Southern New Hampshire is experiencing a slower start-up rate of new businesses that the rest of the state. And the rest of the state is experiencing a slower start up rate than the rest of the nation.

It’s an issue that many towns looking to give a boost to their local economy through revitalization or economic development are facing, said Mary Ann Kristiansen, the Director of the Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship in Keene. 

“We definitely need to do something,” said Kristiansen. 

Small towns with few resources need to get creative if they want to tackle the problem, though, said Kristiansen. And one way to do that is to shift focus from the macro level to the micro level and create goals that are reachable in the short term.

For instance, said Kristiansen, towns could interview some of their larger or mid-level but growing employers and see what their immediate needs are.

“Find out what an individual company or entrepreneur needs and tackle it at that level. Often, we can work to resolve one person’s problem, and it can resolve the same problem others are experiencing,” she said.

Especially, she added, when the issue is something like the need for a workforce.

A lack of workforce is an issue that a lot of local towns are dealing with, said Peter Throop of Peterborough’s Office of Community Development. Mostly, he said, because there is a lack of – or at least the perception of – affordable workforce housing in the area. 

Elizabeth Steele, the vice president of Microspec, a medical manufacturer in Peterborough, said that while there is a pool of entry-level employees in the area, there is a need for certain specific skillsets that are just hard to come by – such as machinists.

Microspec was one of several large or mid-level employers in the area that was approached by representatives of Nashua Community College recently as they begin to form their curriculum for a satellite campus in Peterborough. The college is seeking to align their courses to create a viable workforce for businesses that already exist in the area. 

“There is a limited employment pool,” said Steele. “Unemployment is very down. Finding people in the area becomes more of a challenge as competition rises.”

That’s a concern she has heard from across the board, said Kristiansen.

“For companies that are growing, one of the biggest issues we’ve seen is finding the right people,” said Kristiansen. 

While it is important to monitor the health of a town’s biggest employers, said Kristiansen, because the loss of those jobs can have a big impact, the area with the most job growth is actually mid-level companies.

“I think there is a need to focus at all levels,” said Kristiansen. “Large companies have certain needs. Mid-level companies often get ignored and have a different set of needs. And you need to provide for those small start ups that will eventually become your mid-level companies.”

And to make sure that the right kinds of companies are being attracted to your town, said Kristiansen, it is important to develop a “brand.”

“You can’t just go ‘poof’ and attract cool young companies. But just about everywhere has some cool things already going on,” said Kristiansen. “And towns really need to highlight those good points.”

Because the more a prospective employee knows about possible growing opportunities, the more likely they are to stay in a day and age where many young people just out of high school or college are leaving the state to seek work.

Such as Jaffrey, which has several large and mid-sized manufacturers, said Kristiansen. 

“There’s a string of tech jobs running through each of those companies,” said Kristiansen. “There are opportunities there. But if people don’t know about them, if those aren’t the companies that are coming up when they Google Jaffrey, they might not even know that they’re there. It’s important that we’re telling those stories and marking those bright points that already exist.”

It’s also important to remember to create a community that is more than just a place to work, said Kristiansen. 

“You also have to look at the culture of the region and make sure that we have places that people want to live and can afford to live,” she said. 

Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.