Syndicate content

Blog Category: Office of the Secretary

U.S. Commerce Secretary John Bryson Delivers Remarks to Silicon Valley Business Leaders

Submitted on April 24, 2012 - 4:30pm
Categories:
Secretary Bryson addresses the Silicon Valley Leadership Group in San Jose, CA.

Commerce Secretary John Bryson delivered remarks and participated in a discussion today at the Silicon Valley Leadership Group (SVLG) annual “CEO Business Climate” Summit at IBM in San Jose, Calif. Bryson focused on the ways the administration is supporting American competitiveness and innovation.

In the past 25 months, the United States has added nearly four million jobs, and SVLG reported today that more than 60 percent of their members had added jobs last year. These jobs help continue to strengthen the country’s economic recovery, and Bryson laid out a few of the ways to helping businesses keep that momentum going.

Bryson discussed the importance of investment in the U.S. by both domestic and foreign firms, including through the Commerce Department’s SelectUSA initiative.

He also emphasized the importance of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields, where many job openings exist. The president’s 2013 budget requests $3 billion in STEM programs across the federal government. In addition, this week, President Obama is calling on Congress to pass legislation that would prevent interest rates from doubling for seven and one-half million students starting July 1.

read more
  • Share

U.S. to See Boost in International Tourism

Submitted on April 23, 2012 - 5:00pm
Categories:
Secretary Bryson Speaking at the U.S. Travel Association's International Pow Wow

U.S. Commerce Secretary John Bryson has announced that the U.S.’ number-one services export, travel and tourism, is growing stronger, creating jobs and boosting the American economy.

The Secretary announced today that the United States can expect to see a 4-5 percent average annual growth in tourism over the next five years, predicting that 65.4 million foreign travelers are projected to visit the United States in 2012 alone.

The Spring 2012 Travel and Tourism Forecast, released semi-annually by the International Trade Association (ITA), predicts continued strong growth in tourism to the U.S. following two consecutive record-setting years.

Secretary Bryson announced the Forecast at the U.S. Travel Association’s International Pow Wow annual event in Los Angeles, where he delivered remarks before more than 5,000 people from 70 countries from the travel and tourism industry.

read more
  • Share

Secretary Bryson Congratulates 2010 and 2011 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Recipients

Submitted on April 16, 2012 - 11:00am
Categories:
Secretary Bryson applauds the 2010 and 2011 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipients

On Sunday, Commerce Secretary John Bryson congratulated the 11 U.S. organizations who were awarded the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest Presidential honor for organizational performance excellence and innovation.

Named after Malcolm Baldrige, the 26th Secretary of Commerce, the Baldrige Award was established by Congress in 1987 to enhance the competitiveness and performance of U.S. businesses. Eligibility for the award was expanded in 1998 to include education and health care and in 2007 to include nonprofit organizations. The award promotes excellence in organizational performance, recognizes the achievements and results of U.S. organizations, and publicizes successful performance strategies. Since 1988, 90 organizations have received Baldrige Awards.

2010 Award Recipients

  • MEDRAD (a division of Bayer Healthcare), Warrendale, Pa. (manufacturing)
  • Nestlé Purina PetCare Co., St. Louis, Mo. (manufacturing)
  • Freese and Nichols Inc., Fort Worth, Texas (small business)
  • K&N Management, Austin, Texas (small business)
  • Studer Group, Gulf Breeze, Fla. (small business)
  • Montgomery County Public Schools, Rockville, Md. (education)
  • Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital, Downers Grove, Ill. (health care)

2011 Award Recipients

  • Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, Mo. (nonprofit)
  • Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, Mich. (health care)
  • Schneck Medical Center, Seymour, Ind. (health care)
  • Southcentral Foundation, Anchorage, Alaska (health care)

Get additional information on the Baldrige Award, the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program, and profiles of the 2010 and 2011 Award recipients.

Intellectual Property-Intensive Industries Contribute $5 Trillion, 40 Million Jobs to U.S. Economy

Submitted on April 11, 2012 - 5:00pm
Categories:

Guest blog post by Deputy Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank

America’s entrepreneurs, businesses, and workers are the primary source of new ideas that drive innovation. Patents, trademarks and copyrights–the main protections in our IP system–are critical tools that help commercialize innovative, game-changing ideas, from advances in healthcare technology to improved consumer products. By creating a better environment for our private sector to capitalize those ideas, IP protections help foster the innovation and creativity that leads to a stronger economy and more jobs.

Today, the U.S. Commerce Department released a comprehensive report showing that intellectual property protections have a direct and significant impact on the U.S. economy. The report, entitled “Intellectual Property and the U.S. Economy: Industries in Focus,” finds that IP-intensive industries support at least 40 million jobs and contribute more than $5.06 trillion dollars to, or nearly 34.8 percent of, U.S. gross domestic product (GDP).

While IP is used in virtually every segment of the U.S. economy, our report identifies the 75 industries that use patent, copyright or trademark protections most extensively. These “IP-intensive” industries support more than a quarter of all jobs in the United States. Twenty-seven million of those are either on payroll or under employment contracts, working directly for the IP-intensive industries, and nearly 13 million more are indirectly supported through the supply chains that service these industries. In other words, every two jobs in IP-intensive industries support an additional job elsewhere in the economy. 

read more
  • Share

Commerce Secretary John Bryson Visits Manufacturers in Tennessee

Submitted on April 10, 2012 - 6:30pm
Categories:
Secretary Bryson cuts ribbon at new Whirlpool manufacturing facility in Cleveland, TN

Today, U.S. Commerce Secretary John Bryson traveled to Cleveland, Tennessee, where he visited the Whirlpool Corporation for a ribbon cutting ceremony for their new, one-million square foot manufacturing facility. The $200 million factory is the largest premium cooking product manufacturing and distribution facility in the world, exemplifying the Secretary’s mission to help U.S. business build it here and sell it everywhere. The opening of the facility marked 100 years of Whirlpool manufacturing Made-in-America products.

While in Tennessee, the Secretary also made a stop in Chattanooga to visit the Volkswagen manufacturing plant, which builds the 2012 Passat. Volkswagen recently announced that they were adding a third shift to the operation at their Chattanooga plant in response to increased consumer demand, which will create over 700 additional jobs. This development is just one more example of the continued resurgence of the American manufacturing industry.

In fact, today, the Economics and Statistics Administration highlighted data showing that automakers are contributing heavily to the success of American manufacturing. The report finds that auto sales are at the highest level since the first quarter of 2008.

read more
  • Share

Remembering Secretary Ron Brown

Submitted on April 3, 2012 - 5:00pm
Categories:
Photo of the late Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown

Guest post by Secretary John Bryson

Today at the Department of Commerce, we remember the contributions of Commerce Secretary Ron Brown, a committed public servant who dedicated his life to strengthening America’s prosperity and making a difference.

Sixteen years ago today, a plane crash took the lives of Secretary Ron Brown, 11 Commerce employees, and 23 other U.S. and Croatian citizens, during a trade mission to Croatia. The trip was planned to help the recovering economy of the war-torn Balkans–a mission consistent with Brown’s legacy as a strong supporter of developing economic opportunity and growth both here and abroad.

During his tenure at the Commerce Department, Brown was an influential figure and tireless advocate for American businesses. His accomplishments as Secretary included helping the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) rebuild depleted fisheries and modernizing the National Weather Service. Secretary Brown also worked with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to lead the Information Infrastructure Task Force, laying the groundwork for the Internet boom. In addition, Brown led trade missions to five different continents that led to more than $80 billion in foreign deals for U.S. businesses–helping support good jobs for hardworking families here at home.

Secretary Brown was also a trailblazer throughout his life. Early on, he was the first African American to integrate his college fraternity and to become a partner at the prestigious Washington law firm, Patton Boggs & Blow. Later, he became the first African American chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and then, the first African American Secretary of Commerce, where he served for three years under President Bill Clinton.

Around the Department of Commerce, he was highly regarded for his warm, engaging personality and his pride for working on a team that was focused on growing the American economy. Even though his passing was a huge tragedy and loss for all of us–family, friends, and colleagues–his legacy as Secretary of Commerce continues to live on in the work we do every day supporting American businesses and creating U.S. jobs.

India Trade Mission: Day 5 - Welcoming Indian Travelers to Visit the United States

Submitted on March 30, 2012 - 11:00am
Categories:
Secretary Bryson addressing luncheon about the valuable experience American companies bring to Indian infrastructure projects

Commerce Secretary John Bryson today concluded his five-day business development mission in Mumbai, the commercial center of India. Today’s visit focused on promoting tourism for Indian citizens who want to visit America, as well as exploring opportunities for U.S. companies to promote their technologies and services in India’s rapidly expanding infrastructure sector to support job creation in both countries.

Bryson had the opportunity to participate in the official launch of the Visit USA Committee India (VUSACOM), a public-private partnership whose sole mission is to promote and increase travel and tourism from India to the United States. VUSACOM members include travel agents, tour operators, service providers, and U.S. product representatives. In 2011, the United States had a $2.2 billion surplus in travel and tourism from India, and total spending by Indians traveling to the U.S. was almost $4.6 billion in 2011, up 15 percent from 2010. In addition, the number of Indian travelers to the U.S. reached a record 663,000 in 2011.

In addition to meeting with government officials in Mumbai, Bryson hosted a luncheon with companies that help finance infrastructure projects as well as a roundtable with companies that are involved in energy-related infrastructure projects. In both, he talked with U.S. and Indian business leaders about the importance of the U.S.-India commercial relationship and he encouraged development of new business opportunities between the members of the delegation and their Indian counterparts. He also talked about the great progress India has made in opening its markets to U.S. companies, but encouraged continued consultations to resolve issues such as market access barriers and intellectual property protection.

read more
  • Share

Spotlight on Commerce: Ellen Herbst, Senior Adviser to the Deputy Secretary

Submitted on March 30, 2012 - 9:30am
Categories:
Ellen Herbst, Senior Advisor to the Deputy Secretary

Ed. Note: This post is part of the Spotlight on Commerce series, which highlights members of the Department of Commerce who are contributing to the president's vision of an America Built to Last.

As Senior Adviser to the Deputy Secretary, I support accomplishment of the mission of all of our operating units.  My job requires a combination of problem-solving, coordinating across bureaus and offices, and connecting people to the resources they need to successfully deliver results to the American people.

Much of the time, this involves working to improve the way we do things–how to be more effective and efficient in our processes-and measuring our progress towards our goals. The work is always interesting because I get to work with very dedicated people who deliver results across the broad portfolio of the Commerce Department. The people of the Department of Commerce are delivering results in areas as diverse as supporting the growth of regional economic clusters; managing grants to build broadband networks; providing severe weather warnings earlier than ever before; delivering cutting edge measurement science and protecting our business’ intellectual property.

I have been working for 32 years and have been very fortunate in my career. My good fortune started with parents who supported all three of their daughters by setting high standards; by instilling a strong work ethic, perseverance and a “can do” attitude and by teaching us to live by the Golden Rule. I was fortunate to enjoy the process of learning and receive a wonderful formal education. And finally, I have been fortunate in the support of many mentors, both formal and informal, throughout my career.

read more

India Trade Mission: Day 4 - Promoting Business Investment in the United States

Submitted on March 29, 2012 - 1:30pm
Categories:
Secretary Bryson tours the Mumbai International Airport Expansion Project

Commerce Secretary Bryson was in Mumbai today, the third and final city in his business development mission to India. In addition to exploring opportunities for the 16 U.S. businesses on the mission to promote their technologies and services in India’s rapidly expanding infrastructure sector, the visit focused on the president’s SelectUSA initiative.

In the morning, Secretary Bryson and the delegates toured a new terminal being constructed at Mumbai International Airport and met with airport management. Several U.S. companies have provided services and equipment to the airport, playing a major role in helping to modernize one of India’s busiest airports. One of the firms on the trip, CH2M Hill, has been providing Program Management services at the Mumbai International Airport since the project started in 2007. In their role, CH2M Hill optimised the master plan, prepared detailed elements for tendering and provided inputs for the selection of the contractor and various sub-contractors. They have also provided oversight to ensure that both the cost and schedule are effectively managed as the construction progresses. This has been accomplished by providing a mix of specialist aviation experts from the US and local trained resources.

Following the tour, Bryson met with Indian industry leaders and investors to talk about SelectUSA, the first coordinated effort by the U.S. government to attract new business investments to America. India, one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, is a priority market under the SelectUSA initiative. Bryson also delivered remarks at a luncheon hosted by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), where he talked about how the U.S.-India bilateral relationship is stronger than ever, and encouraged Indian investment in the U.S. as a means of fostering economic growth and job creation in both countries. In his remarks, he also highlighted the importance of this week’s renewal of the U.S.-India Commercial Dialogue, as well as moving forward in discussions to establish a Bilateral Investment Treaty, which would support greater stability and protections for investors in both countries. Following his remarks, the Secretary formally inaugurated the U.S-India Investors Forum (USIIF), a group of 35 Indian CEOs interested in investing in the United States.

read more
  • Share

India Trade Mission: Day 3 - Bringing the Business Development Mission to Jaipur

Submitted on March 28, 2012 - 12:15pm
Categories:
Secretary Bryson Planting a Tree at a new Mahindra World City Development

In a first ever visit to Jaipur by a U.S. Commerce Secretary, Secretary Bryson led his 16-business trade delegation there to see first-hand the vast business opportunities available in India’s rapidly expanding infrastructure sector and to promote bilateral cooperation on innovation.

Upon arrival in Jaipur, Secretary Bryson and the delegation met with senior Rajasthan state government officials and business leaders to explore how U.S. technology and products can support Rajasthan’s infrastructure development goals. Bryson said he is confident that trade between the U.S. and Rajasthan will grow substantially as a result of this mission.

He also gave remarks before a group of Rajasthan industry representatives, where he discussed trade and investment opportunities that benefit both the United States and India. Bryson said the bilateral investment relationship between the U.S. and India is stronger than ever. U.S. direct investment in India is now over $27 billion across a wide range of sectors including services, manufacturing, information and technology. At the same time, India is a fast-growing source of foreign direct investment into the United States. Indian companies employ tens of thousands of American workers in professional, technical, and scientific services – as well as other industries. Bryson welcomed this increase in foreign direct investment in American companies and economy.

read more
  • Share