The Future of Cities: Where do we go from here?

Last week, I had the pleasure of interviewing three of the world's most prominent thought leaders in the areas of site selection, talent attraction, and economic development generally.

Rick Weddle: President, Site Selectors Guild

Winona Dimeo-Ediger: Editor-in-Chief, Livability

Rebecca Gehman: Managing Director, Talent Attraction, Development Counselors International

Some of my key takeaways from the discussion:

"The COVID Location Paradox" explained.

Big cities are changing, not dying. Two things can simultaneously be true: cities are being challenged, and COVID has accelerated a trend toward suburbs. But, big companies still recognize the advantages of talent and labor and are betting on the future of urban centers.

"Affordability and job prospects drove people to move before AND after COVID."

Before and after COVID, the top concern for young professionals when deciding to move is the combination of affordability and positive career prospects. Without being tethered to a major metro, the priorities haven't shifted, but the second-tier priorities can now take precedent (access to family, the outdoors, etc).

"When the pandemic passes, people will want an optimal mix of in-person and remote. The future is not 100% remote."

Yes, many millions of professionals now have freedoms and newfound mobility (particularly tech and services professionals). But recent DCI research points out that only about 1/3 of Americans want to be 100% remote in their job. People will always crave human interaction and contact, and this early look at data supports that.

You can listen to our whole conversation here:

Thanks for reading! Reach me at aphill@linkedin.com.