Economic development in New Jersey is a team sport, with numerous organizations in the state working together to obtain the trophy prize of business growth. Perhaps no other entity in the state better encompasses the team approach than the New Jersey Partnership for Action (PFA). With Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno as its quarterback, the leadership and staff members of Choose New Jersey, the Business Action Center, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education have been implementing their strategic offensive plan since 2010.

In that time, the state has created 198,000 private-sector jobs, and total employment in the state has reached its highest level in more than six years. Of course, the state has more work to do in recovering all of the 257,900 jobs lost during the span of the Great Recession. However, the PFA is bullish about the state as a place to grow a business.

In this issue, New Jersey Business sits down with PFA members in our latest quarterly Trade-Talk Roundtable. These leaders discuss their passion for economic development, their commitment to making the state business-friendly and the fact that they are proactive, rather than reactive, in their efforts to keep and attract businesses.

The roundtable is followed by a series of stories that spotlight the state’s other pro-business attributes. Department of Labor Commissioner Hal Wirths pens an article describing the state’s skilled workers and the seven industry-focused Talent Networks. NAIOP CEO Michael McGuinness writes about the state’s commercial real estate market, with its robust industrial sector and recovering office sector. This is followed by a story on about the Port of New York and New Jersey and the role the New York Shipping Association plays in keeping commerce flowing. We hear from John E. McWeeney, Jr., president of the NJ Bankers Association, about how lending activity is heating up in the state. Finally, we present a story on the state’s quality of life, which mentions some of the state’s top tourist attractions and how the Division of Travel & Tourism is promoting New Jersey. These articles prove New Jersey is still a great place to conduct business and enjoy life.

We hope you enjoy these and other stories in this issue.