Regions Respond to Economic Challenges – Results are Impressive

Rising structural costs of housing and labor, and relative under-investment in public higher education together are causing New England to lose its edge to other regions of the country according to an analysis of the region’s economic competitiveness prepared for The New England Council. The study was conducted for the Council by global management consulting firm A.T. Kearney. The report named structural costs as New England’s weakest link and said these costs may be fueling a loss of skilled workers and companies to other parts of the country.

The Council concluded that the region has an opportunity to mitigate these challenges by: supporting strategic policy to enhance investment in growth industries; bolstering support for public higher education; building the region’s "brand"; and strengthening networking and collaboration.

"The study offers a uniquely comprehensive comparative analysis between New England and competing regions and has identified what drives the region’s economy and what challenges it, with the intent of developing strategies to move the region’s economy forward and be more competitive," said James T. Brett, President and CEO, The New England Council. "This effort represents a cross-section of data that has never been compared before."

The product of 18 months of data analysis and hundreds of interviews, the report compares New England to other growth areas such as North Carolina’s Research Triangle, Atlanta, and the Baltimore/Washington, D.C. corridor.

Full Story: http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20050608005435&newsLang=en

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‘Staying on Top’ Plan Is Already Producing Results for RTP Region

By Charles A. Hayes, Special To LTW

“Staying on Top: Winning the Job Wars of the Future” is a five-year, $5 million action agenda to generate 100,000 new jobs and increase employment in all 13 counties of the Research Triangle Region of North Carolina. More than 60 organizations, called “institutional partners,” are collaborating to implement 30 actions that will support the growth of key emerging industry “clusters.”

The initiative grew from the findings of a 2001 study by world-renowned Harvard University economist Dr. Michael Porter, who conducted Clusters of Innovation, a comprehensive analysis of the Research Triangle Region’s competitive position. After his report, a 37-member task force of regional business and higher education leaders created this action blueprint. Implementation began in the spring of 2004.

Full Story: http://www.localtechwire.com/article.cfm?u=11499