Collaborators include Accenture, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, and SMU
DALLAS – The Dallas Regional Chamber has teamed with Accenture, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas and SMU to launch a new regional study to build a strategy to accelerate the growth of North Texas’ innovation economy and strengthen its reputation as a hub for innovation. The goal of this comprehensive, multi-stakeholder study is to better understand the state of the innovation climate in the DFW Region and to identify recommendations for attracting more capital investment; shoring up research and development collaboration among universities and the public and private sectors; and facilitating local start up activity.
“Innovation is one of the most important driving force for regional economic growth and for keeping our market resilient during down times,” said Dale Petroskey, President and CEO of the Dallas Regional Chamber. “We already have a roster of innovation-focused global companies headquartered here across a diverse set of industries, top notch universities producing highly skilled graduates, and a growing community of cutting-edge and creative entrepreneurs. This study will look at what we can do collaboratively to become a recognized hub for innovation on a global scale.”
The announcement of the study was marked by the release of the inaugural DFW Region Innovation Scorecard, which compiles global rankings to create a snapshot of how experts perceive the DFW Region as a center of innovation excellence. Benchmarking the region against global peer markets,
the scorecard serves as a barometer of the DFW Region’s standing and ability to generate and adapt to continuous innovation.
The main takeaway from this initial scorecard is that the DFW Region is in a position of strength across many indicators. It also identifies areas where we can most efficiently improve against peer major metros. Other key findings include:
- In terms of overall innovation readiness, Dallas outperformed New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, ranking #3 in Milken’s Best Performing Cities list of which metros offer the greatest opportunities for prosperity and innovation
- Dallas ranks well against other top global cities in Dell’s Future Ready Cities, charting ahead of global powerhouses Munich, Beijing, and Hong Kong
- Dallas performs well against other U.S. cities in the Kauffman Indexes, ranking 11th as a market for startups and 10th as a market got entrepreneurship growth.
- In the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Innovation that Matters report, which examines the
health of startup communities in the country, Dallas ranks 7th, ahead of Seattle and New
York City – and jumping up 12 spots from 2016 - CBRE and Cushman & Wakefield, two global commercial real estate firms, evaluate tech
cities across measures of talent, community support, and nurturing. Dallas ranked 10th and
21st respectively.
The scorecard serves as a first step in the process to better understand and encourage the ongoing development of the DFW Region’s innovation economy.
In collaboration with Accenture and working closely with United Way of Metropolitan Dallas and SMU, the study is designed to identify opportunities to develop the DFW Region’s innovation ecosystem and will include a survey of local business leaders, entrepreneurs, policymakers, academics, researchers, nonprofit leaders and venture capitalists across North Texas, as well as learnings from the development paths of other cities.
“For our clients in North Texas, innovation is an imperative to compete, transform and drive growth in today’s digital economy,” said Jorge Corral, Accenture’s Dallas office managing director. “We are excited to team with a wide spectrum of Dallas-Fort Worth leaders to define actionable ways to
elevate our community as a global hub for innovation.”
“Innovation is the key to opportunity, and the opportunities Dallas provides are major factors in bringing ambitious, talented students to SMU from all over the world,” said SMU Provost Steven C. Currall. “The ‘wildcatter’ spirit still lives here among people who think a good idea is always worth
pursuing. We look forward to how this survey can help support the connections between SMU research and commercial investment.”
“Innovation is expanding rapidly across North Texas, sparking the development of new solutions to complex community challenges,” said Jennifer Sampson, McDermott-Templeton President and CEO, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas. “United Way is proud to partner with corporate, civic,
education, and community leaders to embrace and encourage pioneering approaches to building a better future for us all.”
The study will be conducted through June 2018. Results and analysis from the full report will be released by the Dallas Regional Chamber and partner organizations in summer 2018.
About the Dallas Regional Chamber
The Dallas Regional Chamber is one of the most established business organizations in the nation and serves as the voice of business and the champion of economic development and growth in the Dallas Region. We work with our 1,100 member companies and regional partners to strengthen our business community by advocating for pro-growth public policies, improving our educational system, attracting talented workers from around the world, and enhancing the quality of life for all. Our goal is to make Dallas the best place in America to live, work, and do business.