Skip to Content

Chamber Updates

  1. home Home
  2. Posts
  3. NC Leads Q1 Impact Update: Advancing Solutions for North Carolina’s Future

NC Leads Q1 Impact Update: Advancing Solutions for North Carolina’s Future

| Economic Development, Infrastructure, Labor & Workplace

The NC Chamber Foundation is committed to driving statewide prosperity through data-driven research, collaborative leadership, and employer-led solutions. Central to this mission is NC Leads—our strategic plan focused on strengthening North Carolina’s long-term competitiveness by addressing education and talent supply, infrastructure and growth, and the state’s business climate.

Thanks to the continued investment of our NC Leads investors, the first quarter of 2025 marked significant progress in turning strategy into impact. From advancing child care policy to publishing research on housing and infrastructure funding, and launching sector-specific workforce solutions, the work of the NC Chamber Foundation is gaining momentum—and delivering measurable outcomes.

In Q1, NC Leads Investors enabled us to:
  • Release three major research initiatives on child care, housing, and infrastructure funding.
  • Elevate critical issues to the forefront of state and national policy conversations.
  • Deepen employer engagement in workforce and economic competitiveness solutions.
These efforts are driving real action in North Carolina. Here’s a look at the progress your support made possible:

New Research Driving Policy and Solutions

Child Care: In February, we released the third installment in our child care research series, identifying 11 actionable policy opportunities to improve access to affordable, high-quality care. Our work is informing and shaping critical policy discussions:
  • Governor Josh Stein cited our Untapped Potential report in an executive order establishing a new state task force on child care and early education, which NC Chamber President and CEO Gary Salamido was appointed to join.
  • Several child care-focused bills have since been filed in the General Assembly, many garnering NC Chamber support.
  • Shared research findings at the Early Childhood and Business Advisory Council Southern State Convening, hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the 2025 State of the Child Summit, hosted by the N.C. Institute of Medicine and NC Child.
Housing: In partnership with NC REALTORS® and the NC Home Builders Association, we released a statewide Housing Supply Gap Analysis and corresponding economic impact report. It quantified the shortage across all 100 counties and projected a potential $489 billion in economic activity if addressed.
  • We’ve shared the reports with other statewide organizations and equipped local chambers with county-level toolkits to inform solutions across the state.
Infrastructure Funding: We published a white paper to educate state and business leaders on the benefits of establishing a State Infrastructure Bank. This sustainable and innovative funding mechanism could accelerate delivery of critical infrastructure projects by leveraging private and federal funding.
  • Supported by the NC Chamber, legislation has been filed in the General Assembly that would establish this resource in North Carolina.

Business-Led Workforce Solutions

Health Care Workforce: Through the NC Health Talent Alliance, we’re advancing a data-driven, employer-led workforce system grounded in the Talent Pipeline Management® model. Our initial focus on health care—especially nursing—has enabled us to quantify talent needs, unify siloed data, and engage employers to lead.
  • Featured nationally at the U.S. Chamber Foundation’s Talent Forward conference in March.
  • New tools launching in Q2 will tackle major workforce bottlenecks and support real-time tracking of workforce demand to inform policy and funding decisions.
  • What’s next? We’re building on this foundation by expanding the model to manufacturing and exploring its application in agriculture—sectors that also face persistent talent challenges.

Emerging Work: Water + Energy

Two major research and stakeholder engagement initiatives launched in Q1 will come to fruition later this year:
Water: Our water infrastructure research—conducted by LDA Engineering and INTERA—will assess the state’s competitive position and identify key challenges and solutions to improve resilience and reliability. That report is on track for release in Q3.
Energy: We are developing a business-focused energy vision that is slated for completion in Q3. We have convened a business advisory group and are currently gathering input from business, economic development, and community leaders across industry, commerce, and communities to inform this long-term strategy for North Carolina.

On the Ground: Coca-Cola Consolidated

To close out the quarter, we joined NC Leads investor Coca-Cola Consolidated for a behind-the-scenes visit as part of the North Carolina Manufacturing Tour. The tour showcased the company’s advanced bottling operations, apprenticeship programs, and local school partnerships—underscoring the importance of business leadership in workforce development. Read more in the Charlotte Observer’s recap.
Interested in being part of the tour? Let us know—we’d love to spotlight your company.