Youssef Elsaadi recently completed an internship with Greater Mankato Growth. This is what he had to say about the experience.
Week 1: To kick things off on the first week, I helped GreenSeam business unit as they conduct Business Retention & Expansion visits in the City of New Ulm. As GreenSeam continues to grow, its growth is directly influenced by the community’s growth. After concluding the day visiting different businesses across the City of New Ulm, GreenSeam left an impactful mark on each business visited. However, the greatest impact came by sharing valuable information and experience from business owners and leadership teams that understand the nature of the situation. All of which are in the agricultural field, which is the life source for many Minnesotans who deserve to have their opinions captured and translated into creating a flourishing agricultural sector in the state.
Week 2: First time attending 1 Million Cups, in which I later registered to volunteer whenever help is needed. The event brings together entrepreneurs and the greater Mankato area community over coffee and conversations to support new ventures. The event is held every first Wednesday of every month. Hosted at the Small Business Development Center, this event aims to create a strong business connection amongst Greater Mankato residents. Introducing innovative projects to the community and encourage people to explore great resources for business development in the community they live in. I found this event to be a refreshing reminder for Mankato community that the American dream is still alive, and there are many resources that can help turn local ideas into real world thinking.
Week 3: As an Economic Development Intern, I worked closely with Ryan Vesey, Economic Development Director with GMG, and frequently met with CBC Fisher group on different requests. Collecting data is part of economic analysis. It is an important step to put the situation in numbers and address results. CBC Fisher group wanted to attract a large grocery store to the community and the investor wanted to identify a good location for the property to be built on.
The main driver behind the location selection process is average household income. After collecting relevant data points, like average household income, traffic counts, and significant trends. We were able to locate a possible location that fits their requirements and standards. Once shared, the recipients were satisfied with the results.
Week 4: I worked on an event designed to thank GreenSeam investors and connect members of our regional food & Ag. hub with community members. I helped with moving things around and had many valuable conversations with individuals about different topics. The event was a kind reminder for Minnesotans that the state is home to one of the best soils, not the in the nation, but in the world. This high standard of quality is a big responsibility for Minnesotans. As demands are increasing, GreenSeam is serving as an important resource to keep the legacy alive and ensure agricultural development. The Celebration of Ag is also a celebration of the Great American Pastime.
Week 5: I met with my supervisor and went over the BR&E program and what it entails. The REDA Annual Report is at the core of my internship responsibilities through reviving the BR&E program in the Greater Mankato area.
Week 6: I attended the SMAHRA Networking Lunch. Southern Minnesota Area Human Resources Association (SMAHRA) is a local, non-profit human resources organization, nationally affiliated with the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). It has been active in Southern Minnesota since 1976. During our meeting, we discussed new HR policies in terms of Cannabis legalization and proper ways for employers to address the new law with so much uncertainty of next steps.
Week 7: I helped the Minnesota Association of Professional County Economic Developers (MAPCED) with a potential meeting site.
Week 8: Greater Mankato Growth is working on developing an internship exploration document that highlights the many great internship opportunities that exist in the Greater Mankato Regional Marketplace. Our goal for this document is to share it with our area high schools and colleges & universities to be shared with students. Secondary and Post Secondary institutions are providing Career & Technical Education based on the Minnesota Career Fields, Clusters, & Pathways document visible below. Our goal is to match the internship opportunities that we share with that document. During the process, GMG worked alongside Northwestern Mutual and Mankato Area Public Schools to create the document. Also, I helped develop a survey in conjunction with the document.
Week 9: The manufacturing industry is a significant contributor to the South-Central Minnesota regional economy. According to DEED’s Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) data, the 9-county South Central Region (region 9) was home to hundreds of manufacturing establishments providing 18,335 jobs in 2022.
I had the responsibility to connect with leadership teams from various manufacturing companies to explore the opportunity of them becoming a part of the Manufacturing Tour on October 5th of this year. I managed to successfully invite Good Times Manufacturing to join the tour of manufacturing to showcase the new building they moved into.
Week 10: Living in Mankato for the past six years, I saw the community grow in different areas such as employment, people retention, and business attraction. Visit Mankato is one of the four business units I worked side by side with. Mankato, like many parts of the state, is a hidden gem. Visit Mankato does a great job promoting the area through things to do, events, and so many other activities. I joined their project of creating the newest Mankato Visit Guide and got amazing pictures and shared a great time while promoting the place many of us call home.
Week 11: The Economic Analysis Report is information about the economic state of Mankato, Metropolitan Statistical Area. I created a population pyramid to capture the MSA’s population trends. As we can clearly see, Mankato MSA has an asset of working population. This population is highly motivated to start careers and engage in the economy, such that they are a driving factor in economic growth.
Week 12: I got to attend a REDA staff meeting at St. Peter City Hall. We went over logistics about location for future meetings and other community related updates from community development coordinators from each city.
Week 13: Co-Chair of Mankato Zero Waste and member of Beyond Plastics Mankato Area, two nonprofit local groups visited the office to meet with our team.
Week 14: I got to attend the Annual REDA Meeting and Connecting with a Purpose event. DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek provided keynote remarks as part of the program. I believe the alliance captured the importance of communities benefiting from their strengths and helping with each other’s weaknesses. It was a great opportunity for me to witness it up close and get to assist with their newest six-year agreement.