for cities requires that they be both able to achieve continuity and adaptability” and therefore, “a multifaceted approach is clearly needed to build a resilient city.”

Do you consider the area that you work with “resilient”?  Have there been new opportunities for you as the local economy shifts in response to changes in the economy and environment?  Or do you feel like investment is attracted to other more stable areas?