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So charmed was King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, that his majesty took Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm up on her invitation and visited the state himself in September 2008.
“It was very exciting to have royalty in Michigan,” Granholm admits. “Our efforts in Michigan are putting our state at the center of in-demand research and development of technology that will help reduce reliance on fossil fuels. Sweden has really paved the way, and I think we can learn from their leadership. This was an important visit as we continue to build our relationship with Sweden and grow jobs in the alternative energy sector.”
A year earlier, Granholm, Michigan’s 47th governor, re-elected for her second and final term in 2006, strengthened her state’s ties with Sweden, according to her husband Dan Mulhern.
“Even though she is a few generations removed from Sweden, she has recruited businesses from there as if we were first generation,” Mulhern says. “She has brought their expertise in energy to our country.”
She also reminded the king and CEOs in Sweden that her name, Granholm, means “peninsula of trees,” an eerily appropriate descriptor of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The king of Sweden saw the real Granholm—she’s a charmer.
Taking the Charm Abroad
“Face-to-face meetings help to build strong connections to CEOs and decision-makers and provide the perfect setting to show all that Michigan has to offer,” she says. “Overseas job investment missions provide a perfect opportunity to build relationships and aggressively pursue jobs and attract investment to Michigan. I tell CEOs that there is no better place in North America to grow a business than in Michigan. Hours of preparation are put in before each meeting, carefully crafting our proposal and our pitch. Everywhere we travel, we take care to learn the culture and customs of the people we will be visiting to ensure that we are representing Michigan in a respectful way.”
Jim Epolito, appointed president and CEO of the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC) by Granholm, says the governor has incredible energy and total focus.
“She has undertaken a ‘go anywhere, do anything’ approach to creating jobs in Michigan,” Epolito says, and that is in fact her spoken motto.
“Six overseas investment missions have led to commitments from 42 companies to invest in our state,” he says. “The pace of these successes—our ability to bring them to Michigan so quickly—is breathtaking. They are a direct result of our governor’s drive, focus, intellect and personality.”
Granholm, a compelling and poised speaker, with a sense of humor and an all-business wardrobe, is confident and convincing.
“I personally know how persuasive the governor can be,” Epolito says. “When she first talked to me about heading up the MEDC three years ago, she made such a strong pitch I couldn’t refuse despite some reservations. That’s why when another CEO tells me about their meeting with the governor, I have to smile, because I know exactly where they’re coming from.”
Google, Hemlock Semiconductor, Keebler and Whirlpool are among the companies that have selected Michigan for relocation or expansion, and Granholm’s investment missions to Japan, Austria, Germany and Sweden resulted in more than US$944 million in new investment and the creation and retention of more than 10,600 jobs.
A fit and active runner, Granholm was frustrated when she had to put her international investment missions on hold to undergo emergency surgery (from which she has fully recovered) just hours before leaving for Israel and Kuwait.
She made good on that trip several months later, visiting Israel and Jordan to meet with leaders of the countries’ advanced manufacturing, alternative energy, homeland security/defense, venture capital and water treatment technology sectors.
These trade missions are mostly business, but Granholm does get some personal satisfaction from them. She takes a breath and considers Israel’s place in history … and possibly her own.
“Israel is an amazing place. It’s awe-inspiring. It’s moving for anyone of faith to go there,” she says.
During another trip, Epolito accompanied Granholm to Asia and got to see her in action.
“In Japan, where the business culture is often viewed as very reserved, Governor Granholm’s engaging personality, intelligence and understanding of our need to grow and nurture relationships resulted in companies such as Aisin and others coming here and expanding in Michigan, even during the downturn in the economy,” Epolito says.
Growing Power at Home
Granholm assisted in “king making” during the 2008 U.S. presidential election. Because she is one of America’s most well-spoken female political leaders, the campaign of then-Senator Barack Obama asked Granholm to play Alaska Governor Sarah Palin for then-Senator Joe Biden’s vice presidential debate preparation. Granholm even used that opportunity to promote her home state.
“I reiterated to [Biden] that Michigan has the most challenged economy in the nation, having lost 400,000 jobs [in the past 8 years],” she reveals. “I told him that we need a partner in the White House—a leader who will fight for fair trade, fight for our workers and Michigan families.”
Two days after the U.S. presidential election, Granholm was named to an economic advisory board for President-elect Obama’s transition to the White House, meeting with both Obama and Biden in Chicago. The board also included investment whiz Warren Buffett, former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich and former U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin.
While Granholm’s support of Senator Hillary Clinton for the democratic presidential nomination may preclude her from a cabinet post in the Obama administration, political pundits are convinced that President Obama, should he have the opportunity, would strongly consider nominating Granholm to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“I don’t know where [the pundits] get their information,” she counters, dismissively.
Former Michigan Governor James Blanchard, a democrat who left office in 1990 and now works in Washington, D.C., says this potential development will be interesting to watch unfold.
“She has said that she plans to serve the remainder of her last term as governor … but we’ll see,” Blanchard said. “Those things can change.”
A Swift Ascension
Granholm’s path to the Governor’s Mansion began in Detroit as a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals law clerk before becoming a federal prosecutor with a 98 percent conviction rate. Granholm was then appointed Wayne County corp. council and, four years later in 1998, was elected Michigan’s first female attorney general. As attorney general, she established the state’s first high-tech crime unit to prosecute Internet crimes. In the wake of the September 11, 2001, attacks, she took swift action to protect consumers from price gouging at the gas pumps.
In 2002, Granholm was elected Michigan’s first female governor.
“Michigan is truly blessed to have Governor Granholm leading the way as our chief saleswoman. She is a leader with a bold vision for our state, and she does an amazing job connecting with company leaders who have visions for their companies,” Epolito says. “The feedback I get from CEOs who meet with the governor is always extremely positive. They are typically impressed with her knowledge of their business and the sector that they compete in. She has the uncanny ability to sell Michigan’s strengths and how those strengths can help a company thrive here.”
One of Granholm’s perks for being Governor of Michigan is the use of a historic, 1902, three-story summer residence perched on a bluff high atop scenic Mackinac Island, an idyllic, horse-drawn destination reachable only by ferry and air and devoid of motorized vehicles. From the porch swing, the governor, a wife and mother of three, can see Lake Michigan and Lake Huron and the inspiring spot where the two meet under the iconic Mackinac Bridge.
“You can’t top a bike ride around Mackinac on a warm, breezy summer day,” Granholm says. “I have many wonderful memories that I have shared on the island with my family, too.”
But the 49-year-old, educated at the University of California at Berkeley and Harvard Law School, doesn’t spend a lot of time enjoying the view, because she can’t help but extend her sights far beyond the steeples, sailboats and sunsets below as she searches for ways to diversify Michigan’s economy and create financial opportunities during tough economic times. Her state has relied on its heritage of automobile manufacturing—an industry in severe decline but seeking to reinvent itself with alternative fuel vehicles and shared resources through mergers.
“The downturn in the auto industry is obviously the greatest economic challenge working against Michigan,” Epolito says. “Our state is seven times more dependent on this industry than any other state. So, when the industry gets a cold, Michigan gets the flu.”
That flu is now a full-blown pneumonia.
Chicken Soup for the State
In November 2006, Granholm was re-elected by a wide margin but her party lost control of the state senate.
By the time Granholm was sworn in on New Year’s Day, squables began over how to solve Michigan’s $800 billion budget deficit.
By Mother’s Day, the governor was at her wit’s end.
“How long have I been a nice person? I mean, I’ve been very gentle througout my years as governor. But at some point you have to draw the line,” Granholm said while speaking before a group of education and health care officials. “I’m a very gentle soul, but at some point, you get frustrated because one side isn’t compromising.”
In the meantime, major corporations such as Pfizer and Comerica Bank closed their operations or moved out of the state; homeowners struggled for an average of more than two years to sell their houses; and Wall Street analysts downgraded their assesment of Michigan’s credit rating.
Epolito saw Granholm trying to put out fires at the same time she was inviting outside corporations to jump into the frying pan.
Progress Straight Out of Hollywood
During her tenure, Granholm has encouraged corporations to let her mitten-shaped state give them the “Upper Hand,” through an international advertising campaign using that pun in commercials voiced by Academy Award-winning actor and Michigan native Jeff Daniels. The National Football League Super Bowl, Major League Baseball All-Star Game, National Governor’s Association Annual Meeting, North American International Auto Show and Ryder Cup are examples of major events Michigan has played host to and used to publicize its resources and capabilities.
The Travel Michigan division of Granholm’s economic development program persuaded meeting planners and tourists to visit through the popular “Pure Michigan” ad campaign, featuring glossy scenes of Michigan’s lakes, rich forests, ski hills, golf courses, beaches and resorts, voiced by another of Michigan’s most popular sons, actor and comedian Tim Allen.
Mulhern thinks his wife is the essence of “pure Michigan”—even though she’s a Vancouver, British Columbia, native.
“I would describe her as being gorgeous on the outside and magnificent on the inside. She is quick and determined, fearless and optimistic, full of integrity and deeply kind,” says Mulhern, who admits balancing their family life with Granholm’s frenetic schedule has been more difficult than expected. “In this life, there is no typical day. She strives to be home for dinner, but evening commitments regularly interrupt that pattern. And she works at her desk at home every evening and weekend. Like so many busy parents these days, we go from work to asking the kids about their day. Sports, writing college applications, homework and music lessons are the focus of our evening jobs. If we’re lucky, we have a little quiet time together before we both conk out around 11 p.m. She’s always back at it by 5 a.m.”
Mulhern was personally responsible for originally bringing Granholm to the state she would eventually govern.
“My husband grew up in the Detroit area,” she explains, “and after many visits to his home, I knew that Michigan would be a perfect place to settle, live and raise a family.”
And that decision to stay was a significant moment in her life and career.
It is high-profile business, though, that Granholm, now something of a star with the Hollywood crowd, has been able to lure to Michigan this year. Thanks to bipartisan support in the state house and senate, Michigan has offered the nation’s most generous tax rebate to filmmakers—more than 40 percent. This effort has been a resounding success. Movie stars and directors that have since begun filming in Michigan include Drew Barrymore (Whip It!), Clint Eastwood (Gran Torino), Rob Schenider (Virgin on Bourbon Street) and Sigourney Weaver (Prayers for Bobby). Movie spending in the state could exceed $250 million in 2009 according to S3 Entertainment Group, a production company that moved to Michigan when the incentive package passed in the winter of 2008.
But who would play Granholm in a movie about her life?
“Oh, gosh … I haven’t thought about that,” she demurs before accepting Joan Allen or Meryl Streep as suitable suggestions.
