Hat Tip to State’s Economic Developers during Economic Development Week

This week is National Economic Development Week – and have we got the bragging rights for the great work our economic development teams do to help businesses expand in or relocate to Minnesota.   

Recent recognitions highlight our robust business climate; skilled, educated workforce; and positive work/life balance. CNBC named Minnesota Top State for Business (2015), the 2^nd Smartest State (2016) and the 2^nd highest in Quality of Life (2016). Read more on the Minnesota Success Story or go to BusinessClimate.com. 

Compare Minneapolis-St. Paul just launched. Among top 10 metro areas, Minneapolis-St. Paul ranks: 

• 1^st in Fortune 500 companies per 1 million people (4.5) – 2016
• 7^th in total number of Fortune 500 companies (16) – 2016
• 7^th in employment in manufacturing industries (194,368) – 2015
• 8^th in employment in financial and insurance industries (108,055) – 2015
• 8^th in employment in health care and social assistance services (267,626) – 2015
• 10^th in venture capital investments per capita ($99) – 2016
• 8^th in total invention patents (3,419) – 2015
• 8^th in exports per capita ($5,563) – 2015
• Minneapolis-St. Paul airport (MSP) ranks ninth in scheduled departure flights (176,126) among large U.S. airports – 2017 

A wealth of business development and expansion programs also is driving job and business growth. One of the most successful is the Job Creation Fund, which provides grants to businesses in exchange for job creation and investment commitments. Since the program was launched more than three years ago, the state has awarded $33.3 million for 75 business expansion projects in Minnesota. Companies, in turn, have committed to creating nearly 4,600 fulltime jobs and investing more than $1 billion. 

Continue reading.