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Further study of the shiftshare analysis conducted for the Baseline Study suggests several sectors that the City should initially consider for business retention, including non -durable goods wholesale (S.I.C. 5100), fabricated metal products (3400). and automotive dealers and service station (5500) sectors. These sectors are flagged based on the fact that the\ are not just losing employment share at the regional level, they are also performing even worse locally than at the regional level. A more detailed discussion of how the shiftshare analvsis was used to identify these and other local sectors that are potentially at risk is contained in Appendix A. In addition to conducting outreach to sectors that are identified as being at particular risk. the City also should conduct outreach to individual businesses which account for large proportions of the local employment. regardless of what sector they are in. By establishing working relationships with important local employers. the City will be more likely to receive early warning of potential employment losses which might not necessarily be predicted based on industry -wide or local trends and conditions. The existing Chamber visitation program addresses this need. Another means suggested in this Work Plan that will help to accomplish this is to monitor local business license data to identifv businesses which may be in decline (indicating a possible closure or downsizing) and those that are rapidly growing (indicating a possible need to relocate due to outgrowing current facilities). The discussions in Appendix A highlight the fact that numerical analvses alone are not sufficient to target business retention. expansion. or attraction efforts. In addition to conducting quantitative analyses of employment trends in various sectors. it is important to develop greater understanding of the underlving industry dvnamics that affect the performance of individual sectors in the local and the regional economies. In particular. Action 1.4 is suggested as a tool to collect this type of information. Then. based on that knowledge. the Cite will be able to further refine its targeting of sectors for retention efforts, and most importantly, determine which types of retention techniques will be most useful. Business expansion involves assisting local businesses to grow and expand the scope of their operations in San Leandro. thus increasing local investment and employment. San Leandro's programs to help local businesses expand should provide opportunities for all businesses regardless of their sectoral categorization. While individual businesses' opportunities for growth and expansion ma- be influenced by the overall trends in their industries. given the right combination of firm leadership and resources, even companies in declining sectors can prosper and grow. It should be the City's goal to develop expansion assistance programs that can be accessed by local firms in a variety of sectors in order to encourage firms that are poised for growth to expand locally. At the same time, the City may wish to target its marketing efforts for business expansion programs to those sectors likely to have large proportions of firms that might especiall- benefit from programs designed to help businesses expand. 17