Development efforts must stay on track

For most of the 1990s and part of the 2000s, SITEL Corp. was a major contributor to the McCook area economy. Employing up to 90 people during its time here, SITEL pumped a million or more payroll dollars into the area economy every year.

But just as quickly as the contact center arrived amid much fanfare in the early '90s, the customer support center in McCook is closing. In an announcement last week, the president of SITEL's insurance business unit, Robert Camenzind, publicly acknowledged that the McCook contact site would close June 25, 2004.

That hurts ... for several reasons. First and foremost are the employees losing their jobs. As SITEL has often said during its time here, the quality of the McCook area labor force is superb, reflected in the outstanding work ethic of the employees who the firm attracted.

And, second, the SITEL closing hurts the local business community, taking away valuable payroll dollars that generated cash flow for retail stores and service firms throughout the area.

As we face up to the SITEL closing, it's important to note that the firm's departure was not McCook's fault. "The closure is due to changes in our business mix and, in no way, reflects on our employees at McCook or the community. We appreciate the years of loyalty from our employees and the support of the community," Camenzind said.

While that's comforting, in a way, it also shows how vulnerable McCook, and other communities are. No matter how good a job we might be doing, business conditions can strip us of a leading employer overnight.

The lesson? It's clear. No matter how good the economy is, or how many jobs we create, we must remain constantly in search of additional economic development. Just to stay even, new jobs must be created on a continuing basis.

It's happening this very day. While SITEL prepares to close, Parker Hannifin's plant in McCook is seeking additional permanent and temporary employees. In addition, the new ethanol plant is open at Trenton and the first phase of ethanol projects are in motion at Perry and Cambridge.

Also, the executive director of the McCook Economic Development Corp., Rex Nelson, reported today that the EDC is actively pursuing a firm which would take up much of the employment slack created by SITEL's departure.

What is happening is what must happen. The people of McCook, Southwest Nebraska and Northwest Kansas must continue their pursuit of economic development. It is our financial lifeblood. We must have it to move forward.