Living and Working in Burlington Vermont

This week Burton Snowboards announced that they are moving their manufacturing operations to Austria, citing the costs associated with manufacturing in Vermont as the reason for the move. I was in Montpelier the day the decision was announced and was shocked to hear some opine that the move wasn’t such a big deal: after all, "only" 43 jobs were being lost. And, they noted, Burton has said that they would add R&D jobs. I thought all jobs were worth saving and that all jobs had value. Apparently, to some in Montpelier, all work is not equal. Some have a more erudite air about them. Too bad.

So while it is true that Burton is staying in Vermont and while it is true that higher-end R&D jobs will be created, are folks really missing the fact that good paying, (what were traditionally called) blue collar manufacturing jobs are leaving? Are they missing the fact that the quintessential Vermont success story (Burton) is publicly stating that manufacturing is no longer viable in this state? Can they be blind to the fact that not every person who wishes to live and work in this state can be an R&D engineer; or a software programmer; or work in any number of other knowledge based jobs? Vermont needs jobs for folks who either prefer to do other kinds of labor or for whom certain jobs reflect the best that they can be. We cannot continue to create a business environment where the cost of doing business is prohibitive for all but a few companies. Vermont cannot continue to turn a blind eye to large companies that would prefer to be here but who must respond to stockholders' needs. If Vermont wants to play in the global economy, we need to act like we do. Creating a business environment for boutique businesses is not going to create a world-class hub of economic development activity.

It is time to wake up and smell the coffee…………. and remember the time when young Olympian Gold Medal winners rode Burton boards made in Burlington, Vermont.

I recently returned from a trip to Dubai, having spent the last week meeting with business leaders and government officials in an attempt to learn about opportunities for Vermont businesses to take advantage of the growing markets in this region of the world. Despite some recent financial setbacks, Dubai and the United Arab Emirates hold great potential for select aspects of our business community. I will expand upon that at a later date but want to talk now about the people and culture.

For me and others on this trip, Dubai and this part of the world is a bit of an enigma. I knew little and most of that of what I did know was formed by our press and their interpretation of current geo-political occurrences. From day one, I have been impressed by the genuine warmth of its people and their openness—to talk about business but also to talk freely about their views of the United States and our interactions with the Muslim world. Most were young business professionals in their mid-thirties and many had had received some education in the west. They deeply love their country and are proud of their heritage, culture and religion. At the same time, they hold our country in high regard even if they don’t always understand our political system. To a person, they divorce our people from our political theatre in Washington. They watch CNN and Fox News and the Daily Show. From the Vice-President and Sheikh of Dubai to the women business leaders we ate our meals with, they express a hatred for terrorism and find it an affront to Islam. One spoke of living in the United States during 9/11 and his sadness at what happened was palpable. Likewise they are infuriated that their country was used to stage the assassination of a Hamas leader. The UAE and Dubai in particular is a melting pot of ethic and religious groups living harmoniously among each other. Integrated education is held out as the single best hope of eradicating intolerance and achieving world stability.

It is often noted that diplomacy is best practiced on a person to person level. I have no idea what business will come from the visit of twenty three leaders of Chambers of Commerce across America. What I do know is that each of us takes home a deeper understanding of a people and culture seen often as caricature and an understanding of the similarities that bind us.