Exhibitor Tips

Link to podcast found HERE Transcript to podcast found below: Bill : Hi and welcome to the belly to belly podcast and today our focus is the preparation for select USA 2022 And we’re joined by are with John Bordeaux from advanced CT. Hey, welcome John. John : Thank you so much. I’m glad to be here with you. Bill : Fantastic so, you know AdvanceCT does so, so much amazing work and our audience are all international companies that are there either have already created a presence in the US and are looking to expand that or are companies that are looking to enter the US and obviously that’s a lot of the work you all do to help those companies come into Connecticut. Could you take just a couple minutes and tell us about advanced CT and the service you provide for companies that are looking to enter Connecticut? John : Sure. AdvanceCT is a private organization. We’re a nonprofit we partner with the state of Connecticut to help companies that are interested in investing in the state of Connecticut have an easier job of doing. So we’re facilitating inward investment whether that’s coming from another state or particularly from overseas or foreign direct investment. We help companies in the state of Connecticut as well are looking to expand here. So once companies have come and made an investment, they also are we’re in relationship with them on a continual basis to help them figure out the best way to expand and grow here. And what we like to say is we offer a concierge level service. Every company has a unique need when they’re coming and making an investment here in the state of Connecticut. And we like to see exactly what those are and pair companies up with the resources that they need. Sometimes we have those resources we help with site selection. We help with helping folks navigate the permitting and the state of Connecticut’s different departments. We do all those things. And then we also are trying to help folks figure out even innocuous and small questions like hey, you know, what’s this town like? Or if I’m interested in, you know, building relationship with University of Connecticut or Yale, who should I be talking to? We facilitate all those conversations out of those relationships. And we’re helping those companies come here to do interesting things. Get engaged in our ecosystem. One of the great things about Connecticut is we’re a small state. So we’re about 3.6 million people, and we all know each other. And we want everyone in Connecticut wants everyone else to be successful. And so whereas in some in some jurisdictions at some places you’re sort of 6, 7, 8, 9 steps away from somebody here in Connecticut, you’re maybe one or two jumps away from talking to the person that you need to talk to you in order to get the help you need or the leverage that you need, or the relationship you need for your business to be successful. So our job is to help facilitate those those connections and understand what each business’s unique set of needs are, so that we can, as I said, provide that white glove service, and we’ve done everything from you’ll help people find the right site, to helping companies talk to the Department of Transportation to understand trucking tonnage on our highways and bridges, to helping folks figure out, you know, what the permitting is for a particular area of the state, introducing them to the mayors of towns, you name it, we’re here to do it. We’re here to help. Bill : Sounds like an incredible amount of facilitation. Your team must be really good listeners to sort of diagnose what companies need and help make those connections John : We do and what the one of the great things about our team in advance CT is that we’ve got a lot of subject area experts. So Advanced Manufacturing Technology, life sciences, renewable energy, offshore wind, and more. And so we have people in our organization who have extensive experience in those in those industries. So not only are we good listeners, but we also know the right questions to ask. We also understand what it’s like to be a life sciences company coming from overseas coming from Europe, for example, and setting up a shop here we understand a lot of the questions and can anticipate a lot of them because some of the people on our team have actually done that in their professional careers. So we’re able to provide those services in a way that I think is a uniquely help. Bill : Cool. So let’s talk about Select USA itself for a minute and you know, some have called it the Super Bowl of US market entry or the World Cup of US market entry and you know, I guess why does advanced CTE participate? What is it about the event that’s particularly valuable for you? John : Well, I’m a World Cup guy, as I know, most of the rest of the world is too so I’m gonna go with the World Cup of events. You’re basically what we see. A Select USA is it’s it’s the focal point. It’s a focal point gathering of everybody who cares about making investment and in the US, and that’s the companies. It is the government officials, its partners. It’s the people who care about sustainable economic growth and in Connecticut, we care very deeply about the success of our of our of our companies. And one of the things that we take great pride in is the fact that, you know, the companies that do come here and are working at that apex of the knowledge economy are succeeding in incredible ways. We know a lot of great ideas are happening all over the world. And we know that this sort of entry point this

Link to podcast found HERE Transcript to podcast found below: Bill : Hi and welcome to the next episode of belly to belly and today we’re focused on preparation for select USA 2022. And we’re joined by an from a wonderful friend, Jason hunt from the state of Pennsylvania. He’s part of the business attraction team. Welcome, Jason. Jason : Hi, Bill. Thanks for having me. It’s great to be here. Bill : Fantastic. So, you know, the obviously Select USA is a massive event and we have companies coming in from all over the world looking to enter the US, and I know many of them are interested in learning about Pennsylvania and the opportunities there would you mind sharing what your organization does to help companies that are coming into the US and particularly interested in Pennsylvania? Jason : Sure, so I work for the Pennsylvania Office of International Business Development. That’s a part of our state’s department of community and economic developments. We’re a government agency tasked with Investment Attraction. We also help Pennsylvania companies export their goods and services abroad in Pennsylvania has this dedicated office because international business is a big part of our economy. We have over 5100 foreign owned firms here in Pennsylvania, employing over 300,000 people. Pennsylvania’s products and services traveled to 218 markets around the world. It’s just over 5% of our GDP, value and exports. On the Investment Attraction side we have a network of 12 authorized representatives around the world covering 33 markets, who work with my team here in Harrisburg, our state capitol to help international companies who are looking to expand or to set up new locations in our state. We serve as business advocates and liaisons between these potential foreign investors and various layers of government here in the United States in Pennsylvania. We also provide free services including assistance with research about locations across Pennsylvania, identifying help identifying business sites, introductions to some of our regional and local economic development partners and customized financial assistance. We work with international businesses of all sizes, but I’d say the majority of the companies we encounter tend to be small or mid sized companies who are looking for their first location in the US. Bill : Oh, that’s fantastic. You provide such great service and you know and obviously, you said right off the top, it’s so great to be back in person. It’s like USA. We’re all sort of so much craving that. Now, why Select USA? Why is that important for Philadelphia to be present there and why are you looking forward to it? Jason : Sure. So it’s not just Philadelphia, it’s all of Pennsylvania. That’s a common misconception from the outside. Yeah. But yeah, so why do we participate? It’s at the end of the day, it’s to meet people. It’s a great opportunity for us to put Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh all of our communities in front of a large audience of international companies in a wide range of sectors who are looking for opportunity, in addition to those prospective investors. It’s also we also like to use the conference to make connections to consultants and service providers who work with international companies. Because we want them to know that we’re available to assist their clients if they have, you know, clients looking at opportunities in Pennsylvania. And because it’s helpful to pick their brains and see what they’re seeing you they have clients looking at a wide range of states in a wide range of industries and it’s good to get kind of the bigger picture perspective. conversations with them and our counterparts in other US states who are usually all present. Help us to kind of understand how best to position Pennsylvania to attract new investment and see what the neighbors are doing. Bill : So both the idea that you can kind of meet so many companies that are coming into the US and connect with them and be able to help them and facilitate that, that successful entry, but also the connection to the network, the support network, and also a little bit of competitive intelligence. It sounds like Jason : Oh, sure. I mean, all 50 states are there you can’t help but see what the others are doing. But yeah, the networking is really the crux of the conference for us. Sure. Bill : No, that’s great. And, and as you said, You’ve been Pennsylvania’s been participating since the beginning. I think it’s this I believe, the ninth year of Select USA, but then again, thinking of the audience, these are, you know, in some cases, they already have some traction here in the US and they have, you know, experience in the market. As you know, in other cases, this may be their first trip to the US and you know, as you think about, you know, the event itself, and then whether it’s pre events, following events, or even just folks that have time, either pre or post conference. What are some thoughts you have about how companies can get the most out of this, both this visit to select USA and also their visit to the US? Jason : Sure, select USA has in the past done a lot of spin off events where either before or after, there’s opportunities to examine in detail different parts of the US. I think there’s less of that this year, though. Those are interesting if there happens to be one scheduled in a sector or in a location that’s relevant. I think, maybe next year, we’ll see those come back with a bit more strength. But I think focusing on the main conference, I think there’s probably three things I would I would suggest. One is you know if you’re early in exploring opportunities in the United States, be sure to attend the information sessions. The US Commercial Service, the Department of Commerce, does a good job

Link to podcast found HERE Transcript to podcast found below: Bill : Hi and welcome to the next episode of belly to belly. And today we’re going to talk more about how to prepare best for select USA 2022. And we’re joined by one of our great friends from the state of Wisconsin. welcome Katie. How are you today? Katy : I’m really good, Bill. I’m excited to be here. So happy that Select USA is coming back in person really excited. Bill : Having withdrawl and it’s it’ll be so good to see everybody in person again this year and I know you all have been participating for quite a few years probably since the beginning. And you know, like, as you look at select USA and you think about your services, you know, what are what is WEDC, the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation? What do you do to help companies coming into Wisconsin Katy : We do so much for our companies. We have full wraparound service, from the very beginning. When you’re thinking about where you want to locate in the United States, we provide all of the industry strengths that you’re interested in, talking about the workforce that you’ll be accessing, talking about the long term pipeline for your workforce and how that matches what you need. So we’re covering you when you’re just looking for your location. And once you have decided on the location, we help you in your next step. That’s the build up. We hope to get all of your authorizations for construction. We help you access the construction needs that you have as well as understanding permitting and if it’s a very, very large program, or project we would help you develop your own team was constant that will help you with that permitting process. And then lastly, we will open and we’ll be with you for long term. We wouldn’t just stay around for just the VA into the state, but we’re here to help you grow in the state. Selecting a new location of your country is a huge decision. And every company is very concerned that they’re committing to the right location, and they’re committed long term. So we speak with you from the very thing where you’re looking, select the location from the build out into your future growth in Bill : Wow, that’s fantastic. So really a multi phased approach to help with that decision give the appropriate sort of data and, and, and connection and then the process of both landing and then and then growing. It’s it really sounds very comprehensive. Katy : And that includes also the incentives that we offer. Bill : Fantastic. Well this is it’s great and certainly our audience, all international companies coming in and looking to come into the US so this is really appropriate. And again as I said off the top you all have been a part of Select USA for quite a number of years. Why? What is it about Select USA that’s so important? And why do you participate? Katy : Select USA is the most robust attraction event in the United States. There is no place where you can see a number of companies that are focused on expansion into the United States, where companies can meet the largest number of states in one location, of course reducing their costs for investigative process, as well as meeting all of the key leaders in the federal government as well as the state government the understand how play help companies land in Wisconsin and the United States Bill : That’s wonderful. Actually. I’ve heard people refer to it as the World Cup of US market entry. It’s kind of where you can see everybody all in one room and be very efficient in terms of making those connections. So yeah, Katy : companies can easily target the states that they’re interested in walk. have similar discussions with each state great understanding of what they have to offer. Bill : Now that’s fantastic. And that’s probably a really good segue to our next question, which is, you know, you think of the companies coming in some of into the US before and done, you know, whether they have customers who already are or you know, they’ve certainly done some market visits, others so it’ll be their first trip and for many their first time to select USA, how would you suggest that companies get the most out of the not just going to select USA but also in their in this trip to the US how can they really leverage their time? Katy : Sure, they’re, I guess two aspects one’s the event and then what to do after or before the event. I think when you’re talking about the Select USA Summit, it’d be pretty overwhelming. It is a huge event. So I think there are a couple key things that companies need to do. One, they need to do their homework, right? They need to have a well defined project, the timeline for that project, so that they can really respond to what they want. And they can talk about incentives in a meaningful way. But histories in a meaningful way. The other thing that they should do prior to landing in the United States, is to fill out their profile. So the profile in the Select USA on its application is the only way that the states can find you until the actual day. And if we can find you before we can do our homework. We can identify the groups and companies that make sense to our state. We look at our industry strengths and we match them to the companies that are coming into the United States. With them this event without that completed. I think that the companies really missed out on some extra research that could be done prior to their coming here. And then lastly, do that

Link to podcast found HERE Transcript to podcast found below: Bill : Hi, and welcome to the next episode of belly to belly. And today we’re going to be talking about how to best prepare for select the USA. coming up in June and in Washington DC and we’re joined by Alina from, from jobs Ohio and Alina, it’s great to see you. It’s been a little while since we’ve seen each other. Welcome to the belly to belly podcast. Alina : Thank you, Bill for having me aboard your wonderful both. Happy to be here. Bill : Thank you. Well, it’s always good to have additional passengers for sure. So we want to kind of attend to our items today. So jobs Ohio, how you guys are amazing. And I know our audience and we’re filled. Our audience are all companies that are interested in expanding to the US and can you share what jobs Ohio does to help companies get traction and be successful in Ohio? Alina : Sure. Um, so we are a private non for profit, we carry basically the same functions as your regular investment promotion organization that you would be familiar with abroad. All our services to companies are absolutely free. And cherry on top of the cake, we also manage the financial incentives of the state for businesses that want to locate or expand in the state. I personally work exclusively with European companies. And there’s a wide range of things that we can do for them, I get in front of them sometimes very early in their decision making process. Other times, they’re in a relatively more advanced state. But if it’s the first, so, a more incipient stage, we help them you know, for with everything that means informing the decision making process. So, research support that would the you know, yield the those numbers that would go into an NPV or an IRR or whatever model the company is using to decide on the feasibility of the project. So it would be, you know, cost and availability of, of labor costs of real estate, taxation, everything that has, you know, a numeric value that can be plotted and potentially benchmarked against other other states, if needed. If there multiple states into consideration, we would provide benchmark information as well against those states. We assist with permits, we introduce companies to service providers, whether that’s lawyers, accountants, tax taxation, people, developers, you name it, we can connect you. We also have a very rich real estate database that can be accessed. It’s very, not only reached but very up to date. We have some 4000, I think between sites and buildings, on it right now, so definitely, there’s a benefit of the choice. As far as the financial services are concerned, or the financial incentives are concerned, think of them three buckets, so the tax credits, low interest loans, and grants. And really, between the three and especially the grants, there’s a wide range of eligible activities and expenses that the companies can allocate those to towards whether it’s the actual fixed asset or it’s the software parcel the workforce development. But I guess the most value they feel in recent times has been a service that we develop the towards talent acquisition, which why is this important and why do international companies value value this? We’ve seen more and more companies being worried about their ability international companies about their ability to attract and maintain people. So we are in a 4% unemployment rate. So they rightfully ask, Well, why would people come to work for a name that they haven’t heard of, as opposed to a company down the street that, you know, their, their cousin, their friend has word, they know how they treat their people. So we work with a company basically to build that employer branding. But on top of that, you know, the talent attraction part the talent sourcing, the training, the pre screening, everything is done by jobs Ohio with with its regional partners, to the point where we become the company’s proxy HR department and the company’s able to focus on you know, ramping up their operations and less about the HR component, if you will, this is a, a short to medium term solution, we would do this for up to 18 months of the of the project after which, you know, the local communities have programs that can help ensure the long sustainability of, of this. So this is kind of in a nutshell, I guess, the, the, our services and our financial incentives. And obviously, companies valued them differently based on how large they are based on how ready they are to pull the trigger on this. But obviously, all of this is on the table for international companies. Bill : Wow, it’s great to hear the about the support you’re now giving in terms of building the team, because that’s obviously a huge and growing concern for companies so can gratulations on that. So let’s switch over to select USA, and maybe talk for a minute specifically on that. And that’s actually an event where you and I originally met several years back, and maybe you could share a little bit about it again, our audience likely hasn’t been to select USA yet. So they don’t know much about it. But why does jobs Ohio participate, what’s important to you in terms of participating? Alina : So select USA is, if you will, the Oscars of our industry. So everybody converges to Washington, DC. And by everyone, I mean, not only the state level economic development organizations such as ourselves, but also regional economic development, organization, sometimes even local economic development organizations, all the service, I guess, providers, so for us, it’s, it’s incredibly important to meet with these international companies, as they are refining their, their their choice, we, we want to make sure that we are