Dallas favorably stacks up against cities across the U.S. and the globe in entrepreneurial spirit and innovation-readiness per a new “Innovation Scorecard” released by the Dallas Regional Chamber along with Accenture, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, and Southern Methodist University.

The four groups are partnering for a larger regional study with a two-fold goal of accelerating the growth of the North Texas innovation economy and boosting the area’s reputation as a hub of innovation. The Dallas-Fort Worth Innovation Scorecard itself compiles 11 different rankings of cities around the world to create a snapshot of expert perception and to serve as a benchmark of the area’s entrepreneurial and innovation standing. 

In its release introducing the scorecard and ongoing study, the chamber said the Dallas-Fort Worth area is “in a position of strength across many indicators.”

“We have had a lot of success over the past few years, but we can’t rest on our laurels,” Duane Dankesreiter, the chamber’s senior vice president of research and innovation, told Dallas Innovates. “We need to be continually examine who we are, how we are perceived, and how we measure up against our peer metros. Most importantly, we need to determine the levers that can be pulled which will propel us forward and encourage innovation in our cities, companies, and people.”

“This study will look at what we can do collaboratively to become a recognized hub for innovation on a global scale.” 

Dale Petroskey

While the innovation scorecard provides a barometer comparing North Texas to cities worldwide, the full study coming out this summer will include a survey of area business leaders, entrepreneurs, policymakers, academics, researchers, nonprofit leaders, and venture capitalists. There also will be insights from the development paths of other cities in order to uncover opportunities in developing the region’s innovation ecosystem.

Maintaining innovation is important for regional economic growth as well as for buttressing the area’s marketplace during down times said Dale Petroskey, president and CEO of the Dallas Regional Chamber.

“We already have a roster of innovation-focused global companies headquartered here across a diverse set of industries, top notch universities producing highly skilled graduates, and a growing community of cutting-edge and creative entrepreneurs,” said Petroskey, in a statement. “This study will look at what we can do collaboratively to become a recognized hub for innovation on a global scale.”

Key details from the scorecard’s compiled rankings include:

• Milken’s Best Performing Cities 2017 report with a focus on economic growth ranked Dallas third, ahead of New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
• Dell’s Future Ready Economies, listed Dallas 16th, ahead of Munich, Beijing, and Hong Kong.
• Two Kauffman Indexes ranked Dallas 11th as a startup market and 10th in main street entrepreneurial growth compared to other U.S. cities.
• The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Innovation that Matters 2017 report with a focus on the health of startup communities ranked Dallas No. 7 up 12 spots from the 2016 report and ahead of Seattle and New York.
• Reports on tech cities from global commercial real estate firms CBRE and Cushman & Wakefield ranked Dallas 10th and 21st respectively based on criteria including talent, community support, and nurturing.
• The 2thinknow Innovation Cities Index 2016-17 of 500 global cities ranked the Dallas area 16th.

The study is currently ongoing and will continue through June with the full report results and analysis expected to be released by the Dallas Regional Chamber and partner groups in summer 2018.

“The ‘wildcatter’ spirit still lives here among people who think a good idea is always worth pursuing.” 

Steven Currall

The expected outcome of this study reaching across a range of stakeholders includes better understanding of the state of the innovation climate in the region, identifying recommendations for attracting capital investment, increasing research and development collaboration between universities and public and private sectors, and facilitating startup activity.

“The ‘wildcatter’ spirit still lives here among people who think a good idea is always worth pursuing. We look forward to how this survey can help support the connections between SMU research and commercial investment,” said SMU Provost Steven Currall, in a statement.

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