Creating high-growth, high-impact entrepreneurial enterprises has
become a common goal of cities. Metros and states have cut taxes,
implemented entrepreneur-friendly business policies, launched their own
venture capital efforts, and underwritten incubators and
accelerators—all in the hope of creating the next Apples, Facebooks,
Googles, and Twitters.
But what really attracts innovative entrepreneurs who create these economy-boosting companies?
The answers: talented workers, and the quality of life that the educated and ambitious have come to expect—not the low-tax, favorable-regulation approach that many state and local governments tout.
These are the findings in a new report from Endeavor Insight, the research department of the nonprofit Endeavor, which focuses on fostering and mentoring "high-impact" entrepreneurs. Based on surveys and interviews with 150 founders of some of the country's fastest-growing companies, the report answers the basic question, "What do the best entrepreneurs want in a city?" It offers basic evidence that cities should focus on factors and conditions that attract the talented, educated workers who fast-growing entrepreneurial enterprises need.
Entrepreneurs look for talented workers and the amenities that these workers like.
Looking at this sample of America's most successful new businesses, Endeavor identified two fundamental patterns.
For one, size matters. These top business-creators gravitated towards cities with at least a million residents in the metro area. This size offered the scale and diverse array of offerings needed to attract talent.
A city also needs to appeal to the young and the restless. The entrepreneurs surveyed were a highly mobile bunch when they first started out. They moved often and easily in the early phases of their careers, following personal ties or lifestyle amenities while also seeking the right environment to launch their enterprises. But 80 percent of respondents had lived in their current city for at least two years before launching their companies, meaning that cities had to catch them early. And once they started their first company, these business leaders rarely moved. So attracting this mobile group at an early age is key.
The report then dug deeper into exactly what these entrepreneurs cited as the most important part of their location choices.
The top-rated factor by far was access to talent. Nearly a third of those surveyed mentioned it as a key factor in their decisions for where to live and work (many specifically prized access to technically trained workers). Entrepreneurs explained that they proactively sought out the places that educated and ambitious workers want to be.
EU-Digest
But what really attracts innovative entrepreneurs who create these economy-boosting companies?
The answers: talented workers, and the quality of life that the educated and ambitious have come to expect—not the low-tax, favorable-regulation approach that many state and local governments tout.
These are the findings in a new report from Endeavor Insight, the research department of the nonprofit Endeavor, which focuses on fostering and mentoring "high-impact" entrepreneurs. Based on surveys and interviews with 150 founders of some of the country's fastest-growing companies, the report answers the basic question, "What do the best entrepreneurs want in a city?" It offers basic evidence that cities should focus on factors and conditions that attract the talented, educated workers who fast-growing entrepreneurial enterprises need.
Looking at this sample of America's most successful new businesses, Endeavor identified two fundamental patterns.
For one, size matters. These top business-creators gravitated towards cities with at least a million residents in the metro area. This size offered the scale and diverse array of offerings needed to attract talent.
A city also needs to appeal to the young and the restless. The entrepreneurs surveyed were a highly mobile bunch when they first started out. They moved often and easily in the early phases of their careers, following personal ties or lifestyle amenities while also seeking the right environment to launch their enterprises. But 80 percent of respondents had lived in their current city for at least two years before launching their companies, meaning that cities had to catch them early. And once they started their first company, these business leaders rarely moved. So attracting this mobile group at an early age is key.
The report then dug deeper into exactly what these entrepreneurs cited as the most important part of their location choices.
The top-rated factor by far was access to talent. Nearly a third of those surveyed mentioned it as a key factor in their decisions for where to live and work (many specifically prized access to technically trained workers). Entrepreneurs explained that they proactively sought out the places that educated and ambitious workers want to be.
EU-Digest
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