Ohio made its best showing yet in a national survey that measures the economic structure of each state. Still, there is room for improvement, according to findings in " The 2010 State New Economy Index," released last month by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
The report shows that Ohio rose to 25th overall, up four places from the last survey, conducted in 2007. The jump was larger than all but two other states: Kansas, which rose eight places, and Montana, which rose five.
The survey examined five main categories: knowledge jobs, globalization, economic dynamism, transformation to a digital economy, and technological innovation capacity.
Ohio made its best showing in the knowledge jobs category, where it ranked 16th nationally, up six places from 2007. Within that category, Ohio was 9th in immigration of knowledge workers and 15th in information technology jobs, a 10-place surge from 2007.
The state rose four places in the globalization category to 24th nationally, and rose three places -- to 31st -- in the digital economy category. While Ohio remained at 25th in the innovation capacity category, it rose six places -- to 24th -- in the subcategory of non-industry investment in R&D.
The only main category in which Ohio fell in the rankings was in economic dynamism, where it fell to 38th from its previous ranking of 37th. Scott Andes, a research analyst at the ITIF and co-author of the report, says it's difficult to pinpoint reasons for the change, but noted a contributing factor could have been Ohio's drop from 17th to 25th in the number of fastest-growing firms.
"It's important to remember that the State New Economy Index measures economic structures, not performance," he says. "Some reports gauge a state on how well they have performed in the near term, yet such measurements can be volatile. While Ohio should be encouraged by its progress, it should be clear that becoming a national leader will take more than a few years."
Sources: The Innovation Technology and Innovation Foundation, and Scott Andes, ITIF research analyst
Writer: Gene Monteith