Kansas City ranks as top U.S. tech, entrepreneurship hub
June 9, 2017 | Meghan LeVota
Kansas City’s emerging tech hub and entrepreneurial ecosystem continue to attract national attention.
On Thursday, Kansas City ranked among the top tech cities in the U.S., according to the Tech Cities 1.0 report by Cushman & Wakefield. The report showcased the nation’s top 25 cities, with Kansas City nabbing the No. 22 spot on the list. The cities were determined by factors such as access to talent, investment capital and growth opportunity.
Cushman & Wakefield Tech Cities 1.0 report
Although it’s no surprise that cities like San Jose and San Francisco outranked Kansas City, The City of Fountains’ performance is still noteworthy. Kansas City fared better than New York City and Los Angeles in metrics such as tech workers per capita, share of workers with a Bachelor’s degree or higher, entrepreneurial growth and share of “knowledge” workers, defined as those in occupations such as architecture, social science, health care and education.
In preparing the report, Cushman & Wakefield found six qualities as essential ingredients for a tech hub: Institutions of higher learning; capital; tech workers; knowledge workers; educated workers; and growth entrepreneurship.
Kansas City ranked No. 18 on percentage of tech workers and No. 16 for entrepreneurial growth. In both areas, the metro is rated above the national average.
To calculate entrepreneurial growth, Cushman & Wakefield tapped the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation’s Index of Growth Entrepreneurship. The index is calculated by the rate of startup growth, share of scale-ups and high-growth company density.
Although these statistics are promising, Kansas City is nowhere close to Silicon Valley with venture capital and deal flow.
In 2016, the combination of venture capital capital activity from San Francisco, San Mateo and San Jose reached $35.2 billion. In Kansas City, that number is less than $2 billion.
Cushman & Wakefield Tech Cities 1.0 report
Ken McCarthy, principal economist at Cushman & Wakefield, said that “tech is everything.”
“Basically every company today is a tech company in one way or another. We’re all using it, we’re using various aspects of tech companies to do various things,” McCarthy said in a release. “Whether it’s Salesforce as customer relationship management, or Workday for HR, and various other database programs, the old way of doing business just doesn’t work anymore.”
Cushman & Wakefield is a global real estate services firm. 2017 marks the first year the firm has released a Tech Cities 1.0 report.
Featured Business
2017 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Documentary spotlighting CAPS students set for sold-out premiere (Watch the trailer)
There’s no syllabus for life, laments a teenage student in a soon-to-be released documentary detailing the impact of experiential learning on the new generation of youth about to enter the workforce. The documentary — “Where Students Lead” — heavily showcases student voice and the Center for Advanced Professional Studies, said Corey Mohn, executive director of…
Serial builder uses sensor tech to ‘see’ inside problem-prone properties with Particle Space
Passion for building breathes life into a successful startup and the collective ecosystem, said David Biga. “[Builders] are a critical piece to our startup community,” said Biga, founder of Kansas City-based SaaS firm Particle Space. “If you don’t have people who care to build and offer things to those before you — then why come…
Duo designs Paloma Post greeting cards for more inclusive representation of couples
As she stood flipping through an endless sea of birthday cards, Julie Korona couldn’t find a single one that would send the right message to her then-fiancé, Tyler, she recalled. “All of the cards that I was looking through either said ‘husband’ or were super generic,” said Korona, co-founder of Paloma Post — a newly…
Artist who won rare Jayhawk licensing deal — scoring a $150K payday — set to rebound
Seemingly routine for many Kansas fans, crimson and blue are once again among the colors flooding the canvas of the 2019 NCAA tournament. But for artist Megh Knappenberger, the Jayhawks’ familiar palate has painted an entrepreneurial journey with as thrilling ups and downs as Big 12 basketball, she said. “It’s a pretty special and unique…