Examining why Whirlpool stayed in Southwest Michigan

In 2000 tensions between St. Joseph and Benton Harbor were making it difficult for Whirlpool to attract and retain the kind of talent it needed.

The Herald-Palladium reports community leaders heard a clear message that if Whirlpool could not attract a diverse work force that feels welcome on both sides of the St. Joseph River it would have to explore moving its world headquarters to a kinder, gentler place.

Excerpt:

“Ten years ago, these were deeply divided communities,” David Whitwam, the retired Whirlpool CEO, said in a recent interview in his office in St. Joseph. He is now the president of Harbor Shores Community Redevelopment Inc.

“There was a river that separated them, but that river was a lot wider than the 100 yards we look at out there. And if you think about it, there was a racial divide, an economic divide and cultural divides between the communities. There were almost no opportunities for the communities to interface.”

That has changed, Whitwam said, as evidenced by several multi-million-dollar projects that would not have happened without community collaboration.

To find out more, read the entire story.

Source: Herald-Palladium