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Week of January 7-13, 2008 |
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State Competitiveness Rankings
The latest edition of the Beacon Hill
Institute’s (BHI) annual State Competitiveness rankings shows that Utah
has emerged as the US’s most competitive state economy. Utah assumes the
top rank over Massachusetts, which had held the No. 1 spot for the
previous two years. The BHI Index tracks forty-two different measures in
a variety of areas such as infrastructure, environmental policy,
government and fiscal policy, and technology. Utah’s impressive
performance is attributed to competitive advantages in areas of
government and fiscal policy, infrastructure, and new business
development. The top five performing states are (in rank order): Utah,
Massachusetts, Colorado, North Dakota, and Idaho. Among the states that
have seen the greatest improvement on the BHI are Montana, New Mexico,
and Rhode Island. |
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The Power of Partnerships to Drive Innovation A new report from
the US Chamber of Commerce examines how business leaders can help
support and promote a comprehensive innovation policy for the US. The
report suggests that CEOs and Governors can play key roles in helping to
meet America’s competitive challenges. The report concludes with
recommendations on six steps for smart innovation investments. Its
suggestions include closely aligning state R&D investments with state
economic development strategy; investing in collaborations between
business, government, and academia; and investing for the long haul in a
sustained and consistent manner. |
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BusinessWeek.com has been sponsoring an
on-line contest to select Asia’s most promising young entrepreneur
(under the age of 30), and the final votes are in. This year’s top vote
getter hails from Vietnam. Nguyen Minh Tri is only 25, but he’s already
started two companies: My World and Viet Tech. My World is a Web 2.0
firm, and Viet Tech supports outsourced information technology
operations. Nguyen is typical of many new Vietnamese entrepreneurs who
smoothly operate in both the East and the West. His firms have offices
in both Ho Chi Minh City and Portland, Oregon. Overall, the Business
Week list is full of impressive young people, who are strong examples of
the thriving entrepreneurial culture beginning to emerge across Asia.
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Entrepreneur Magazine's Top Franchises
If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to
start a new business, you might want to check out Entrepreneur
magazine’s 29th annual Franchise 500, their listing of the top 500
franchises in the US. “Convenience is king” on this year’s list as
7-Eleven has emerged as the US’s most popular franchise. 7-Eleven is a
big business, with 5,580 franchisees in the US, and more than 25,000
located overseas. Convenience foods seem to be hot in 2007 as other
franchises in the top 5 include Subway, Dunkin’ Donuts, Pizza Hut and
McDonalds. |
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Since 2004, Fast Company and the Monitor Group have recognized the world’s most innovative and effective non-profits that are changing the world with innovative practices and programs. This year’s awards list recognizes 45 world class organizations that work in areas as diverse as education, microenterprise, international development, and health care. Included in the list is Endeavor Global, an organization that seeks to transform emerging-market economies by identifying and supporting high-impact entrepreneurs (Endeavor is serving as a Global Partner for Global Entrepreneurship Week, a new initiative originated by the Kauffman Foundation to inspire young people to embrace creativity, imagination and innovation). In addition to the non-profits listed, there are 10 for-profit winners listed, including: Better World Books; Developing World Markets; Domini Social Investments; Equal Exchange; Herman Miller; New Leaf Paper; Organic Valley Family of Farms; Seventh Generation; ShoreBank; and, SustainAbility. Learn more about the Fast Company 2008 Social Capitalist awards. The list also appears in the December 2007/January 2008 issue of Fast Company. |
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The National Dialogue on Entrepreneurship is an initiative of the Public Forum Institute made possible by a grant from the Kauffman Foundation of Kansas City. Through NDE-news, we bring you short summaries and analyses of various trends driving entrepreneurship around the world. Subscribe now to receive your weekly copy. Archived issues are available online. |
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National Dialogue on Entrepreneurship
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All
stories © 2008 The Public Forum Institute
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