Attracting high-tech jobs is always mission critical for any economic development organization, and there is no better model in the country to look at those industries than Silicon Valley. I recently spent some time in California to learn more about the Valley's strengths and weaknesses to apply to our own high-tech business sector here in Indiana. What I found was encouraging news about our competitiveness and our potential to bring new jobs to Indiana.
In the Silicon Valley Leadership Group's annual survey of high-tech CEOs, the results point toward an increasing concern for high-tech employee retention due to high housing costs, high taxes and frustrating levels of traffic congestion. When you look at what Indiana has done to create not only a competitive cost of living environment, but one of the most comprehensive highway improvement projects in the nation, Californians that come to Indiana are finding that an attractive lifestyle involves more than just sunny beaches and incredibly fresh sushi rolls.
The bottom line is that quality of life is something we don't talk about enough in Indiana from both a job attraction and job retention standpoint. Too often we assume that the California lifestyle is something we really can't compete with. From what I've seen recently, the opposite is true. California can't hold a candle to Indiana's incredible value for housing costs, low taxes and freedom of movement between the office and home. We also have some of the best and most accessible recreation and sporting opportunities in the country. And, yes, I am dreaming of a white Christmas, back home again in Indiana.
It's definitely worth sharing, and just a few more reasons it's great to be a Hoosier. Have you told someone new about Indiana this week?