"A community that loses a headquarters faces pretty bad stigma," he said. "The types of jobs that are going to disappear are high-value-added, with wages and salaries usually above the average for the area."
Others are skeptical that such corporate moves signal regional business turmoil or a need for regulatory reform.
Southern California has long relied on small-to-medium-size businesses to drive its economy, said Robert Kleinhenz, chief economist with the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp.
Last month, the government recorded 5.8 million nonfarm workers in the Los Angeles and Irvine metropolitan areas, 2.6% more than a year earlier. Despite being one of Orange County's major employers, with thousands of workers, Broadcom represents a tiny fraction of the total, and it may not even lose workers under new management.
Southern California also has several expanding businesses ― many of which fly under the radar because they aren't public companies ― which are stepping in as others fall to acquisitions or relocations.
SpaceX, the Hawthorne rocket company founded by L.A. entrepreneur Elon Musk, has grown in a decade to about 3,000 employees, most in Southern California. British engineering firm Meggitt established a new U.S. headquarters in Irvine last year and has grown rapidly to 420 employees. TrueCar.com, a digital auto sales portal in Santa Monica, has almost tripled its revenue in the last three years and grown to 500 employees.
"The fact is," Kleinhenz said, "many other indicators are telling us that this economy is at least doing well, if not thriving, and growing faster than other places around the country."
