For most small communities, opportunities to snag large industries don’t come often. That’s why local economic development practitioners have been literally jumping for joy this past month following IBM’s announcement that their new facility will create 1300 new jobs in Dubuque. Just a few days later (January 17) Eileen Moszinski of the Dubuque Telegraph Herald published what I thought was a critical story ; “Can Area Fill 1300 Jobs?”. IBM apparently thinks so.

Given the “brain drain” southwest Wisconsin has experienced in recent years however, citizens, educators, and community leaders, need to ask some hard questions: do we have what it takes to train and retain the workforce of the future? Whatever emerges out of the current economic crisis we can almost guarantee that the high tech, green energy economy will require an innovative, adaptable, and technologically savvy workforce.

I would argue that building a strong workforce, and the communities that support them, is an investment in infrastructure that is as if not more, important than our investment in roads, bridges, and rails. Rural communities across the nation (and Wisconsin) are pushing for more better broadband access, developing leadership programs, and attending to the qualities that make communities better places to live. Opportunities are inevitable. The key question is, will we be ready?