Best Places for Business and Careers: Austin #1
Forbes ranks Austin as the Best Place for Business and Careers in their annual report. What are the key ingredients for its success?
Entertainment: As mentioned on this site previously, Austin is indeed the live music capital of the world. The proof is in asking just about anyone who’s been to Austin – “It’s so cool. There’s always something going on and the people are so nice.”
Affordability: The second annual Affordability Index from techies.com Inc. (a treasure trove of workforce market insight) puts Austin in third place. The index measures the greatest value based on salary vs. cost of living.
Jobs: Based on the information above, it’s no surprise Austin attracts so many jobs. Supported by one of the largest education talent pools in the country (49,000 University of Texas students), Dell, Motorola and IBM soon migrated. Overall, Austin has one of the highest net migration rates in the country, if not the highest.
Austin is lacking a bit in the place-making department, but the talent and energy are there to change that.
About The Author
As a member of the CoolTown Guild, and a resident of Austin Texas for a little over two years now, I can agree with your assessment. Austin needs a market development game plan that better communicates its current assets.
Having moved to Austin from Phoenix Arizona, where I was a resident for more than thirteen years, I’ve been able to compare the pros and cons of both of these high-growth communities.
While I was active for many years within economic development and market development circles in Phoenix, I’m just getting started in Austin. So far, I’ve observed that the Texas state capital has far too many “best kept secrets.” But, this is a relatively easy problem to fix, and I’m already in the process of offering suggestions.
Anyway, the creative class is alive and well in Austin, with a world-class talent pool of serial entrepreneurs and other fearless innovators. If you’re involved in technology or the arts and you haven’t already checked out Austin, then I suggest that you do so.
David H. Deans
http://daviddeans.webhop.net