Entrepreneurship in Dane County Edward Clarke Strategic Innovation Office MATC

Presentation Outline What is an “entrepreneur”? Why care about entrepreneurship? What supports entrepreneurs? What is the situation in Dane County? What can we do?

Entrepreneurship One of the four basic categories of resources, or factors of production (the other three are labor, capital, and land). An entrepreneur is a person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture. HED Work Group: GLOSSARY of ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TERMS

Why Care? Ans.= 2/3 Jobs: 2/3 of all new jobs Innovation: 2/3 of all technology innovation Prosperity: 0.7 correlation between GDP and entrepreneurship in the G7 nations –Accounts for 50% difference in growth

Positive Regional Characteristics 1. Diversity of Capital 2. Enabling Culture 3. Strong Local Networks 4. Supportive Infrastructure 5. “Entrepreneur Friendly” Government National Commission on Entrepreneurship 2000

1. Diversity of Capital Start up funding is scarce but growing Recent state legislation is positive Wisconsin is more conservative with public funding than other states

2. An Enabling Culture History Leadership Vision Role Models Values

3. Strong Local Networks “Networks are the single most critical factor for a strong entrepreneurial region.” National Commission on Entrepreneurship 2002

3. Strong Local Networks Attracts capital Attracts management talent Helps create infrastructure Brokers contacts Gives entrepreneurs a voice

3. Strong Local Networks Build on existing initiatives –Biomedical Collaborative Build on existing clusters

4. Supportive Infrastructure Workforce Economic Environment Support Systems Quality of Life Entrepreneurial Environment

5. Entrepreneur Friendly Government Regulatory policy Tax Policy Advising and supporting agencies Direct financial assistance Recognition

How are we doing? Forbes Magazine May 2004 –Madison: “The Miracle in the Midwest” #1 metro area to launch a business or a career

Forbes Madison, Wis. Population: 443,000. Job Growth: 1.5%. Income Growth: 4.3%. In Madison 41% of the adult population has a college degree-- almost twice the national average. Per capita income is growing quickly. All that helps create a tight labor market: At 2.7%, unemployment is the lowest of any of the 150 largest metro areas.

Job growth (Index = 1997; 2002) 1 Score: Rank: 56 Job growth (Index = 2001; 2002) 2 Score: Rank: 47 Wages & salaries growth (Index = 1996; 2001) 3 Score: Rank: 55 Wages & salaries growth (Index = 2000; 2001) 4 Score: Rank: 33 Short-term job growth 5 Growth: 1.75 % Rank: 25 Relative HT GDP (Index = 1997; 2002) 6 Score: Rank: 119 Relative HT GDP (Index = 2001; 2002) 7 Score: Rank: 112 High-Tech GDP LQ Score: 0.73 Rank: 80 # of HT GDP LQs Over Score: 4 Rank: 32 Best Performing Top 200 Cities Madison, WI Overall Rank: 21 Population: 432,654 Milken Institute

Regional Challenges Wisconsin entrepreneurial report card =D

Promote industry clusters where a competitive advantage exists Use a balanced approach of targeted recruitment, global branding, business creation and existing business retention. Integrate higher education into economic development efforts. Develop creative, inclusive approaches to rural prosperity. Create agile leadership networks Raleigh Durham Action Plan

Specific Steps Encourage more incubation Engage local banks Support state venture funding efforts Link efforts to state clusters Promote networks and consortia of businesses Integrate economic development initiatives with City and region