The Indy Partnership

--A new, 1.2 million-square-foot, 40-gate terminal building featuring outstanding architecture, the ability to accept international arrivals, enhanced retail and dining opportunities and the capacity to handle growth from the airport’s current 8.2 million annual passengers.

--A new, five-story parking garage that can accommodate 5,900 cars and 1,200 rental cars.

--More than 17,000 parking spaces, including the garage and surface lots.

--Direct access from Interstate 70 just west of Interstate 465.

--The FedEx expansion will increase package processing capacity more than 30 percent, from 75,000 packages per hour to 99,000 packages per hour, at the second-largest domestic FedEx Express hub behind Memphis.

--The additional capacity is needed to meet forecast long-term package-volume growth, particularly for international shipments. FedEx operates international flights from Indianapolis to Europe, Asia and Canada.

--The expansion includes a 400,000 square foot expansion to the hub's existing sort facility and construction of a 175,000 square foot secondary sort building.

--Two maintenance buildings — including a 40,000 square-foot facility for aircraft maintenance and an 8,000 square-foot facility for ground support equipment — will push total hub growth by more than 600,000 square feet.

From an economic development perspective, the new Indianapolis International Airport is obviously of great benefit to the Indianapolis Region and its business clusters such as advanced manufacturing and transportation logistics. But its also beneficial to the other business clusters, such as life sciences, technology and motorsports because of the expansion of the FedEx hub (which is already the second largest in the world) and the improved ease of both commercial transport and consumer travel.

A few photos of the new Indianapolis International Airport provided by Rob Banayote of Banayote Photography (www.banayote.com):


















































Visit http://www.indianapolisairport.com/ to learn more.

Inaugural Real Estate Trends in Indiana Report to be released at "Emerging Trends in Real Estate" event on Nov. 18

The ups and downs and areas of opportunity within the real estate industry have great impact on economic development here in the 10-county Indianapolis Region and across the nation. As critical as superb transportation, distribution and logistics infrastructure as well as world-class workforces are, real estate issues can make or break a business relocation or expansion project.

"It is the combination of our assets that gives the Indianapolis Region its competitive advantage over the coasts and neighboring states,” said Ron Gifford, president and CEO of the Indy Partnership. “Having better access to rail service and interstates wouldn’t do us much good if our real estate rental rates were three or four times higher like they are in California and Florida, for example.

“That’s why we are supporting the Urban Land Institute Indiana as a sponsor of its upcoming ‘Emerging Trends in Real Estate’ event and why we are particularly eager to see its Real Estate Trends in Indiana Report become a successful annual resource.”

According to Area Development magazine’s 2007 Annual Corporate Survey, real estate issues were said to be “important” and “very important” by between 79 percent and 89 percent of all respondents when ranking their expansion and relocation priorities. These issues range from availability of buildings and land, construction costs, “fast-track” permitting, energy considerations and residential housing availability and costs. In fact, real estate issues account for three of the top five site selection factors tracked by the survey.

According to Matt Waldo, director of research for the Indy Partnership, the Indianapolis metropolitan area ranks as the “second most affordable” among 46 major metro areas for industrial warehouse rental rates (based on 2008 Mid-Year Market Report data from Cushman&Wakefield) and is highly competitive in Class A and Class B office space.

“The Indy Partnership was directly involved in the decision making process for seven of the 10 largest real estate lease transactions in Indianapolis from the middle of 2007 through the middle of 2008, and I can tell you with the highest degree of certainty that understanding the real estate trends in the Indianapolis Region as they relate to the nation was critical to making the argument to create jobs and invest here. The Urban Land Institute Indiana’s report will enhance our ability to continue this track record of success for our region,” Waldo said.

Learn more about the "Emerging Trends in Real Estate" event .

Cities of Indianapolis and Bloomington lead employment growth with 0.8% and 1.1% respectively in new jobs from September 2007 through September 2008.

While the 10-county Indianapolis Region is not exempt from some of the negative effects of economic woes that our nation is facing, there are positive indicators that show Central Indiana faring better than our neighbors and better than the nation as a whole.

According to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and reported by the Ball State Center for Business and Economic Research, two of the largest cities in the Indianapolis Region--Indianapolis and Bloomington--experienced 0.8% and 1.1% growth respectively in new jobs from September 2007 through September 2008. Both cities are also doing significantly better than the national average in unemployment.

"The positive news is that these two cities had a net jobs gain while many cities across the nation experienced significant losses," said Matt Waldo, director of research for the Indy Partnership. "It is one of several indicators that supports and validates the efforts of the Indy Partnership, its local economic development organization partners, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and other contributors."

To view the full Indiana Business Bulletin, follow the link:
http://www.bsu.edu/mcobwin/ibb/state/indiana/msa_l.htm

The Indiana Business Bulletin is produced and distributed by the Center for Business and Economic Research in the Miller College of Business at Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana. It may be reproduced in whole or in part provided proper source attribution is given.

For more information on subscribing, canceling, or customizing the Indiana Business Bulletin to suit your needs, please contact CBER by phone at 765-285-5926.

IU, Purdue use YouTube spot to highlight Indiana Innovation Alliance



BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University and Purdue University may be oil and water when it comes to athletics, but thanks to the Indiana Innovation Alliance, an effort to foster life sciences research and partnerships throughout Indiana, they're more like . . . Indiana corn and butter. Persimmons and pudding. YouTube and viral marketing.

A new, 30-second YouTube video expresses the partnership in a humorous tone that gets the point across: IU and Purdue are actually working together. The spot hints at a new, research-based collaboration between the two powerhouse universities that will ultimately result in better health and more jobs in the state.

A screen shot from the new IU-Purdue YouTube video to promote the Indiana Innovation Alliance.
Bill Stephan, vice president for engagement at IU, said the video -- which pairs quirky graphics and hand-drawn sketches with a humorous voice over -- is designed to heighten awareness of the Alliance and highlight the collaboration between the two universities. "We're trying to take advantage of emerging communications trends and technology to communicate what we think is an important message to a range of stakeholders," Stephan said.

"The Alliance allows us to optimize the research capacity that exists at both Indiana University and Purdue University in core strategic areas and at the same time, bring an advantage to the state's economic prospects in both the biosciences and life sciences arenas," Stephan said.

In this video, viewers won't be saddled with a lengthy explanation of the Alliance or the life sciences, said Victor L. Lechtenberg, Purdue's vice provost for engagement.

"It is simply meant to create a little buzz about an unprecedented partnership," Lechtenberg said.

The video was created by staff in the IU Office of Public Affairs and Government Relations, with input from Purdue colleagues. Both universities have developed concept papers, presentations, a Q and A, a Web site and a brochure about the Alliance. A series of op-eds are in the works. The YouTube video is a way to get the word out to a diverse audience before rolling out the rest of the public relations campaign.

"We want to convey the message that by Purdue and IU working together, the entire state will benefit," Lechtenberg said. "We have a diverse set of stakeholders in this, from state government, agencies and organizations to business investors to researchers and even to upcoming students and a work force that could benefit. So we're reaching out in many different ways."

The video -- which may be the first in a series -- is a fun, low-budget clip that expresses the essence of the project through humor and the campaign's theme: "Building the Indiana Innovation Alliance, to create better health and more jobs . . . for all of us."

For more information about the Indiana Innovation Alliance, see http://www.indianainnovationalliance.org/index.html.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 28, 2008

INDIANAPOLIS -- Faculty members of the Indiana University School of Medicine have been awarded research grants from Susan G. Komen for the Cure. John Foley, David Gilley and Hiromi Tanaka are among recipients of an unprecedented $100 million in grants Komen awarded to American and international scientists.

Foley, assistant professor in the IU School of Medicine's Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology and a researcher with the IU Simon Cancer Center, received a $463,499 grant for his research in breast cancer cell resistance to drugs and how that may lead the cancer to develop elsewhere.

Komen presented Gilley, assistant professor in the IU School of Medicine's Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics and a researcher with the IU Simon Cancer Center, with a $600,000 grant to study breast tumor formation in cancer stem-like cells.

Hiromi Tanaka,of the IU School of Medicine's Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics, was awarded a $450,000 grant for her research focusing on a simple blood test to identify genetic marker alterations for very early detection of breast cancer.

"Our researchers continue to contribute to national efforts to reduce the burden of breast cancer," said Dr. Stephen Williams, the director of the IU Simon Cancer Center and HH Gregg Professor of Oncology with the IU School of Medicine. "They are making discoveries in their laboratories, and in turn, are helping to make real differences in the care of patients here and elsewhere."

Komen's pledge represents the largest commitment to breast cancer research funding by a single non-profit organization and will be distributed among 81 universities and hospitals in 27 states and five countries. The grants will be channeled toward research efforts offering the highest likelihood of producing results for patients during the next decade.

The Indianapolis Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure played an integral role in raising funds to support the research initiatives. Through the local Race for the Cure and other fundraising events, the Indianapolis Affiliate contributed more than $800,000 toward the national research pledge.

"The Indianapolis Affiliate provides opportunities for everyone to help make a significant difference in the fight against breast cancer," said Dana Curish, executive director of the Indianapolis Affiliate. "Everyone who supports our work by volunteering or participating in an event like the Komen Indianapolis Race for the Cure can feel good about meeting breast health needs within the community we serve while helping to move Susan G. Komen for the Cure closer to our mission of a world without breast cancer."

For more information, visit the IU News Room.

Source: Indiana University

The Indianapolis Region, a 10-county economic development area in Central Indiana which includes Bloomington, Ind., provides incredible value to its residents. A study released last week by the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) shows that the quarterly composite cost of living index scores for the Indianapolis MSA and the City of Bloomington are just 90.7% and 91.5% of the national average, respectively.  The composite index score incorporates metrics for housing, groceries, utilities, transportation, healthcare and miscellaneous services. 

"These data are continued positive news for companies considering relocating or expanding in the Indianapolis Region," said Matt Waldo, director of research for the Indy Partnership. "The Indianapolis economic development region offers numerous advantages for advanced manufacturing and logistics, life sciences, technology and motorsports industries among others, and the ability to extend a low cost of living to employees is critical."

The scores for each of the cost categories for Indianapolis and Bloomington, may be found on The Indy Partnership web site at

http://www.iredp.com/reportInterface/iw_p1.aspx?fsheet=qol&county=indianapolis%20region

InsideINdianaBusiness.com Report

Indiana Secretary of Commerce Nate Feltman talks about some of the state's big wins in 2007 and what helped make them happen.

For the second consecutive year, Indiana leads the nation in attracting new jobs through international investment, according to a report from IBM Global Business Services. The report puts Indiana number one per capita for international job attraction and number two overall for attracting foreign production jobs in 2007.

INDIANAPOLIS (Oct. 22, 2008) – Indiana leads the nation in attracting new jobs through foreign investment for the second consecutive year, according to the latest annual Global Location Trends report released today by IBM Global Business Services.

Released during an annual meeting of the International Economic Development Council in Atlanta, the report lists the Hoosier state as number one per capita for job attraction from international investment and number two overall for the attraction of production jobs from international companies.

"Governor Daniels's early decision to revamp our state's economic development efforts continues to pay dividends for Hoosiers," said Nathan Feltman, secretary of commerce and chief executive of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation. "The Governor's efforts to in-source jobs from around the world to Indiana compliment our efforts to retain and grow home-grown Indiana companies around our state."

The report, which registered more than 10,000 foreign investment project announcements made in 2007 across the world, includes top international investments in Indiana made in 2007 such as FoxConn, TS Tech, SMC Corporation, ArcelorMittal and others. Since 2005, international companies have invested more than $8 billion into their Indiana operations, creating more than 15,800 new jobs.

“Overall, global investment trends in 2007 show that companies are increasingly widening their investments to include more markets around the world in their efforts to access new markets, talent pools, or improved efficiency," said Roel Spee, global leader for IBM-Plant Location International. "But our study shows that the U.S. continues to be a top performer for creating jobs through new inward investments by multinational companies, and Indiana confirms its ranking among the leading states in several categories."

The latest IBM study is the latest in a series of national accolades the state has scored in economic development. Ernst&Young found the Hoosier state to be number one in winning new competitive job-creating investments from all sources when measured on a per capita basis in both 2006 and 2007.

The news of Indiana’s award-winning efforts to attract investment comes as the Indiana Economic Development Corporation is poised for a fourth consecutive year of record-breaking commitments for new jobs and investment. Since January, 130 businesses have committed to create 16,120 new jobs and invest more than $3.9 billion in their Indiana operations.

Following the governor’s creation of the agency in 2005, the state has logged three years of record-level attraction of new job-creating investment. Cumulatively since its inception, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation has worked with more than 600 companies that have committed to create more than 75,000 new jobs and invest more than $18 billion in their Indiana operations. Nearly two-thirds of all projects completed involve expansions of existing Indiana businesses.

About IEDC
Created by Governor Mitch Daniels in 2005 to replace the former Department of Commerce, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation is governed by a 12-member board chaired by Governor Daniels. Indiana Secretary of Commerce Nathan Feltman serves as the chief executive officer of the IEDC. Since Daniels created the IEDC, the state has posted three consecutive years of record-breaking commitments for new jobs. For more information about IEDC, visit www.iedc.in.gov.

Source: Indiana Economic Development Corporation

By: Nathan Feltman - Secretary of Commerce and President, Indiana Economic Development Corporation

as seen on Inside Indiana Business



Intellectual capital, public support, academic partnerships, workforce excellence, and business and industry collaborations are the driving Indiana's life sciences industry. As a center of innovation in the life sciences, pharmaceutical and medical device industries for more than a century, the Hoosier state is home to the second-highest concentration of biopharmaceutical jobs in the nation and the fifth largest pharmaceutical industry in the country.

Indiana's life sciences growth continues to accelerate. Witness the recent doubling of work force in nearby clinical laboratories, like AIT Labs and DCL Laboratories, along with the doubling in size of contract biotech manufacturer Cook Pharmica in Bloomington. Consider the thousands of new life sciences jobs that are coming to Indiana after Gov. Mitch Daniels' direction to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation to aggressively seek new job-creating investment in the life sciences to further strengthen and diversify the Hoosier economy. Those efforts have resulted in thousands of new job commitments from companies such as Medco (1,300 new jobs), Arcadia (300 new jobs), Precision Rx (1,200 new jobs) and Beckman Coulter (275 new jobs).

And while the large global companies capture the headlines, the state and BioCrossroads are ensuring the big life sciences companies of tomorrow are incubated and grown in Indiana with the help of seed capital from the state's 21st Century Research and Technology Fund along with BioCrossroads' Seed Fund. Together, these funds have provided seed capital for promising companies like Schwartz BioMedical, Kylin Therapeutics, QuadraSpec and ImmuneWorks, keeping these companies, their technologies and the promise of new high-wage jobs here.

By any measure, when it comes to life sciences and the growth of this highly desirable sector of high-skill, high-value, high-promise jobs and great companies, Indiana is winning. This is competition at its most intense, and we're playing to win.

To deliver that success we must continue to focus on strengthening the ties between innovations developed at our colleges and universities and businesses who can transform those innovations into life-changing and life-saving products and services. We must also ensure that we continue to offer the low-cost, pro-business environment – including low utility costs, workers' compensation and unemployment insurance rates – that has become a hallmark of the Hoosier state.

As our economy faces new challenges with increasing gas prices and tightening credit markets, we must continue steadfast in our effort to strengthen and diversify Indiana's economy in part by building upon our great successes in the life sciences. The high-skilled, high-wage jobs of this industry hold great promise for our state, and together I know we can realize the opportunity that has yet to fully unfold for Hoosiers in this exciting industry.

Nathan Feltman is Indiana Secretary of Commerce&President of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation.

EnerDel Batteries will Power Hybrid, Electric Cars:

INDIANAPOLIS (Aug. 21, 2008) - Governor Mitch Daniels joined executives from lithium-ion battery developer EnerDel today to announce plans to locate the company's new global manufacturing and development operations here, a move that is expected to create more than 850 new jobs across the state through 2012.

The developer of lithium-ion batteries for hybrid, plug-in electric and electric vehicles will expand its Indianapolis research and cell production center, build and equip a battery pack assembly center in nearby Noblesville, and locate a full-scale manufacturing operation at a still to be selected location in the Hoosier state.

"Eight hundred fifty jobs of any kind is great news. When those jobs are in a technology of tomorrow, like electric cars, it offers the prospect of even bigger news to follow. Indiana has what it takes to lead this automotive revolution and today is step one," said Daniels.

Part of Ener1, Inc., (AMEX: HEV), EnerDel currently operates a 92-person production facility on the northeast side of Indianapolis and plans to begin hiring additional engineers, production associates and administrative staff later this year.

EnerDel, founded in 2004, develops lithium-ion batteries for automotive manufacturers that are lighter, occupy less space, provide more power and have a longer life than the nickel metal hydride batteries found in today's hybrid vehicles.

"Indiana is the heart of America's manufacturing might, and a linchpin in the automotive industry. There is no better place to invest in the clean, green, energy efficient technology we need to power today's global economy," said Ulrik Grape, president and chief executive officer of EnerDel. "Indiana's educated, experienced workforce is second to none, and the enthusiastic commitment we have received from Governor Daniels and other leaders is absolutely unparalleled. We couldn't be happier to call this our home."

The Indiana Economic Development Corporation offered EnerDel up to $7.125 million in performance-based tax credits and up to $58,000 in training grants based on the company's job creation plans. The cities of Indianapolis and Noblesville will consider property tax abatement at the request of the Indy Partnership. The company will also seek local incentive offers from Indiana communities for the third manufacturing location.

"There is no doubt that EnerDel is a leader in advanced manufacturing, and we are fortunate that their new global manufacturing and development operations will be located here in Marion County," said Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard. "They are not only bringing great jobs and investment to our county, but they are serving as a sign that Marion County is a great home for the future of manufacturing."

"We are honored and excited that a growing and innovative company like EnerDel has chosen to expand its operations to the city of Noblesville," said Noblesville Mayor John Ditslear. "What a fine testament to the talented, hard-working people of this city and the business-friendly environment our economic development team has worked so hard to create. We look forward to working with EnerDel and to potential future development with them," said Noblesville Mayor John Ditslear.

"The lithium-ion battery will revolutionize the hybrid and electric car industry and will make it a reality for the mass market in the very near term," Grape said. "EnerDel has a unique lithium-ion chemistry and advanced battery system that provides the safest and most economical energy solution for automotive applications."

EnerDel is presently the only manufacturer producing lithium-ion batteries in the U.S. for the automotive market. The company recently received the prestigious R&D 100 award for excellence in its technology and uniquely innovative design. The award is shared by EnerDel and its partners at the Argonne National Laboratory.

EnerDel is a participant in U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium, a collaborative research effort between the U.S. Department of Energy, Chrysler, Ford and General Motors, aimed at developing hybrid and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle batteries that will enable mass production for electric drive vehicles.

Money Magazine and CNNMoney.com released its "Best Places to Live 2008" issue this week and Hamilton County's Fishers, Ind., ranked 10th out of 100 on the list of "America's Best Small Cities."

"It's quite a climb from being ranked 33rd last year to breaking into the top 10 of America's best places to live among small cities," said Jeff Burt, president of the Hamilton County Alliance, a member of The Indy partnership.

Burt explained that rankings such as Money Magazine's "Best Places to Live" are valuable to Fishers because it helps bring national acclaim to an exceptional community, and it helps local employers recruit personnel from all over the U.S. It also eliminates any barriers that employers considering relocating to Fishers and the Indianapolis Region might have about being able to develop a world-class workforce.



WINNER
Top 100 rank: 10
Population: 61,800

Fishers is growing fast, attracting residents who are young (median age: 30) and smart (over 60% have a bachelor's degree or more). It has the range of pluses common among our top 10, including a strong economy (lots of life-science companies are moving in), low home prices ($149,700 for the typical house) and good schools (they get high rankings in the state).

Though a walkable downtown is still in the planning stages, transportation is already here: Fishers started a commuter bus service to downtown Indianapolis and plans rapid transit via rail in the next two to five years.

When it comes to smart planning and sheer livability, other places could learn a lot from this little city in the Midwest.

  

InsideINdianaBusiness.com Report

CNBC is out with its look at America's Top States for Business. Texas is ranked number one on the list. The state making it the biggest improvement: Indiana. The Hoosier state jumped 13 spots to land at number 13 on the list. CNBC says Indiana improved in 8 of 10 categories used to calculate the rankings.

In a recent report for MSN Real Estate, Melinda Fulmer ranked the Indianapolis Region sixth on a list of “cheap places to live where the economy is strong, home prices are appreciating and the quality of life is good.” Putting it another way, Fulmer wrote that “you won't need to trade the good life for the boring” in Indianapolis.

Based on the criteria reported on MSN, it was no easy task to make it into this top nine “Best Bargain Markets” list. MSN asked Bert Sperling of Sperling's Best Places to evaluate the most affordable housing markets from the 100 largest U.S. metro areas and pinpoint the nine most livable areas: places where unemployment is low, commute times are short and there's enough interesting entertainment or recreation to keep most people busy. MSN defined affordability by the ratio of median income to median home price.

This is one of the most interesting quotes from the article: Moving to one of these cities could allow you to "sell your two-bedroom bungalow in Southern California … and buy a house on a number of acres and suddenly have a nest egg you've never had before," Sperling says.

Here are the highlights of what helped the Indianapolis Region make MSN’s Nine Best, Livable Cities:

·         Indianapolis has become a model for urban renewal

·         Diverse economic base ranging from agriculture to financial services to industrial automation and technology

·         Headquarters to pharmaceutical and research giant Eli Lilly

·         Downtown Indianapolis has undergone substantial renovation and now boasts attractive new buildings, pedestrian zones and a state-of-the-art sports arenas

·         Spectator sports, including the NBA Pacers, NFL Colts and a few minor-league franchises, are a huge draw

·         The venerable Indianapolis Motor Speedway hosts the Indianapolis 500, the Brickyard 400 and other events

·         Arts and cultural opportunities are abundant

·          Affordable residential neighborhoods spread out in all directions from the compact downtown

·         Higher incomes and affordable housing give city residents more buying power than most others around the country.

Of note: The Indianapolis Region scored very well in the evaluated categories including affordability, cost of living, median home price, commute time and home price appreciation.

"There's a ton of stuff to do here," says Brad Slack, a 35-year-old surgical supplies salesman who moved here from Walnut Creek, Calif., nine years ago. But, he says, it's also a city from which you can escape. "You can be out in the wilderness within a 20-minute car ride of the city."

For more information about the quality of life in the Indianapolis Region as well as detailed demographics and workforce data, please contact The Indy Partnership research or business development departments.

As seen on WTHR Channel-13 on Jun 25. TechPoint President and CEO Jim Jay is interviewed about Indianapolis ranking highest in Midwest technology job growth by the annual "Cybercities" study released by the national tech trade group AeA.



Exerpt from the June 25 issue of The Indianapolis Star
by Erika Smith



From 2001 to 2006, Central Indiana added high-tech jobs faster than any other metro area in the Midwest, according to a new study from the national tech trade group AeA.

Local tech companies are making strides like never before, said Jim Jay, president and CEO of the statewide tech advocacy group Techpoint.

"The data is proving what we're seeing in the sector," he said.

In its annual "Cybercities" study released Tuesday, AeA said Central Indiana added 2,200 jobs over the five-year period for a sector total of 28,500 jobs. That's a growth rate of 8.6 percent -- the fourth fastest in the nation.

The only other Midwestern city to report such job growth in the time period was St. Louis, which added 900 tech jobs.

In Central Indiana, the hottest jobs were in computer systems design, which had 7,200 employees in 2006, and telecommunications services, which had 6,200 employees that year.

The average local techie earned $63,900 in 2006, or 54 percent more than the average private sector employee, according to AeA.

"That's really encouraging," Jay said. "This is a trend that we're continuing to see today in 2008."

He pointed to recent hiring announcements by e-mail marketing companies ExactTarget and Aprimo, and software developers ANGEL Learning and Vontoo.

"We've had some pretty steady hiring over the last 12 months or so," Jay said. "I think there are certainly pockets throughout the state where this is very true."

In April, AeA released its annual Cyberstates study, which found that Indiana's tech sector has fared better than many other states' when it comes to jobs, wages and venture-capital investment.

Companies across the state added 1,700 net jobs in 2006, maintaining Indiana's ranking as the 23rd-largest "cyberstate," with 70,200 high-tech employees and a payroll of $4 billion.

The hottest jobs were in engineering services and computer systems design.

By: Ron Gifford - President & CEO, The Indy Partnership

In winning the right to host the 2012 Super Bowl, Indianapolis beat out some tough competition: Houston and Phoenix had both hosted the game before, and both offered the promise of sunny weather and plenty of financial incentives for the NFL.

As seen on Inside Indiana Business with Gerry Dick



Despite these advantages, the Indianapolis region scored a victory with a shrewd and aggressive strategy, selling three decades of experience and investment that has made our region uniquely suited to host major championship events.

Now take this three-city contest and expand it to include every metropolitan area in America – and in some cases, around the world. That’s economic development today, a dog-eat-dog competition for new jobs. In this battle, Indianapolis has built a similarly focused approach – combining our geographic advantages and competitive business climate with strengths in industries like the life sciences, advanced manufacturing, logistics, technology and motorsports.

As a football fan, I was happy to hear that Indianapolis landed the big game. But I’m even more excited about this event in my day job as the head of our regional economic development effort. I’m confident that winning the Super Bowl will help us score more victories in the broader competition for business opportunities.

First, there’s the marketing value. The Super Bowl will bring many of the nation’s most influential corporate executives to Indianapolis – a first-time visit for several of them. Why does this matter? Well, we see this phenomenon time and time again: We’ll host someone who’s never been here, and typically they don’t have much of an impression of the region. And then they get to experience first-hand all that our city has to offer, and they are uniformly blown away. “I had no idea what a great city this is,” is a common refrain. Almost nobody moves their company on the spot, but this exposure certainly builds relationships and lays the groundwork for future business relocations or expansions.

Showing our region at its best to the audience of millions who tune in for the game also provides an invaluable brand-building opportunity. My organization, the Indy Partnership, is a consortium of local economic development organizations from ten counties tasked with marketing the region. Funded by private investment, we engage in a program of advertising, public relations, tradeshow participation and personal outreach to site selection consultants and business leaders.

Our efforts have borne success; 2007, for example, saw relocation, expansion and retention projects committed to create nearly 13,500 new jobs and bring new capital investment of $1.36 billion to the region. We’ve won these competitions despite the fact that our leading competitors spend millions on mass advertising to shape public awareness. The Super Bowl erases much of this advantage, bringing a wave of publicity so significant it would be impossible to buy…and if the city manages the event with its typical aplomb and hospitality, the boost to Indianapolis’ image will give us a solid new foundation to build upon.

There’s also the race for human capital. Dynamic economies are fueled by concentrations of talented people – the regions with the most educated workforces also tend to rank high in per capita income and job growth. Today, the Indianapolis metropolitan area ranks above the national average in college graduates as a percentage of the adult population. But this position is threatened by a ‘brain drain’ that sees too many of our young people leave the state after earning their degrees.

To thrive in the knowledge-based economy, we have to attract and retain more educated workers – Richard Florida’s ‘creative class.’ We can’t offer mountains, beaches, or year-round golf weather to entice tomorrow’s workforce. But a steady diet of world-class sports and cultural amenities, with the excitement that comes with hosting high-visibility events like the Super Bowl, helps put Indianapolis on the map as a great place to live, start a career and raise a family.

The Super Bowl will certainly provide a short-term bonanza for our region’s economy, with more than $120 million in direct spending of the course of game week. But the long-term ramifications are even more powerful: If we take full advantage of this opportunity, we’ll be more than just a destination for football fans in four years – we’ll be further down the road towards being a prime destination for capital, new job opportunities and top talent.

Indianapolis close behind with four times better than the U.S. as a whole

Two cities within the Indianapolis Economic Development Region top the list for employment growth in the state between April 2007 and April 2008. Bloomington and Indianapolis experienced employment growth of 1.5 percent and 1.4 respectively, compared to the national average of 0.3 percent job growth.

“It is clear that the Bloomington Economic Development Corporation in Monroe County and Indianapolis Economic Development in Marion County working in conjunction with The Indy Partnership is delivering positive results that benefit Hoosiers,” said Ron Gifford, president of The Indy Partnership. “It is encouraging that our joint efforts have resulted in such a large lead over the national average in job growth.”

Information on Indiana employment growth was released in late May by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Bureau of Business Research at Ball State University in Muncie, Ind.

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