A work crew from United Infrastructure Group works on the deck of a new interstate overpass. North Carolina is urging businesses to participate its Business Pulse Survey designed to provide businesses and state planners with timely information related to the job climate.

A work crew from United Infrastructure Group works on the deck of a new interstate overpass. North Carolina is urging businesses to participate its Business Pulse Survey designed to provide businesses and state planners with timely information related to the job climate.

The North Carolina Department of Commerce invites employers across the state to participate in an innovative new survey to measure current business conditions in North Carolina.

The new Business Pulse Survey, conducted by the Commerce Department in partnership with the NCWorks Commission and myFutureNC, will offer timely insights into the state of the economy and will be the first survey of its kind undertaken by the state. The initiative comes in the wake of a period of rapid change during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We need timely input from business leaders of diverse sectors and industries across our state in order to gain a better understanding of changing needs,” said N.C. Commerce Secretary Machelle Baker Sanders, who is a member of both the NCWorks Commission and the myFutureNC Board of Directors. “The data collected will help economic development, workforce development and education agencies make informed decisions about how to support post-pandemic recovery for employers, jobseekers and communities.”

Participants in the survey should be people in positions of leadership who make business decisions, especially those related to hiring, and can speak with authority on their organizations’ operational challenges. These can include business owners, CEOs, managers or human resources directors. Only one person from each business should take the survey. Participants must commit to completing the short survey once per month, for six months. That amount of data will allow analysts to measure changes in conditions, attitudes and behaviors over time.

To join the survey, business representatives may visit nccommerce.com/pulse. The deadline to sign on as a participating business is Oct. 31.

The survey will generally take only about five minutes to complete per month.

“As the state workforce development board, the NCWorks Commission is excited to support this survey, the results of which can help us make data-driven recommendations for North Carolina,” said NCWorks Commission Chair Tom Rabon. “With the engagement and leadership of North Carolina’s employers, we can help foster a workforce system that is responsive to the needs of our economy.”

“Business leaders helped identify and shape our mission to close the educational attainment gap in North Carolina,” said Cecilia Holden, President and CEO of myFutureNC, the non-profit organization working to achieve the statewide goal that two million North Carolinians will hold a high-quality credential or postsecondary degree by 2030. “The new Business Pulse survey will provide fresh insights from the business community to help us meet the needs of our growing state.”

In addition to support from the NCWorks Commission and myFutureNC, the Duke Energy Foundation is providing funding support for the Business Pulse Survey.

“Workforce development is a priority for Duke Energy, so we’re proud to support the Department of Commerce’s efforts to gather timely information that can help policymakers rapidly adapt to the evolving needs of both employers and job seekers across North Carolina,” said Stephen De May, Duke Energy’s North Carolina president.

Questions will ask participants about challenges facing their businesses, recent performance, investments, workforce needs, and the outlook for anticipated business conditions over the next year. Business-specific information collected in the survey will remain confidential.

In addition to informing policymakers, results of the survey will also benefit participating businesses by providing insights regarding conditions being seen by peer businesses and industries throughout the state.

Commerce’s Labor and Economic Analysis Division (LEAD) will implement the Business Pulse Survey, analyze the data to identify how conditions, needs and expectations are changing, and then publish aggregated data from the survey online on a regular basis.