MON AM News: Talent shortages, higher operating costs top challenges for Madison-area companies; National Grid Renewables starts work on Polk Co. solar project

November 18, 2024

— A survey of Madison-area businesses found 82% of respondents expect higher revenues next year, though talent shortages and higher operating costs remain top challenges.

The Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce recently released the results of an online survey conducted Sept. 26-Oct. 9 as part of the Next Normal, or N2 initiative. It was created in partnership with a number of other economic development groups and businesses, and got responses from 261 businesses, 82% of which are headquartered in Dane County.

Speaking last week during an online briefing on survey results, Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce Vice President Kevin Little said top industries represented include construction and the trades, food and beverage and business and professional services.

He described a generally positive outlook on the current business climate, with 92% of respondents rating the quality of local talent as average or above, and the same percentage rating the business climate as average or better.

Meanwhile, 85% of respondents didn’t have any negative workforce changes, and 71% either had no change to revenue or increased it on a year-to-date basis.

“Looking ahead to next year, the optimism only grows,” Little said, noting 94% of respondents either expect no change to their workforce in 2025, plan to hire more people, or want to do so but are challenged by talent shortages.

“We’re really going to start to dig into a lot of the crosstabs, so that we can pull this apart even more to see if we can assess how this impacts different business sizes, geographies, where jobs are going,” he said. “I’m really hopeful that it can lead to some helpful recommendations for our partners, particularly in government, as they think about zoning and land use decisions and how we grow.”

When asked about top barriers to business success, respondents pointed to: access to talent, 49%; increased operating costs, 47%; interest rates, 35%; and health care costs, 29%. The chamber notes availability and affordability of workforce housing is a growing barrier with 26%.

Respondents said the toughest positions to fill include: customer service, 25%; skilled trades, 25%; sales and marketing, 23%; management, 18%; and hospitality, 12%.

Jason Valerius, executive director of the Capital Area Regional Planning Commission, says “one of the few surprises” to come out of the survey was related to office space needs.

Fifty-seven percent of respondents have no remote workers, compared to 66% in a previous survey from 2021. And 4% are fully remote, compared to 8% in the prior survey. The chamber says these trends are expected to continue next year, as 57% of respondents intend to have no remote workforce, and just 3% being fully remote.

“We have a lot of uncertainty around what’s happening with the need for office space and office development in the region, and wouldn’t have been surprised to see people saying that they’re looking to maybe consolidate office space a little bit, because of the way that people are working remotely or hybrid schedules,” he said during last week’s briefing. “And I don’t think we really saw that. I think there’s companies either holding steady or looking to grow their office space needs.”

Watch the video and see the full survey results.

See a recent story on economic trends for Madison.

— National Grid Renewables has begun work on the Apple River Solar Project in Polk County, the Minnesota company announced.

The project will provide power to Xcel Energy once it comes online, with operations slated to begin in late 2025. Once operational, the project is expected to provide enough energy to power about 26,000 homes per year.

Karl Hoesly, president of Xcel Energy-Wisconsin and Michigan, says the project marks “an important step” toward the company’s goals around providing reliable and affordable clean energy to customers.

It’s being built by the Appleton-based Boldt Company, supporting 150 construction and service jobs, according to the release. First Solar, based in Arizona, has been tapped for the project as well.

The 100 megawatt solar farm is located on about 2 square miles of mostly agricultural land in the towns of Clayton, Beaver, Apple River, and Lincoln, with about 1.09 square miles being developed for the solar facilities, according to a Public Service Commission overview.

The project is expected to generate more than $36 million in direct economic impact over its first 20 years of operating, including $10 million in tax revenue to the county and local townships.

The developer is touting the economic impact of the clean energy project, noting it’s estimated to offset CO2 emissions by 129,900 metric tons each year, equal to the emissions of about 30,900 cars.

“As a company founded by a farmer in the Midwest, we have a strong commitment to bolstering rural economies through our renewable energy projects, and it’s exciting to see that growth in western Wisconsin,” National Grid Renewables Vice President of Construction Joe Ibrahim said in a statement.

See the release.

— The DNR has announced the recipients for this year’s Wisconsin Recycling Excellence Awards, which recognize companies for “going beyond what is required by law.”

Along with items banned from landfills such as electronics, awardees diverted “many tons” of food waste, furniture, plastic film and more for recycling or reuse, according to the Department of Natural Resources release.

“This year’s winners successfully implemented robust and sustainable diversion programs within their organizations and communities,” said Jennifer Semrau, the agency’s waste reduction and diversion coordinator. “The amount and types of waste they have saved from the landfill is truly impressive.”

See the release.

— UW-Madison researchers have demonstrated a gene therapy treatment can prevent the onset of neurodegenerative diseases in rats. That could set the stage for potential human applications.

Prof. Anjon Audhya, a biomolecular chemist with the university, led the study that was published recently in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It focused on hereditary spastic paraplegia, or HSP, a group of movement disorders that can result in affected patients needing a wheelchair.

Audhya previously used genome editing technology called CRISPR-Cas9 to give rats a genetic mutation linked to HSP, affecting a gene related to transporting proteins within neurons. The disruption of that process leads to the physical symptoms associated with the movement disorders, including weakness and stiffness in the legs.

More recently, Audhya’s team found a way to prevent the modified rats from developing these symptoms, according to the university. The method relies on a genetically engineered virus that delivers a “normal” version of the mutated gene, which was injected into the brains of young rats. By enabling the expression of the non-mutated gene, the therapy prevented them from developing the disease.

“So they were able to live for many, many additional weeks, never showing signs of disease,” Audhya said in a statement. “It’s a real demonstration that the gene therapy approach is highly effective in addressing disease symptomology.”

Now, his team is working on follow-up studies focused on a different gene mutation linked to HSP, with plans to inject the therapy through the spinal cord rather than the brain. This will more closely match how eventual human treatments would be delivered. Audhya says he hopes these efforts “will lead to a new clinical trial in patients in the years to come.”

See the release.

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