Alabama’s road to economic success will be paved with intentionality and accountability, according to two experts who participated in a discussion on the topic Wednesday.

Houston Smith, vice president of Governmental Affairs at Alabama Power, moderated the discussion about how to create economic opportunities that elevate Alabama. The Economic Opportunity and Mobility discussion was part of the virtual three-day Alabama Pro-Growth Policy Conference, which concluded Thursday.

“At Alabama Power, we think that aligning our policy with our state aspirations and strategic growth priorities can give us a competitive advantage over other states but also over other countries,” Smith said.

The two panelists for the noon discussion were Kendra Key, senior vice president of Hope Federal Credit Union, which is committed to providing financial relief and services to economically disadvantaged communities within the Deep South, and Greg Barker, president of the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama, a group of companies working to start, attract and retain businesses in Alabama.

Both panelists agreed that intentionality and accountability are key to creating a vibrant, sustainable economy that benefits minority communities, businesses and people.

“It’s not enough to talk about it in passing,” Key said, “but those attending this policy conference need to decide what steps need to be taken to move Alabama forward, and set deadlines and deliverables and not stop until there has been movement.”

Smith concluded the hourlong discussion by thanking the panelists on behalf of Alabama Power.

“We are committed to the growth of the state,” he said. “We are committed to the growth of our communities, and we appreciate the opportunity to engage in this dialogue around policy.”

2020 Alabama Pro-Growth Policy Conference Economic Opportunity and Mobility discussion from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

You can watch the full discussion above. Following are some highlights from Wednesday’s discussion.

Systemic Improvements

Key: When we looked at the landscape in Alabama, in addition to the support for small business, we realized that a commitment to building wealth through home ownership is a way the state can help facilitate greater economic mobility. This could be through the expansion of down-payment assistance programs. Owning a home is one of the ways people build wealth. Also, increasing state agency contracting with black-owned businesses is really important. Increasing state funding to Alabama’s HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) is another avenue for making a difference that we saw through our research. Increasing rural broadband, protecting against for-profit colleges, reducing barriers to occupational licenses to ensure more accessible pathways to jobs … These are ways Alabama can do some small things to increase economic mobility for people who really need that hand up in Alabama.

Harnessing innovation for growth

Barker: (Gov. Kay Ivey’s) Alabama Innovation Commission is the exact right thing at the exact right time for Alabama. I love the fact that we’re looking at infrastructure, finance programs, mentoring programs to help underserved entrepreneurs, whether it’s minority, female or rural.

Key: Putting together a group like the Innovation Commission that’s going to be committed to this work, that studies best practices, and comes up with a suite of things that can be done to move the needle even in the smallest way. There are some things we already have that are working that can just be strengthened to meet the needs that we’re seeing exist in the state of Alabama. Having folks committed and working every day is going to be crucial.

Strengthening our infrastructure

Barker: I’ve been following a national economic development survey for the last 35 years. There’s one thing that’s scored 90% or above as far as importance for companies looking to grow or expand, and that one thing is access to adequate road infrastructure. That’s still going to be critical in moving goods back and forth.

Electricity was the great enabler that enabled a lot of economic prosperity and efficiencies and effectiveness. The next big enabler is going to be data. Every area will be impacted to a great extent by how quickly you can share, upload and download data. Broadband is critical.