Several hundred South Bay professionals gathered at Morris Dailey Auditorium Aug. 14 for the second annual San José State University Economic Summit (Robert Bain photo).
By Pat Lopes Harris, Media Relations Director
Has the economy finally turned the corner? To find out, several hundred South Bay professionals gathered at Morris Dailey Auditorium Aug. 14 for the second annual San José State University Economic Summit.
“We’re still number one. We’re going to stay that way. We just have to run a little faster,” said San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, comparing Silicon Valley’s economy to anywhere else in the world, and emphasizing his efforts to push City Hall to “move at the speed of business.”
Craig Cornelius, Hudson Clean Energy Partners managing director, focused on solar power’s future given “your locality and your workforce certainly are going to be the driving force for the industry.” A sharp decline in the cost to produce solar power means the sector is poised for worldwide growth, he said.
Noting California is among the top 10 states for job growth, Beacon Economics Founding Partner Christopher Thornberg shared data suggesting “no recession” and “the private sector is moving forward.” But he conceded “everything is not wine and roses,” given the “biggest risk is the public sector” where “revenue is not keeping up with rising costs.”
The Center for Banking and Financial Services within the College of Business organizes the summit, with title sponsor Bridge Bank, associate sponsor Hopkins & Carley, and affiliate sponsors CBIZ, Filice Insurance, San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce and Sensiba San Filippo. The media sponsors were AlwaysOn, KLIV, and the Silicon Valley San Jose Business Journal.