Study: Missouri tops Kansas in tech job growth
August 27, 2015 | Ashley Jost
Part of the Kansas City metro area was represented on a recent report of states showing the most growth for tech-related jobs.
Missouri hung on to the bottom end of Dice.com’s 17-state list at No. 15, showing 1.17 percent job growth in the tech industry during the last six months.
KCnext President Ryan Weber chalks it up to the pipeline of talent, to some extent. Weber’s organization works to grow the tech industry in the Kansas City metro.
“I would attribute that to the ability of the state’s education system to produce the talent that it does,” Weber said about Missouri, pointing to the University of Missouri and the Missouri University of Science and Technology in particular, which yield the bulk of the state’s graduates in tech-related fields. “In general, they’re producing more talent than the state of Kansas, which might explain why Missouri [made the list].”
Weber added that the Kansas City metro area currently has more than 2,000 open tech positions. Universities must help fill that need if the metro area is to realize its potential as a top tech hub, Weber previously said.
Dice.com used aggregated data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on hiring in computer systems design and related tech services to compile the list. Dice is a 24-year old website that focuses on technology job postings. The company has published a similar tech growth list using federal statistics for the last four years.
Minnesota topped this list with 8.36 percent growth, which the blog attributes to steady quarter-over-quarter growth during the last year.
Here’s the list in full, along with percentage increases in states’ tech populations:
- Minnesota (8.36 percent)
- Utah (5.75 percent)
- Nebraska (5.22 percent)
- Michigan (4.47 percent)
- Florida (4.27 percent)
- Massachusetts (3.75 percent)
- New York (3.58 percent)
- Maryland (3.45 percent)
- Oregon (3.42 percent)
- California (3.04 percent)
- Virginia (2.31 percent)
- Illinois (2.14 percent)
- Texas (1.97 percent)
- Ohio (1.39 percent)
- Missouri (1.17 percent)
- Georgia (0.96 percent)
- New Jersey (0.43 percent)
2015 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Lenexa studio joins national coworking relief effort for Nepal
Despite the nearly 8,000 miles between them, a Kansas City-area coworking studio is helping with relief efforts in Nepal after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake destroyed hundreds of buildings and claimed thousands of lives. Lenexa-based Plexpod has joined the international “Coworking for Nepal” movement that has attracted dozens of studios to encourage fundraising for Nepal relief…
KC’s first innovation officer reflects on work, city’s tech future
After more than two years of service, Ashley Hand is leaving the driver’s seat of Kansas City’s innovation efforts. Hand, who soon will be departing as Kansas City’s chief innovation officer, was tasked with implementing innovative strategies to improve how city government can better serve Kansas Citians. The city will be accepting applications for the…
Welcome to Startland News
Scrappy. Determined. Gritty. Those often were the words attributed to the Kansas City Royals as the team unexpectedly surged into the 2014 World Series and captured the national spotlight. Those very words are apt for this city, which has been built on the grit and determination of successful entrepreneurs like Ewing Kauffman, Joyce Hall, Henry…
Kansas budget woes render uncertainty for angel tax credits
As state budgetary concerns loom in the background, early-stage firms in Kansas are hoping a bill to extend the Sunflower State’s Angel Investor Tax Credit program will become a priority for legislators. Scheduled to sunset after the 2016 fiscal year, the program annually allocates $6 million in credits to entice investments in early-stage, growth-oriented companies…