Making state competitive

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ways to make this state more

competitive for jobs and investment.

South Carolina has a long way to go if its residents are to make as much as people in most states and if this state hopes to be competitive in a fast-paced global economy. The per capita income here is 82 percent of the national average.

To their credit, South Carolina's business leaders are making plans to help close the gap in wages and make this state more competitive for jobs and investment. First came the plan. Harvard University professor and economic competitiveness guru Michael Porter was hired, along with his Monitor Group, to recommend how this state should revise its economic development strategy.

Porter's advice was shockingly simple: The state must create an efficient climate for business, and the way to be more efficient is to concentrate on clusters — those concentrations of businesses related to the same industry. South Carolina must focus on what it does well and encourage clustering efforts that enhance productivity.

The second step is developing a plan to make this state more competitive in the knowledge-based global economy. The South Carolina Council on Competitiveness has been formed, and its members have the brain power, the energy and the determination needed to move this state forward.

Gov. Mark Sanford and Ed Sellers, chairman and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina, are chairing the committee. The executive committee has a dozen heavy-hitters from across the state. Names known in this county include Carl Flesher, vice president of corporate communications and environmental services with BMW Manufacturing Corporation, and Mack Whittle, president and CEO of The South Financial Group.

On Friday, the newly created Council on Competitiveness met for the first time. The group has 50 members who represent all sections of this state and diverse professional backgrounds. Ultimately hundreds of South Carolinians could be involved in this effort.

Making South Carolina more competitive is critical to improving the economic well-being of this state's residents. This new council is off to a good start.