Heidrick & Struggles will run up against Korn/Ferry International, the world's biggest executive search firm, which opened its Miami office in 1995 and has handled more than 40 high-level executive placements there. Among other searches, Korn/Ferry in Miami recently looked for chief financial officer candidates for Latin America for a major credit card company. "We are finding people here and in (Latin America)," says Marjorie Kean, a Korn/Ferry vice president in Miami.
Part of the draw for these global headhunters is the abundance of multinational companies with regional headquarters in Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. "There are in excess of 180 of them in this market," says Thomas Connelly, a Korn/Ferry vice president in Miami. "The real growth is in Broward and Palm Beach."
Among other trends, Connelly says more and more U.S. corporations prefer to let foreign nationals manage their operations abroad. At the same time, more and more American executives are willing to accept assignments overseas because "they need the international exposure to enhance their careers. These days, the executive who conquers new frontiers can come back to the home office and get plugged into higher-level corporate positions," says Connelly.
Trade In Miami
More Horsepower
Between now and 2005, the unemployed portion of Miami's work force is projected to expand by more than 100,000 - not including an estimated 40,000 who will join the job hunt due to welfare reform. These alarming numbers have given rise to a popular, communitywide initiative known as "One Community One Goal," or OCOG. And one of its top priorities is to add horsepower to Miami's powerful import- export machine.
"Merchandise trade through south Florida should double in the next five years, if we plan for it properly," says Miami businessman Jay Malina. "It is our biggest single generator of local jobs."
Recently named chairman-elect of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce for 1998-99, Malina believes building on Florida's export strengths is critical in competing with other gateways to Latin America, such as Louisiana and Texas. "Unless we, as a state, make that our priority, we're in danger of losing our position in trade to another area."
A prominent trade financier, Malina is the driving force behind the OCOG initiative. He oversaw the chamber study that inspired the initiative, then participated in a fund-raising campaign to support it. The initiative won support from virtually every major institution in Miami - from the Miami Herald to the University of Miami to the Beacon Council to scores of local chambers of commerce and municipal governments. Getting all those groups to buy into the initiative "was the hardest part," says Malina, who now co-chairs the One Community One Goal initiative with Dade County Mayor Alex Penelas.
Miami already is the engine of international commerce in Florida, placing ninth among U.S. cities ranked by dollar value of merchandise exports. The next Florida city on the list, Tampa, is way down in 50th place. But Miami businesspeople say there's plenty of room for growth - particularly if the initiative triggers innovative approaches to trade development. One might be the introduction of chamber-led trips to promote professional services - something that hasn't been tried before. Traditionally, trade delegations hype merchandise, not services like accounting, healthcare and legal advice, a practice that may shortchange the service sector's export potential. "Nationally, service is equal to roughly 25% of merchandise exports and growing faster," says Malina. (The formula he recites, by the way, values Miami's service exports at roughly $5 billion a year.)
In another response to the OCOG initiative, nine local hospitals are discussing joint promotion of Miami as a hemispheric healthcare center. The potential appears promising. A recent cover story in the weekly trade magazine Modern Healthcare describes how Miami hospitals fill beds with well-to-do Latin Americans who can't find comparable care at home. Compared with other types of Miami exports that deserve more promotion, hospital care "could be the biggest hit of all," Malina says.
Other results of the initiative are likely to show up in local classrooms. Malina says the Dade County public school system probably will introduce new international studies in grades K through 12. Vocational schools may offer more instruction on topics such as freight forwarding and custom brokerage.
Plans to promote international trade and the biomedical and entertainment-production industries will be announced in October at a Miami economic summit with Mayor Penelas presiding. Other sectors to get special attention include financial services, information technology, telecommunications and tourism - all of which have the potential to attract more business from abroad.
Miami needs the initiative to succeed. Despite the huge import-export industry, the Miami area's unemployment rate hovers above 7% - much higher than Tampa Bay's, the state's and the nation's.
Heightened local awareness of trade's importance in Miami comes at a time when trade barriers are falling less frequently. "That, quite frankly, is not good for Florida," says Malina. Also efforts to expand the city's seaport and airport have been set back by controversy and litigation.
Whatever Miami's trade sector gains from the One Community One Goal initiative, also the rest of Florida benefits. "This isn't just Miami's issue, it's the state's," Malina says. "If somebody in Jacksonville has something to sell, there's probably somebody in Miami who can find a buyer in Latin America and make money there. Miami's strength is its phenomenal middleman capacity."