Name: Joel Simon
Position: Vice President - Strategy and Growth
Organization: Lightcast
Years In Economic Development: 17
Years As A Member of IEDC: 5
What is a podcast or book you recommend?
Caught in the Middle by Richard Longworth
What was the first IEDC event you attended?
When it was CUED, I attended a Basic Economic Development course. My first IEDC event was the annual conference in Cleveland 2014.
Why did you choose to join IEDC?
It's the only place where the nation's and the world's economic development leaders convene to learn and share.
How has being a member of IEDC benefitted you and/or your organization?
We work hard to connect with leaders who care about people and place, so we can offer data and strategies to support both. IEDC creates the venue where those conversations occur, and IEDC helps us find and engage with like-minded people.
What IEDC event do you look forward to attending each year?
The Annual Conference - there's just so much positivity, forward-looking energy, and leaders who truly love the communities where they work.
Is there a project your organization is currently working on that you are excited about?
With industries advancing so rapidly, we are constantly trying to understand how people and companies can take people with existing skills and prepare them for the future. Especially as we recover from the Covid-19 recession, we are working to provide guidance to how individuals and communities can invest in skills development that keep people competitive and that make technological advancement an exciting opportunity rather than a threat to be feared.
How has your organization adapted to support your community and/or clients during the pandemic?
We track changes in skills and workforce demand in real-time, and we've been providing real-time data to communities about which jobs are available now (what we call "lifeboat jobs"), and how those short-term jobs connect to longer term careers. We've also developed a perspective on how the pandemic will permanently change labor markets, so we can advise communities on what skills to invest in for the longer term.
What is something you and/or your organization have accomplished this year that you are most proud of?
We've continued to grow and innovate even amidst great uncertainty, and deepened our ability to address equity and inclusion in our data and applied research projects.
What are some ways you hope you and your organization can continue to support your community and/or clients?
Continuing to leverage new data to create clearer reliable insights into the labor market, and coming up with creative ways to use that data to reveal more insights to more economic developers, workforce developers, higher education institutions, civic leaders and members of the business community.
Coffee or Tea?
Coffee
Audio Book or Podcast?
Podcast
Favorite Movie?
Any regional or ethnic specialty that I haven't tried yet.
Favorite Book?
Poisonwood Bible
Night Out or Night In?
Night Out
Dress-shoes or Sneakers?
Hiking Boots
What is something you like to do in your free time?
Every few years I try and learn a new musical instrument. I don't play any of them extremely well, but so far I can play around on guitar, mandolin, ukulele, bass, cello, accordion, fiddle, and percussion. I just got a thrift-store French Horn which is very different than anything else I play, so that will be quite a challenge to figure out.