SSTI Digest

The City of Spokane and a group of local organizations have penned a strategic plan designed to help the city and the Inland Northwest achieve an Innovation Economy. Sponsored by the Spokane Economic Development Council, SIRTI and INTEC, Developing an Innovation Economy highlights numerous specific actions believed to have the greatest potential to deliver measurable results for the local economy. The strategic plan does not give a detailed benchmarking of the region's current economy or emerging clusters, but builds on its fundamental tenet — a "Triangle of Innovation" involving Spokane/Coeur d'Alene, the Tri-Cities and Pullman/Moscow. Within these three points, the plan states, the Inland Northwest has significant research capacity, including several universities (Washington State University, the University of Idaho, Gonzaga University, Eastern Washington University in Cheney and Spokane, WSU Spokane), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and several strong nonprofit research organizations and private firms. Various new ventures have resulted from the successful implementation…

Nearly 60 percent of the new jobs in the knowledge-based economy of the early 21st century will require skills that are held by just 20 percent of the present workforce, states a new report released by the National Coalition for Advanced Manufacturing (NACFAM). The Case for Enhancing American Workforce Skills examines a growing skills gap in the nation's manufacturing sector and the problems employers have in finding skilled workers able to deal with technological changes in the workplace. The skills gap is deepening at a time when manufacturing workers are increasingly being laid off — since 1999, more than two million have lost their jobs. Industry and government need to join forces to make substantial improvements in workforce education and training programs and to incentivize American workers to keep pace with technological change by continually improving their skills, NACFAM concludes. The Case for Enhancing American Workforce Skills offers these findings: The enhancement of workforce skills and knowledge would help the nation sustain higher levels of productivity…

Until now, the opportunities have been fairly limited for tech-based economic developers to learn from the lessons of fellow practitioners running successful entrepreneurship programs. Through a unique partnership with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, SSTI is excited to offer at its annual conference this fall a track of six breakout sessions dedicated to sharing and documenting the specific policies, strategies and practices that foster technology entrepreneurship. The link between tech entrepreneurship and sustained growth is increasingly recognized by economic developers. As a result, myriad exciting approaches to encourage tech entrepreneurship have sprung up across the country. These same entrepreneurship programs face unparalleled challenges for the foreseeable future, however. State and local fiscal constraints limit the service delivery capabilities of many initiatives, while also demanding new approaches to creating opportunity for entrepreneurial success. The contraction of the venture capital market, with the disappearance of viable exit strategies, makes launching and…

Small businesses in the U.S. should consider a wide and complex range of factors before investing in foreign patents, recommends a new report prepared by the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO). Experts’ Advice for Small Businesses Seeking Foreign Patents identifies factors small businesses should consider when deciding whether to obtain patent protection abroad and the steps they should take to improve their patent efforts. The Congressional request spawning GAO's inquiry grew out of the apprehension that small businesses were not acquiring patent protection abroad, but were losing prospective sales in foreign markets. Using surveys from an expert panel of 39 patent law attorneys, GAO outlined three critical factors: identifying and assessing the long-term (cradle to gave) costs of foreign patents; weighing the potential benefits of foreign patents and patent locations; and, the need to understand foreign patent laws and international treaties. GAO then identified six key steps for small businesses to improve their foreign patent efforts: Avoid divulging information…

C. Michael Cassidy, president of the Georgia Research Alliance, has been appointed to the governing board of the Biotechnology Industry Organization. Joint Venture: Silicon Valley has named Russell Hancock as its new president and CEO. Dr. Lee Eiden, SBIR Program Coordinator for the U.S. Department of Education for nearly seven years, is shifting positions within the agency to work for the Office of Management/Chief Information Office. Dr. Eiden's contributions toward improving the state-federal partnership for SBIR outreach and technical assistance will be greatly missed by the state and local tech-based economic development community. The director of the Arkansas Department of Economic Development has announced his retirement. Jim Pickens will remain in the position until his replacement is named, according to local news reports. Pari Sabety, director of Ohio State University's Technology Policy Group, is leaving to become Director of the Neighborhood Markets Initiative, a new program of the Center for Urban and Metropolitan Policy in the Brookings Institution…

C. Michael Cassidy, president of the Georgia Research Alliance, has been appointed to the governing board of the Biotechnology Industry Organization.

Joint Venture: Silicon Valley has named Russell Hancock as its new president and CEO.

Dr. Lee Eiden, SBIR Program Coordinator for the U.S. Department of Education for nearly seven years, is shifting positions within the agency to work for the Office of Management/Chief Information Office. Dr. Eiden's contributions toward improving the state-federal partnership for SBIR outreach and technical assistance will be greatly missed by the state and local tech-based economic development community.

The director of the Arkansas Department of Economic Development has announced his retirement. Jim Pickens will remain in the position until his replacement is named, according to local news reports.

Pari Sabety, director of Ohio State University's Technology Policy Group, is leaving to become Director of the Neighborhood Markets Initiative, a new program of the Center for Urban and Metropolitan Policy in the Brookings Institution.

The director of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, Al Wenstrand, is leaving to become executive director of the Florida's Great Northwest, an economic development agency serving the Florida Panhandle.

We recognize that SSTI's annual conference quickly has become the premier professional development event annually for the tech-based economic development field. It's quite an honor, but it is also quite an obligation. Our conference participants have come to expect a level of unsurpassed quality. At least, that's what they tell us in the evaluations. It presents a challenge, but SSTI staff seem to like challenges. We always strive to exceed expectations, so for the 7th annual conference we... polled our sponsors and affiliates to develop an agenda that is packed with 24 dynamic breakout sessions on topics that are extremely timely, filled with useful information for most of the field, and led by some of the top thinkers and practitioners in the field; lined up and confirmed as many of the presenters and speakers as we could before we begin to publicize the event so that you know exactly what you're getting for your money; and, secured great sponsors to ensure the SSTI conference continues to have one of the lowest overall registration fees (which includes most meals) for any…