MTC Releases a New Index of Innovation Indicators

The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MTC) has released a new study entitled Index of the Massachusetts Innovation Economy. This assessment of the Massachusetts economy provides data on 33 quantitative indicators.

The Index includes indicators such as industry clusters, pay per worker, manufacturing exports, education levels, R&D expenditures, Internet connectivity, and the number of patents, SBIR awards, and IPOs. The report establishes a baseline which will enable MTC to monitor, over time and in comparison to other states, Massachusetts progress in leveraging the state's resources through innovation to create quality jobs, productivity and rising incomes.

The report highlights major changes in the structure of the Massachusetts economy that have occurred in the 1990s. For example, of the nine key industry clusters that drive the economy, the software and communications services cluster is the biggest gainer, growing by more than 20,000 jobs since 1992. This industry cluster also has the highest wages, averaging $56,000 per employee. In contrast, Massachusetts has become less reliant on defense and computer/communications hardware, each of which has contracted by nearly 15,000 jobs since 1992.

The study also reports that Massachusetts leads states in patents per capita. Another positive indicator is that technology license royalties earned by universities, hospitals, and research institutions in Massachusetts more than doubled from 1991 to 1995.

MTC, a public-private economic development organization that focuses on technology-intensive enterprises in Massachusetts, undertook the project at the urging of the Governor's Council on Economic Growth and Technology. For more information about the report, contact MTC at 508/870-0312 or visit http://www.mtpc.org