The presence of "surrogate universities" - that is, nonacademic institutions able to attract a skilled workforce, produce marketable innovations and cultivate local entrepreneurship - have greatly influenced the growth of the tech-based economy of Boise and Idaho's Treasure Valley. Furthermore, distinctions in these surrogates' culture, innovation model and marketable products may help to explain the development of new technology firms in the metro area. In Boise, Idaho: An Overview of the High-Technology Economy in the Treasure Valley, Heike Mayer of Virginia Tech follows the establishment and business activities of tech firms over the last four decades in a region without a research-intensive university, a factor often seen as a critical driver of economic development.
In Boise's case, the selection of the region in 1973 as a branch location of Hewlett-Packard (HP) and the establishment in 1978 of the semiconductor-producing company Micron, were important early events for the region's growth. Mayer's survey work shows about 20 percent of entrepreneurs who went on to establish other companies in the region were employed at either HP or Micron, as opposed to the approximate 5 percent of entrepreneurs who were employed at a university. Comparatively, firms other than Micron and HP were the origins for 63 percent of the entrepreneurs surveyed.
Because such a large concentration of entrepreneurs came from HP and Micron, these firms served as surrogate universities, driving the growth of the local tech economy in ways that can be attributable to traditional research universities. In fact, by the study's count, three times as many past employees of HP went on to create new firms as compared to past Micron employees. Mayer speculates this difference may be due to the structure of these companies.
For example, while HP produced printers for end consumers, Micron produced memory chips in the intermediate stages of product development. These different market orientations may influence the skills of the people hired into the company structure, thus making the labor pool at each firm have different sets of skills. Interviewees noted the changes in management and innovation culture over the years at HP may have created a more entrepreneurial culture, generating more employees willing to take risks.
The report contends Boise developed a vibrant technology-based economy over the decades without much attention from state and local policymakers and without a heavily research-oriented university. However, today's global marketplace is very different than the environment in the 1970s when HP and Micron established a local presence. Firms are moving or expanding their manufacturing and R&D efforts to other countries in order to take advantage of cheaper costs and potential markets. Mayer recommends in this new era, state and local policymakers need to make investments in the R&D infrastructure and improve linkages between the state's universities and industry. Additionally, Boise needs to do a better job increasing local education attainment levels and enact initiatives to attract and retain a skilled workforce.
While this report looks specifically at the Boise metro area, many of the techniques used to analyze and track the path of the region's tech-based economy may be of interest to others. In the future, similar "entrepreneurial genealogy" studies will be completed by Dr. Mayer for Kansas City, Portland, Phoenix/Tucson and Seattle.
In addition to this study, a map was created illustrating the spin-off growth of Boise's technology firms over time. The map, along with the original report, can be found at:
http://www.nvc.vt.edu/uap/research/KnowledgeRegion-BoiseIdaho.html
