Michigan | Economic Development Report
TerraMetrics
May 9, 2026
Total Employment
115.9K
Resilience Score
71/100
Diversification
95/100
Net Impact (Probable)
-943
Metro jurisdiction -- larger government apparatus with more regulatory complexity.
Economic Vitality: competitive -- strong governance capacity and fiscal health reduce political risk.
Median household income $89K (+35.4% vs state median) -- well above state average, providing economic cushion.
Unemployment 3.9% with 155,354 total employed. Poverty rate 9.7%.
AI Exposure Index: 45/100 -- lower vulnerability to AI-driven workforce disruption.
Highest risk sector: Auto supplier manufacturing (Gentex, Magna, Yanfeng)
Ecological stress score 63/100 driven by regional climate patterns and resource dependencies.
Agriculture/food sector (9.2% of employment) directly exposed to climate variability and extreme weather.
41.7% bachelor's+ attainment -- above-average workforce readiness for knowledge-economy transition.
94.6% high school+ completion rate -- strong foundation for workforce training programs.
No significant financial sector employment -- BTC adoption impact is indirect through consumer behavior and investment flows.
Higher household income ($89K median) correlates with greater crypto adoption and investment exposure.
Research institutions (Holland area tech centers) provide local quantum/STEM workforce pipeline, though direct quantum compute facilities are rare outside major metro areas.
41.7% bachelor's+ rate provides a STEM-capable workforce base for post-quantum cryptography (PQC) migration.
Low poverty rate (9.7%) supports stable community networks.
Population growing (+3.5% since 2020) brings new residents but can stress existing community bonds.
Lower poverty (9.7%) means most residents already have bank access. CBDC impact would be through payment efficiency, not financial inclusion.
Retail/hospitality sector (10.5%) would be early adopters of CBDC point-of-sale infrastructure.
Signature: Automotive & Industrial Manufacturing - 33.5% of all employment in manufacturing. Gentex, Haworth, GHSP, Tiara Yachts. Dutch-heritage industrial base.
Top Commodities:
Net employment change by sector under probable futures scenario. Green = growth, Red = displacement risk.
Attract robotics and AI-augmented manufacturing companies to leverage existing manufacturing workforce and retrain for higher-wage automation roles.
Position existing manufacturing infrastructure to capture companies returning production from overseas, driven by supply chain security concerns.
Address healthcare worker shortages by building accelerated training programs, especially for AI-augmented care roles.
Combine agricultural land base with AI/tech capabilities to become a precision agriculture testing and deployment hub.
Under the probable future, this county's strongest opportunity is advanced manufacturing automation hub (feasibility: 75/100). While 943 jobs face displacement risk, proactive investment in advanced manufacturing automation hub can offset this with potential: 1,942 new jobs, $119m annual payroll. Additionally, reshoring & nearshoring attraction scores 75/100 feasibility.
Gentex Corporation (Zeeland, smart mirrors/sensors)
Magna International (Holland, auto supplier)
Haworth (Holland, office furniture)
Holland Hospital
Hope College
| Company | Date | Workers | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shape Corp | 2025-09-01 | 60 | layoff |
| Metal Flow Corporation | 2025-06-01 | 75 | closure |
| Yanfeng Automotive | 2025-02-15 | 95 | layoff |
| Continental Automotive | 2024-08-01 | 55 | layoff |
| Trendway Corporation | 2024-03-01 | 135 | closure |
| Benteler Automotive | 2023-10-15 | 110 | layoff |
| Illinois Tool Works | 2023-06-01 | 90 | layoff |
| West Michigan Molding | 2022-11-01 | 65 | closure |
| Howard Miller Clock Co. | 2022-09-15 | 120 | closure |
| Gentex Corporation | 2021-03-15 | 75 | layoff |
Michigan Business Development Program (MBDP)
Performance-based grants for creating and retaining high-quality jobs. Michigan's primary incentive for large-scale proj...
grantState Essential Services Assessment (SESA) Exemption
Exemption from the SESA on eligible personal property for qualified high-tech, manufacturing, and corporate office facil...
exemptionPA 198 Industrial Facilities Tax (IFT) Abatement
Local property tax abatement on new or replacement industrial facilities. Reduces property taxes by approximately 50% on...
exemptionMichigan Strategic Fund (MSF) Job Training Grants
Grants to support customized workforce training for new and expanding businesses. Going PRO Talent Fund provides demand-...
trainingSmartZone / LDFA Tax Increment Financing
Technology-focused business incubators supported by local tax increment financing. Captures growth in local and state ta...
exemptionTarget Sectors
Active Programs
Recent Wins
| Name | Investment | Jobs | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| JR Automation expansion (Zeeland) | $72.8M | 150 | 2025 |
| LT Precision Michigan (North American HQ) | - | 70 | 2024 |
| Uniform Color expansion | $12M | 13 | 2024 |
| DeWys Metal Solutions | - | 80 | 2023 |
| Priority | Dimension | Action | Impact | Control |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| critical | Economic Disruption | Reduce Manufacturing (auto/furniture) Concentration Risk | +8 | local |
| high | Education Value | Pre-emptive Reskilling Pipeline: Auto supplier manufacturing | +5 | local |
| high | Education Value | Sector-Aligned K-12 + Community College Pipeline | +5 | local |
| high | AI > AGI > ASI | Leverage Broadband Advantage for AI Sector Growth | +4 | local |
| high | Education Value | Registered Apprenticeship Expansion: Manufacturing (auto/furniture) | +4 | local |
| high | Social Trust | Pre-Positioned Displaced Worker Rapid Response | +4 | local |
| medium | Education Value | Sector-Pivot Scholarship Voucher | +3 | local |
| high | Economic Disruption | Precision Agriculture Technology Corridor | +7 | local |
| high | AI > AGI > ASI | Automation Supplier EV Pivot | +6 | state |
Total Impact
+46 pts
9 actions
Local Control
89%
8 of 9 actions
Critical Actions
1
highest priority
Impact estimates are modeled projections based on STEEPE dimension sensitivity analysis. Actual outcomes depend on implementation quality, timing, and external conditions.
Census CBP 2022, USDA Census of Agriculture 2022, Census ACS 2024, BLS QCEW, BEA County GDP, WARN Act Notices, TerraMetrics STEEPE Engine. Census ACS 5-Year 2023: Ottawa County. BLS LAUS: Holland-Grand Haven MSA. BEA: Ottawa County Personal Income.
STEEPE Framework: A multi-dimensional disruption assessment covering Social, Technology (AI, Blockchain, CBDC, Quantum), Ecological, Economic, Political, and Education. Each dimension is scored 0-100, where higher values indicate greater disruption intensity. Scores shown in this report reflect the Probable scenario projection.
Resilience Score (0-100): How well-positioned a county is to absorb economic disruption. Calculated from economic diversification (40%), opportunity-to-threat ratio (35%), and average sector wage levels (25%). Higher scores indicate greater capacity to weather change.
Diversification Score (0-100): Economic diversity across industry sectors, based on the inverted Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI). A score of 100 indicates a perfectly diversified economy; lower scores indicate concentration in fewer sectors, increasing vulnerability to sector-specific shocks.
AI Exposure Score (0-100): Degree of exposure to AI-driven disruption based on knowledge worker concentration, tech company density, and manufacturing automation exposure. Higher scores indicate greater exposure, meaning both higher risk of displacement and higher potential for AI-driven growth.
Futures Cone (Probable / Possible / Preferable): Based on the Voros (2003) futures cone methodology. Probable represents where current trends lead (highest confidence). Possible covers what could happen across a wider range of conditions. Preferable describes the abundant future that proactive policy and investment can build toward.