The 2009 conference examines “Regional Solutions for Local Vitality” and includes such speakers as Joe Cortright of Impresa Consulting. Joe will help conferees to understand their “City Vitals,” statistical measures of city performance in four key areas: talent, innovation, connections and distinctiveness. Joe says these measures reflect levels of success in comparison to other cities. Further, they reveal strengths cities can leverage and weaknesses to correct.   

 

Talented cities are measured by educational attainment, the number of creative professionals, the migration of well-educated young adults and the number of foreign born college graduates. “The indispensable asset in a knowledge economy is smart people,” says Joe.  He feels cities that can attract smart people and create opportunities for them to develop and apply what they know, have an underlying intellectual capital a region can draw on to build its economy and to weather the inevitable shocks of competition and change. 

 

Innovative cities generate new ideas and then turn them into realities. Joe says this innovative climate “is a critical source of competitive advantage not just for businesses but for regions, as well. Economies and regions advance by a process of trial and error. Those places that generate many trials of novel products and services are most likely to move ahead.” While ideas can’t be measured, Joe says they leave a “footprint” in the economic landscape. Patents, venture capital and entrepreneurs are among the visible signs of an Innovative City. 

 

Connected cities thrive as places where people can easily interact and connect… perhaps through the library, where local residents can run into each other physically and connect to the larger world, virtually or through programs that expand their horizons. “Both internal and external connections are important,” says Joe. “Internal connections help promote the creation of new ideas and make cities work better for their residents. External connections enable people and businesses to tap into the global economy.” Joe recommends measurements like voting, community involvement, economic integration and transit use as evidence of internally connected cities. External connections include foreign travel, the presence of foreign students and broadband internet use.

 

Finally, Distinctive cities look at the unique personality and vibe of an area. “The unique characteristics of place may be the only truly defensible source of competitive advantage for regions,” says Joe. “In a world of global competition, a strategy of ‘pretty much the same, maybe cheaper’ is a recipe for mediocrity and economic stagnation.” Joe says it’s the most difficult to measure, because every city is unique. But, looking at the variety of restaurants and movies is a start. In fact, looking at the breadth of pastimes can be a step in the right direction.