Jobs engine is here now

The region's powerful economic development arm, muscled by Steve Griffitts and Jobs Plus, is correctly aiming high on the business recruitment radar.

California, ripe recruiting ground. Right, Buck Knives?

Oregon and Washington, with ominous tax structures and huge budget deficits, are big targets. Isn't that so, Gov. Otter?

International companies are always welcome in Idaho, too.

But at the Jobs Plus annual luncheon Tuesday, an interested observer whispered something to the person sitting next to him. The word was, "incubate."

The whisperer was University of Idaho President Duane Nellis. Dr. Nellis had met that morning with this newspaper's editorial board and passionately spoken the same language.

Having completed his first year at the UI helm, Dr. Nellis isn't relegated to whining about $21 million in cuts to his university's budget the past two years. Instead, the self-described optimist is trying to find ways to reverse the state's financial fortunes by growing revenues which, in turn, will help support Idaho at every level.

When he talks about incubation, Dr. Nellis is thinking about bright, entrepreneurial UI students who are working on projects with strong commercial potential. He cited several examples, including UI students who have developed special software that would be valuable to colleges with fewer than 1,000 students.

With incubation, Dr. Nellis is encouraging the state's institutions of higher learning - his at the top of the list, of course - to provide a fertile environment for growing industry locally. Right now it takes Jobs Plus an average of three to five years from first contact to helping a company actually move here. By incubating new, home-grown companies, Dr. Nellis suggests, that window is dramatically shorter. In some cases it might even be instantaneous.

We think the job of creating and sustaining jobs is the very highest priority. And we think nobody does it better than Jobs Plus.

Fact: Because of the efforts of Jobs Plus and the many people who support the public-private organization, our region suffered the fewest lost jobs in Idaho during the recession. Another fact: Since Jan. 1, Kootenai County has gained 170 jobs, thanks in large part to Jobs Plus.

We applaud Griffitts, the Jobs Plus board and its many supporters for softening the recession's blow as much as they have. With their leadership, we're certain Idaho will lead the way in creating and sustaining good jobs.