Plugging the 'brain drain'

From trying to lure corporate giants like Amazon to revitalizing historic buildings, Birmingham has been trying to lure a certain type of person back to the city: young professionals.

Defined as a millennial — person born between 1980 and 1995 — with at least a bachelor’s degree, young professionals are one of the most sought-after demographics, and while the greater metro area of Birmingham has seen relatively flat levels of growth in the YP population, the urban core of the city has seen a radical increase.

From 2010-15, the Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) reports that the urban core of the city has seen a 56.2 percent increase in young professionals, a figure that dwarfs the national average of 17.6 percent.

Waymond Jackson, vice president of workforce development for the BBA, said that while there is the conception that Birmingham has a “brain drain” problem of young people leaving, the heart of the city has seen a flocking of young professionals.

“We are actually attracting more than we are losing,” Jackson said.

Birmingham is ranked No. 7 nationally in attracting young professionals, according to the BBA, and with a population of nearly 4,500 millennials with bachelor’s degrees in about 15 square miles, the city ranks 57th nationally in young professional population.

“That’s a good trend for us,” Jackson said.

Jackson said that part of what is attracting young people to the urban core is not only revitalized historic buildings and providing top-notch amenities, but the ability to get plugged in.

“I think a lot has been associated with millennials wanting to have an impact in the place where they are,” he said.

One of the most visible groups looking to get those in their mid twenties to early thirties involved is Young Professionals of Birmingham, or YP Birmingham, which meets monthly for social events and outreach opportunities.

“It was just a different way to meet young professionals,” YP board president Ryan Matthew Smith said.

YP Birmingham began unofficially in 2007, getting formally recognized as a 501(c)3 a year later.

In the years since, the group has grown to an annual membership of between 600 and 800, Smith said, and usually hosts at least one event a month.

On top of providing a social outlet, Smith said, it gives members and guests a way to both network and feel involved in the city, whether they’ve lived here their entire lives or just moved to the area.

“The hope is that when they acquire these relationships, it will convince them more to stay,” Smith said.

Kimberly Thomas moved to Birmingham after living in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where she and her husband were involved in a young professionals group.

Thomas said the two were looking to get plugged in to the Birmingham YP group to get to know other people, as well as their new city.

“It’s an organization where you get to meet people your age, and in Birmingham sometimes that’s not easy,” she said.

Thomas said that many may think of a young professionals’ group as just another networking opportunity, but that it’s bigger than selling yourself.

“I think it’s more about truly networking with people your age rather than networking for a sales goal,” she said. “It gets you out of your comfort zone. It gets you talking with people who are maybe not like-minded.”

Other groups and organizations, including WBHM, the Birmingham Zoo, The Birmingham Botanical Gardens, the Literacy Council and countless others also have junior boards for young professionals to get plugged in directly.

And Jackson said that to him and the BBA, that is what will keep pushing Birmingham forward.

“It has been proven that people tend to stay and want to stay where they get engaged and involved in civic activities,” he said, adding that he hopes that as more young professionals get involved, Birmingham will continue to attract bigger and better things.

For more information about opportunities for young professionals in Birmingham, visit birminghambusinessalliance.com/education-workforce/ or ypbirmingham.com.