Wednesday June 19, 2013
What are the forces moving the Minnesota economy? Adam Belz tries to identify the trends and show the connections between Minnesota and the larger U.S. and global economies. You can connect with him on Twitter: @adambelz
Specifics on the public-private partnership to train students in Oracle Retail
Posted by: Adam Belz under Business trends, Economics Updated: June 4, 2013 - 1:26 PM
I wrote a story in April that ended up being about jobs in big data, but the story could just as easily have been a more modest one about a specific program at Metro State University.
The specifics of the program ultimately got lost in the story, which took a wider look at a growing job sector. Let me try to rectify that here.
The person in the lede of the story was Kossi Gavi, a student who was taking a Sunday class on Oracle Retail, a heavy-duty software program that allows companies like Best Buy, Gander Mountain, Scheels and Von Maur to track purchasing, shipping, inventory and sales in stores and on the Internet. A well-trained programmer could get the software to work with other Oracle products and open-source programs.
The program is very specific, and the training in it was designed to fit a specific need. The software, developed initially by a Minnesota company called Retek (since acquired by Oracle), is widely used, and companies need people who know how to operate it. Gavi and about 20 other students were taking an independent study class that was put together quickly with the help of Logic Information Systems, a local firm that consults for companies that use Oracle Retail.
“Right now, on Oracle Retail, there’s a huge opportunity,” said Chris Hubbs, director of demand planning for Best Buy. “There’s not a lot of people who know how to work on it.”
Several companies in retail-rich Minnesota told Gov. Mark Dayton last November that about 150 jobs are available running the software, with wages easily at $80,000 a year. Logic’s president, Amber Naqvi, said he could hire five of the 20 students in the independent study by himself.
So Logic provided the software and digital storage space, Metro State provided a classroom and selected 20 management information systems students for the class, and the retailers said they’d provide summer internships. Former Oracle engineer Anil Rao taught the class, which started this past semester.
One of the students, Christina Wood, was so persuaded that there's strong demand for people who know the program that she quit her job as an auditor for the state of Minnesota to learn the software.
“I really want to get a job in this, and that’s why I’m here,” the 37-year-old said.
What Naqvi was proud of was not that the class was an example of demand for jobs handling large amounts of data, but that the class was a useful partnership between MNSCU, Advance IT, and his company to fill a need for businesses and help make Minnesota a stronger hub for the heavy lifting of running a retail business.
He called it “an exemplary private public partnership to close the skills gap in Minnesota and create/keep high paying jobs in Minnesota.”
It's hard to disagree.
U.S. manufacturing index unexpectedly declines in April – Washington Post
Gogebic Taconite to sink drills into massive Wisconsin iron ore vein – Duluth News Tribune
MidAmerican scraps plans for new Iowa nuclear plant – Des Moines Register
Spring planting behind schedule in Minnesota – StarTribune
Is Minnesota the “coolest place on Earth” this spring? – MPR
U.S. trade deficit widened in April – WSJ
U of M opens new medical technology center – StarTribune
Farm subsidy recipient in Congress backs food stamp cuts – NY Times
Farm subsidy recipient in Congress backs food stamp cuts – NY Times
Tom Stinson, Minnesota's state economist, to step down
Posted by: Adam Belz under Business trends, Economics Updated: June 3, 2013 - 10:41 AMTom Stinson, the state economist since 1987, is stepping down from his post at Minnesota Management and Budget.
A critical adviser to budgetmakers who commanded respect on both sides of the aisle, Stinson said he will devote himself to his job as a professor of applied economics at the University of Minnesota. He will be replaced as state economist by Laura Kalambokidis, another economics professor at the U.
Stinson said now is a good time to step down, because the economy appears to be recovering, the state is on a firm financial footing, and Kalombokidis, an excellent replacement, is available.
"This is the best job that I could have," Stinson said. "I'm going to miss it greatly."
Stinson said he learned over his 26 years on the job just how good Minnesota's economy is, mostly because of the quality of its workers.
He is a champion for education and workforce development, and said Monday that falling high school graduation rates are his biggest concern for the future of Minnesota's economy. Some 91 percent of the workforce has a high school diploma, which is one of the state's great strengths, but high school graduation rates are now in the 70 percent region.
"We're diluting the quality of the workforce just on that simple measure," he said.
Stinson, 70, of Roseville, was an economics researcher in a Twin Cities office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture when he was named to the position in 1987. He has been by far the longest-tenured state economist since the position was created in 1975.
Kalambokidis said she has helped with the past two budget forecasts.
Mortgage rates surge over fears Fed may stop the spigot – Reuters
Bubble or no bubble? Housing economists discuss – WSJ
If austerity is so bad, why is the economy doing well? – Washington Post
Decimated union at American Crystal goes back to work – StarTribune
BBB not impressed by water-into-gas claims, issues “F” on Central MN firm – St. Cloud Times
Heidi Moore calls BS on all the economic cheerfulness – Guardian
Prominent Russian economist, under Putin’s gaze, gets out of Dodge – WSJ
Saharan al-Qaida leader breaks rank, makes a name for himself – AP
Here’s a thought: colleges should focus on teaching – L’Hote
New mandate gives jolt to Minnesota solar companies – StarTribune
Q&A with General Mills chief marketing officer – MinnPost
Wisconsin to follow Michigan in creating venture capital seed fund – Journal-Sentinel
Paul Krugman’s “habitual thumb on the scale” – Economic Principals
Airplane boardings up 10 percent in North Dakota – Fargo Forum
Market for lake cabins starting to thaw – StarTribune
The Gulf’s dead zone is fixable, but we don’t want to fix it – American Prospect
Photos of killer whale flipping dolphin into the air – Wired
Private equity firms get back to recruiting junior analysts – NY Times
Tragedy averted at Lock and Dam No. 7 – La Crosse Tribune
Tragedy averted at Lock and Dam No. 7 – La Crosse Tribune
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