Why A Special Issue on Innovation Indices?

One of the more common topics in the information requests SSTI receives regards how to do or what are good examples of innovation indices or S&T report cards — compilations of statistics and data presenting a geographic area's standing against similar areas across several metrics thought to be useful guides in assessing economic health or potential for growth.

Why is that? Can it simply be dismissed as another example of how America's fascination with superlatives and comparatives pervades nearly every aspect of society? Claims for the biggest, the fastest, the richest, the first, the strongest, the top 100, etc., and the counter arguments against the claims can be found throughout our culture. Are indices the muscle-flexing machismo element of tech-based economic development?

Probably not.

When done well and often, innovation indices and science and tech report cards actually can serve several beneficial ends for the tech-based economic development community. They can:

• be useful tools for developing awareness of the condition of a state or regional economy and the importance of encouraging all aspects of tech-based economic development. When coupled with political and community "buy-in" to the development of the index and the project's results, the index may help increase the population's recognition of the need to embrace the mindset and change necessary to thrive in an economy that is more knowledge-based, technologically more sophisticated, and globally more competitive.
• help to identify the areas which warrant the most immediate attention so that limited financial and human resources can be targeted to those programs and policies most beneficial toward reaching the state or community's goals. The marriage of indices to policies and programs to address any lower-than-desired scores can lead to new, innovative partnerships that help to break down archaic and arbitrary political, jurisdictional and functional boundaries. Attention can be shifted to how to achieve the end results rather than which entity gets the most money.
• offer the political opportunity and supporting evidence to engage in longer-term policies and programs than typically can result when leaders are motivated by short election cycles. To accomplish this, however, preparation of the indices must include active involvement and ownership of the project that crosses traditional boundaries and obstacles.
• assess the direction of a region's or state's economy if the index includes multi-year data and is done regularly to measure change.
• provide data to support elements of a geographic area's branding and other promotional marketing strategies.

Through past issues of the SSTI Weekly Digest, we have highlighted more than 40 various indices created by organizations, states, and local agencies. The indices vary as to content and factors that are accounted for but similarities exist. This issue is dedicated to reviewing several indices that exist at different spatial scales as well as briefly discussing the uses of these tools. We close with SSTI's recommendations for good indices and several links for more information or data for developing an index for your own state or region.