Each quarter Marion County Development (MCD) to participate in a new Quarterly Business Pulse Survey.  The purpose of the program is to identify trends within the competition for talent, business profitability, expansion and operational challenges which will assist MCD to address key issues and challenges that businesses are facing in a more timely manner.  “We plan to grow the number of businesses participating so we can provide data by type of business and size of business, stated Carla Eysink, MCD Director.  “This information helps us to know what is happening and provides businesses a quick 5 minute tool for sharing their challenges.”  Information each quarter will be provided to participating businesses and posted on marioncountyiowa.com.  Marion County based business are invited to participate in the process by contacting cwatkins@marioncountyiowa.gov .

Twenty-two businesses participated in the survey for 2024-Q2.  These businesses represented 1,750 jobs within Marion County and 32% of them have expansion plans within the next year.  These businesses reported adding 75 jobs from January-June of 2024 while only eliminating 4 jobs over the same time period.  The businesses report having 56 current opens and 36% rate their current financial position as excellent.  Of the businesses participating, 68% reported that the quarter was profitable while 23% operated at break-even and 9% operated at a loss.  Projections for 2024-Q3 as far as profitability were very similar.  Businesses reported that their top 3 operational challenges were:  1-hiring & retaining qualified staff (55%), 2-reaching customers & growing sales (27%) and 3-utilizing technology (5%).  Go to marioncountyiowa.com to learn more.

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