The recent Politico article, “A Real Path to Shared Prosperity in America,” addresses a topic that has been a central concern for many of our clients. The article highlights findings from a conference of thought leaders held this summer at Harvard Business School to explore the critical question: How can our nation continue to grow while also providing a path to prosperity for more Americans?

We, too, have seen our clients bring together coalitions of partners to address this question and to strengthen what Fuller et al. refer to as “the Commons.” Some of our recent clients are actively tackling this problem:

• The Greater Houston Partnership convened a regional workforce development task force to develop a strategy to address the gap between the region’s middle-skills jobs and the available workers. The resulting initiative—UpSkill Houston—aims to strengthen the regional talent pipeline to bridge this gap.
• In Fargo, North Dakota, the Greater Fargo Moorhead Economic Development Corporation, the Fargo-Moorhead Chamber of Commerce, the Fargo Moorhead Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Fargo-Moorhead Area Foundation, and United Way partnered with the business community to develop a strategy to address their talent shortage. The resulting Regional Workforce Study recognizes the need to build a stronger framework for upward mobility to support workers in low-wage and basic-skill jobs.
• And in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul region, GREATER MSP, the Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Hennepin and Ramsey Counties, the Minneapolis and Saint Paul Chambers of Commerce, the Saint Paul Port Authority, Minnesota Philanthropy Partners, and the McKnight Foundation have formed a coalition to develop and implement an action strategy to accelerate investment and job creation in the center cities. The Center Cities Action Strategy is currently in the process of being finalized.