Triathlon participation is booming. The number of racers grew to 1.2 million U.S. triathletes in 2009, an 11% jump from 2008 and a 50% jump from 2007.
- The Wall Street Journal

I have written extensively about the business of triathlon, citing multiple sources on the regional economic development benefits of hosting a triathlon. Projecting from 2010 data on the demographics of triathlon from USA Triathlon (USAT), U.S. participation in triathlons in 2011 could exceed 2 million.  That's a lot of "heads in beds" - visitors who stay in an area's lodging, eat in its restaurants, shop in its store, like what they see and consider relocating their corporate offices, buy houses...

The USAT-sanctioned TriAdventure Summer Sprint Triathlon will be held on Sunday, June 26, 2011 beginning at 7:00 AM ET in Christiansburg, Virginia, currently with over 200 participants.  Here are thorough, comprehensive official event details from TriAdventure (.pdf), the event's organizers. I've yet to swim in the pool, but I did check out the bike and run courses and consult with TriAdventure, so, on the business of doing the triathlon in Christiansburg, Virginia, I have a pre-race competitive intelligence report for readers of Handshake 2.0.

First a quick overview:  The "tri" in triathlon refers to the three sports comprising the event - swimming, biking, running, usually in that order, often termed "legs," i.e. swim leg, bike leg, etc. What really happens, though, is a participant swims, changes into bike gear during a transition - termed "Transition 1" or "T1" - bikes, changes into run gear during "Transition 2" or "T2," then runs.  Each phase - swim, T1, bike, T2, run - is timed.  I usually finish in the bottom 10th of women overall, but my T2 rocks - I finished 63rd of 80 women in the race but was 4th of women overall for T2 at the recent Salem YMCA Sprint Triathlon (results page) - because I was taught - by the man himself! - the Coach Jim McGehee T2 Technique(TM) - (trademark symbol added by me!)

Second, it's never too late to do a triathlon.  Online registration may have closed, but unless the race cap has been filled, on-site registration is permitted and speedy thanks to triathlon production company Set Up Events.  The TriAdventure Summer Sprint starts at 7:00 AM, the transition area opens at 5:00 AM, and all participants are asked to arrive by 6:00 AM, so I'd recommend arriving between 5:00 AM and 6:00 AM for on-site registration.  Important, though - a picture ID is mandatory.

Third, "I can't swim AND bike AND run!" is not a problem.  Relays are welcome!  Get some friends to go with you and do the parts you can't.  You can also do two of the three legs yourself and take a ringer along with you to make up the difference.

Fourth, watching a triathlon is an intense sports spectator experience. Without stands, spectators get to watch the athleticism of brave little kids to stalwart granddads, from novices to seasoned professionals, speeding from sport to sport.   

Fifth, parking is always a pain at a triathlon.  Hundreds converge on an event facility usually with a hundred parking spaces.  A spot or two may be available at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center, but I'll park in the designated overflow spaces at Christiansburg High School, put my gear in my backpack, and bike downhill to the CAC. Here's a Google Maps link showing my plan. 

Inside scoop on the TriAdventure Summer Sprint Triathlon:  The transition area will be in the back of the Christiansburg Aquatic Center (CAC). Participants who have completed the swim leg will exit out the back of the CAC to the transition area for T1.  With their bikes, they'll head up the short hill out of the CAC, turn right onto Mill Lane, then turn right onto Depot Street.  When they return to the transition area for T2 to prepare for the run leg, they'll head up the short hill out of the CAC on foot, turn right onto Mill Lane, then left onto Depot Street.  Bike is to the right, run is to the left.

Please click the image for a larger view of the bike course.

The bike leg is an "out-and-back" - out one way, back the same way - from Depot Street through various streets to Mudpike Road.  Mudpike is newly paved, has only a few rolling hills, so it will be perfect for first-timers and very fast for cyclists!  For spectators, I recommend walking out Mill Lane to Depot Street because the home stretch is a hill and that's where you'll see the real drama of a triathlon - the heroism of the mom determinedly pedaling to finish her first triathlon at 50, the nationally-ranked triathlete, slim and cut, impossibly accelerating the steeper the hill gets. Once they pass, take a look at the numbers inked in black marker on their calves and marvel at their ages.

The run leg?  Well, let's just say the steep downhill start to the out-and-back through scenic Cambria means a steep uphill finish.  Other hills will provide pleasant surroundings for those of us who will be out there with plenty of time to look around.  My 5K time a month ago at Salem was 44 minutes, so I'll be cheering "You go!" as fellow triathletes pass.  Again, for spectators of athleticism, the place to be will be that final uphill on Depot Street, but most fans will be at the race finish, currently planned for the front of the CAC, listening for the name of their rock star triathlete to be announced over the loudspeaker!

Please click the image to see a larger view of the run course.

A note:  I am one of a team of individuals who attempted to create the first USA Triathlon-sanctioned sprint triathlon event in the New River Valley of Virginia.  We organized the race two years in a row, then had to cancel it twice due to construction delays past promised completion dates at the event facility.  Do I wish I were writing about that event rather than the TriAdventure Summer Sprint Triathlon 2011, the true first USAT-sanctioned triathlon to be held in the New River Valley?  Yes, I do.  Even now, I still feel crestfallen. That was a huge disappointment.  Ah, well. I don't apologize for being a dreamer and I'm so grateful TriAdventure made sanctioned triathlon happen in the New River Valley. I did my best to be the very first to register for the TriAdventure Tri to show my support and belief. And I'm still dreaming - and predicting - the New River Valley of Virginia will be a destination site for triathlons and multisport events.

Hope to see you, to quote my father, "bright-eyed and bushy-tailed," early Sunday morning at the TriAdventure Summer Sprint Triathlon!

***

You're invited to read more about the business of triathlon on Handshake 2.0.

Handshake 2.0 is a sponsor of the New River Valley Triathlon. Coldwell Banker Townside, Realtors, BlacksburgLodging.com and One-on-One Endurance are clients of Handshake Media, Incorporated, the parent company of Handshake 2.0.

"Know thyself."
-inscribed on the Temple of Apollo in Delphi

The World Is Flat by Thomas Friedman is now in a 3.0 version, but when I read it five years ago, I didn't have a high-tech start-up with high-growth dreams, and I certainly had not done business internationally other than as a consumer.  Now that I do have that company and have done business internationally, if only minimally, I have become thoughtful about Friedman's premise about the oneness of the global economy.

I'm not alone. I am studying work by Pankaj Ghemawat, professor of global strategy at the IESE Business School in Barcelona, and author of World 3.0: Global Prosperity and How to Achieve It. In The Cosmopolitan Corporation (Harvard Business Review, May 2011), Ghemawat writes:

 "For every article or book you read about the world being flat, you’ll read another that highlights the rise of state capitalism and the economic rivalries between China, India, and the United States. It’s worth reemphasizing that the world is neither a collection of autonomous nations (World 1.0) nor perfectly flat (World 2.0), but semiglobalized, with some places being much closer to home than others. In such a world, rooted cosmopolitanism is a more realistic and, ultimately, more useful objective than statelessness."

The concept of "some places being much closer to home than others" seems in keeping with the VT KnowledgeWorks Global Partnership's recommendations for regional economic development. While those recommendations are addressed to "cities with strong universities," I used them as criteria by which to evaluate my own company "going global" as I attempt to contribute to my locale becoming "among the globally competitive regions as the economy of the 21st century evolves."

I am finding my company's current greatest strength and contribution to be in "deliberately creating multi-layered global networks."  Those networks are with people and they, of course, are what Handshake 2.0 is all about - "It's still who you know." 

With regard to globalization, Ghemawat writes that an estimated 90% of the world's population will never leave home, yet "it’s the people who are their [corporations'] customers, employees, investors, and suppliers."  He asserts, "...a global strategy and a global organization...must be based not on the elimination of differences and distances among people, cultures, and places, but on an understanding of them."

Let's start "close to home" with understanding of self first, then others.  To aid in the process of understanding each of our companies in a region that is part of a global economy, I invite you to take our Global Handshake Survey.  We'll share the results.  Feel free to leave thoughts, ideas and feedback in the comments.  Thanks!

***

Go straight to the Global Handshake Survey. 

Photo: Martin Houdbine and Charles-Eric Gorron share a global handshake at Handshake Media. They are two of the founders of France-based Artbeating which will experience acceleration services at VT KnowledgeWorks in Blacksburg, Virginia, USA during the summer of 2011.

Handshake 2.0 is the flagship site of Handshake Media, Incorporated. VT KnowledgeWorks is a client of Handshake Media.

I am neither an Athenian, nor a Greek, but a citizen of the world.
- Socrates

Looking ahead five years - maybe fewer - if the VT KnowledgeWorks Global Partnership's vision plays out, my university-rich locale will be enlivened not only by the presence of global students, researchers and faculty members, but by global corporate leaders and professionals as well.

To achieve that vision, here are the VT KnowledgeWorks Global Partnership's recommendations (my numbering and bold):

Cities with strong universities are particularly well-positioned to be among the globally competitive regions as the economy of the 21st century evolves. To do so, they must:

1. pro-actively embrace globalization
2. expand their regional brand recognition by deliberately creating multi-layered global networks, and
3. act in a regionally coherent manner at every opportunity.

My company, Handshake Media, Incorporated, is a VT KnowledgeWorks member company, as is Automation Creations, Inc., from which She Chooses(TM), the social network for women, is a co-spin-out enterprise. From my upbringing with parents who quoted Socrates and from the myriad powerful experiences I've had through my association with VT KnowledgeWorks, I have natural buy-in to the idea of "going global."

Although to create "globally competitive region" using the Partnership's list of "musts" requires regional consciousness and effort, let's see how I'm contributing personally to the mission.  I'll use a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 is "Who needs global? I have a local company." and 5 is "I'll be in Beijing then, too.  Shall we meet?"

1. pro-actively embrace globalization

Handshake Media's fundamental mission is to create global handshakes, first of greeting, then on deals.  Every time a post goes live on Handshake 2.0, it's globally available.  That's an on-going, proactive reaching out to the world. This is definitely a 4.  An actual handshake beats a virtual one, but a virtual handshake is better than not even knowing the other hand exists!

2. expand their regional brand recognition by deliberately creating multi-layered global networks

Handshake 2.0 is a "multi-layered global network" by definition, so that's good.  Handshake Media developed the VT KnowledgeWorks Global Directory, a mobile app for both iOS and Android, also a global network by definition, also good.

Those are the more cerebral facets of creating a multi-layered global network.  More personally, I loved being a host from the community for student entrepreneurs competing for the VT KnowledgeWorks Global Student Challenge Trophy.  We had the delight of spending a week with Martin Houdbine and Charles-Eric Gorron of Artbeating in 2010 and look forward to hosting a team of this year's competitors. Professor Nikola Hale, a scholar visiting Radford University from Hochschule Furtwangen University, was also a recent welcome guest at Handshake 2.0 Headquarters.

Overnight guests were infrequent in my childhood years and rare also in many of my adult years, so I will acknowledge that opening my home to people I've never met feels more like a leap off a cliff than a leap of faith, but the global-made-local in my very own home has generated priceless, unforeseen insights for me. More, please!  Let's go with a 3 on this one.

3. act in a regionally coherent manner at every opportunity

My best effort to date to "act regionally" - by which I was joined with the support and sponsorship of Coldwell Banker, Townside REALTORS, First Bank & Trust Company, Hutchison Law Group and Ryan Hagan - was to organize a network of women mobile application developersto address the shortage of mobile app developers in the New River Valley of Virginia.  This shortage may well lead to a regional loss of current and future market opportunities in the mobile industry.  Now known as the Brava Network of Women Mobile Application Developers, the group has met regularly for three months. 

Software development is difficult and takes more resources for training than we have.  This initiative was well-intentioned but points out that "acting regionally" requires a budget.  Pats on the back for everyone who tried and is still trying.  But able only to start this, but not yet sustain it, this is a 1 while I plan next steps.

Three 5s would be great, but a 4, 3, and 1 will do for now.  I want to be part of a globally competitive region.  I know what to do and where I stand in contributing to getting that done.  I'm going global.

Added 5/4/11: You're invited to take the Global Handshake Survey. 

Handshake 2.0 is the flagship site of Handshake Media, Incorporated. VT KnowledgeWorks is a client of Handshake Media.

"The endurance athletes who ran up two mountains in Roanoke's [Virginia] first marathon in 24 years brought with them $350,000 in economic activity, event organizers said...The marathon 'is drawing attention to the world about our valley having this great outdoors'...Organizers said they expect twice as many participants to register for next year's event...'it exposes us to other people outside of the region who will come back to visit or - even better - come live here or open a business here."
- The Roanoke Times

Hosting a New River Valley Triathlon in Virginia has been a dream since 2007.  While the event has yet to occur, and it will be very nice when it does happen, the contribution of a single triathlon to regional economic development is only the beginning of revenue generation.  A local triathlon creates a local triathlon economy.

As we mentioned in Doing Business with Triathletes, Set Up Events, a major triathlon production company, describes the business value of "The Coveted Triathlete Demographic."  While I don't meet all the criteria, as a business owner, I would covet me. I spend.

Much of my triathlon spending is public knowledge.  As of the writing of this post, I am the Mayor of The Weight Club and the Blacksburg Aquatic Center in Blacksburg, Virginia on Foursquare, a gelocation application, sort of like Facebook with places.  This is no surprise.  I'm in training for a 2010 sprint triathlon season so I frequent both places regularly to improve my swimming, biking, running and overall strength.   (You're invited to read about Foursquare on Handshake 2.0 if you'd like to know more about our Foursquare experiences.) 

I pay $419 for a yearly membership as an individual at The Weight Club. That's over a $1 a day I contribute to the revenue of The Weight Club, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with 70 employees.

We have a family membership at the Blacksburg Aquatic Center which is more, but I would pay $230 for a yearly membership as an individual.  That's 63 cents per day I contribute to the revenue of the Blacksburg Aquatic Center, a municipal facility funded by tax dollars with 40 employees.

As a triathlete, I create jobs. 

And that's just through athletic facilities memberships.

Don't get me started on how much I spend on triathlon gear.

But "getting started" is an important topic.  How did I get started doing my first sprint triathlon at age 50?  I was inspired by others.  Was I a member of The Weight Club before I was a triathlete?  You bet.  I'm a Foursquare-certified gym rat.  Was I a member of the Blacksburg Aquatic Center? No. Did I join when I became interested in triathlon and then pay an instructor for my first swimming lesson since 1969? Yes.  And did I have a bike? No.  Did I buy one at East Coasters? Yes...

Triathlon has an appeal that gets people started, regardless of age or in what condition they begin.  People training for triathlons, often their first, find each other, call themselves triathletes, and create a triathlon community.  They join athletic facilities and buy bikes... 

Hosting a triathlon in a locale can speed the evolution of a region-enriching local triathlon economy.

***

Triathlon is one of many athletic endeavors that falls under the category of "multisport." I envsion the New River Valley of Virginia with a multisport destiny.

"We want the New River Valley Triathlon HERE!" That's what organizers and sponsors of the New River Valley Triathlon would welcome hearing from a venue with a pool in the New River Valley.  If you're that venue, please contact the New River Valley Triathlon.

"Economically the event is said to have infused between seven and ten million dollars into the local economy."
- About the Ironman held in St. George, Utah for the first time in 2010

What local economy wouldn't want those kinds of dollars?

"After only three years in existence, the Hy-Vee Des Moines ITU Elite Cup has already become one of the most important triathlon events in the world, consistently drawing the fastest athletes in the world to Des Moines, Iowa..."

Des Moines?

Why not the New River Valley?

Handshake 2.0 is a proud sponsor of the New River Valley Triathlon, a sprint triathlon in need of a venue.  We continue to hope that it will exist soon as part of the Virginia Triathlon Series produced by Set Up Events.

As a company, we'd like to do business with triathletes.

Why?

USA Triathlon - the sanctioning authority for triathlons including the Olympic Games - has done comprehensive market analyses of the demographics of triathlon including The Mind of the Triathlete (.pdf). Set Up Events, in its Triathlon Sponsorships 2010 Overview (.pdf), highlights key points of those studies:

The Coveted Triathlete Demographic

• 81% [are] 18-49
• Largest age groups are 30-39 and 40-44
• Median age: 41
• 59.6% male - 39.5% female
• 98% have attended college
• 45% have a post-graduate degree
• 67% are business and community leaders between 30 and 50 years old
• Average [House-Hold Income] HHI: $174,600
• Mean [House-Hold Income] HHI: $133,200
• 93% gave purchasing advice in the past year to an average of 12 people

How many triathletes are there? 

24.8 percent more than last year, according to USA Triathlon.

In the New River Valley triathlete traveling area - North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Georgia and West Virginia - Set Up Events will register over 40,000 entries during the 2010 season.

Welcome, triathletes, to the New River Valley of Virginia! We don't quite have an event yet, but maybe you'd like to train here?  We'd welcome doing business with you.

***

Added 5/26/10:  According to The Roanoke Times, "The endurance athletes who ran up two mountains in Roanoke's [Virginia] first marathon in 24 years brought with them $350,000 in economic activity, event organizers said...The marathon 'is drawing attention to the world about our valley having this great outdoors'...Organizers said they expect twice as many participants to register for next year's event...'it exposes us to other people outside of the region who will come back to visit or - even better - come live here or open a business here."

Cartoon by Daniel Yowell

***

Added 5/22/10 - I thought this would happen to this cartoon! We have had several requests from those doing slide presentations on economic development and small business for permission to use the cartoon.  Yes, please, use it!  If you cared to give attribution - "Cartoon by Daniel Yowell for Handshake 2.0," and let us know, that would be great!  If you use the cartoon for a blog post or web site, using the same attribution and providing a link back to this post would be ideal.  Thank you!

From Margaret Galecki, General Manager of Coldwell Banker Townside in Blacksburg, Virginia:

We are honored to announce that for the second consecutive year, Coldwell Banker Townside, REALTORS (R) was voted the "Best Real Estate Company in the NRV."  Three of our agents were in the top 5 “Best Real Estate Agents in the NRV":  Mike Eggleston, Dana Orr, and Jeremy Hart.

Regional economic development is a frequent topic of discussion on Handshake 2.0 and we wanted to let you know one way we contribute to corporate development in the New River and Roanoke Valleys of Virginia.

As a full service real estate firm, we are able to provide top real estate service for you in our region.  We also have the additional ability through our association with Cartus Corporation's relocation network to provide businesses with relocation services for incoming employees and transferees alike.  

The Cartus relocation network handles over half of the relocation needs of Fortune 500 companies and only 1% of all real estate firms are qualified for an association with them. We're very proud to be included in that group.

Not only can we find your newest employees the most professional agents locally to make sure that your new “family” is taken care, but we can also make sure that your valued associates are taken care of when they need to find a new home in another location.  We hope to help you take the guess work out of “who you gonna call” when your employees need real estate help. We hope that you will choose to call Coldwell Banker Townside for any of your real estate or relocation needs.

For more information on our relocation services, please contact Shelly Wade Baldwin.

***

Coldwell Banker Townside, REALTORS (R) is a full service real estate agency specializing in Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Roanoke, and Salem, Virginia real estate and homes.  Coldwell Banker Townside, REALTORS (R) strives to be the best online source for real estate listings in Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Roanoke, Salem and all of the  Roanoke Valley and New River Valley.   Experienced agents are available to provide expert real estate advice and quality customer service.  You're invited to view this week's featured properties, learn the latest on CBT's blog, Keepin' It Real Estate, and see more CBT on Handshake 2.0.

Coldwell Banker Townside, REALTORS (R) is a client of Handshake Media, Incorporated, the parent company of Handshake 2.0.

Should I stay or should I go?
- Clash

"Why should I stay in the New River Valley?" asks Allen J. Fuller, III.

To me, underlying the question is the premise that people should stay somewhere and need reasons to do so.  Why should I stay in the New River Valley of Virginia?  In Silicon Valley?  In Paris?  In Borneo? 

Should anyone stay anywhere?

Although I've seen no official announcement that a local company's founders have moved to the headquarters of the company that acquired it, their Twitter streams self-report that they are no longer local residents.

Should they have stayed?

"Should" is a form of "shall" which implies "an order, promise, or obligation."

Try these on for size:  "I order you to stay.  You promised you would stay.  You're under an obligation to stay."

The heaviness of those sentences saps my spirit and creativity.  And Allen points out that's the opposite of what people seek:  "...inspiration, people to dream and work with and businesses and localities that value their contributions."
 
In his latest post, Allen refers to my latest post in our dialogue on regional economic development, An Entrepreneur in Every Garage.  While that post discusses economic development in the New River Valley of Virginia and, therefore, garages in that locale, I'm glad to have an opportunity to clarify.  I think developing a culture of entrepreneurship as a model could fuel economic development in any locale's garages.  My company just happens to be currently based in this locale.

Allen asks, "So I ask, if you had the chance to talk to someone under 30..."

Having been fortunate to live a half century of an adventure-filled life in many places, I find myself less and less willing to give advice to anyone.  The more I see, the less I have to say and the more respect I have for a an individual's life path.

If I had a chance to talk to my 30-year-old self, I would say this:  "Spend less thought and heart and time on 'should' and 'obligation.' Give that thought and heart and time to living, loving and working in ways that are meaningful to you."

I have found living a meaningful life is not place-dependent.  I can stay or I can go.  Both work.

Allen continues, "So I ask, if you had the chance to talk to someone under 30, single and talented, who felt that trying to live and work in the NRV was a waste of time, what would you say?"

I'd say I think the wording of that question might contain its own answer.

Photo credit:  Jennifer Greger

"A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage."
- Presidential campaign slogan attributed to Herbert Hoover

Allen J. Fuller, III asked me via Twitter, "You have talked about regional development in the past.  What would the NRV [New River Valley of Virginia] look like if your vision were realized?" 

Yes, I certainly have talked about regional economic development. A vision of the awesome power of social media to contribute to a regional economic revolution is fundamental to Handshake 2.0's business model.  We walk the talk of economic development through social media and Regional Economic Development on Handshake 2.0 certainly has its own category on the site.

If realized, what would regional economic development look like to me?

An entrepreneur in every garage. 

Or in every basement, coffee shop, dorm room, home office, bedroom or established corporation - wherever computer power and tools and materials could exist for a creative mind to invent.  And then for that mind to think, "This could be a business."

That's part of my vision.  It's only part because of this:

“When I started my company, I had to find my own mentors and scrape together capital in an ad hoc manner - and also do all the work required to make the enterprise succeed operationally.  I’m excited about helping the next generation of entrepreneurs by systematizing those critical tasks.  And Blacksburg [Virginia] is a great place to live and work.”
- Pat Matthews, DayOne Ventures Mentor

That's a hard way to go.  For my vision, which is impatient, I want new companies now, funded now.  That can happen when a culture of entrepreneurship is born of consciousness rather than opportunism.

I see our region creating a culture in which entrepreneurs are valued as individuals, as creators and inventors, as potential world-changers and as potential generators of profits, enriching their companies, their investors, and their communities.

Just look at these recent entrepreneurship launches, some within the past few days:

• Access to Capital, NewVa Corridor Technology Council, NCTC
• VT KnowledgeWorks Entrepreneurship Summit - In its second year, designed to bring together entrepreneurs and the partners and investors they need to succeed.
• DayOne Ventures

Allen, thank you for asking about my vision for regional economic development in the New River Valley of Virginia.  It's already taking shape.

BTW, Allen, are you an entrepreneur?  Got a garage?  Around here, it's a good time to be an entrepreneur.

***

Handshake Media, Incorporated, the parent company of Handshake 2.0, is part of the culture of entrepreneurship through membership in business acceleration center VT KnowledgeWorks. VT KnowledgeWorks is a client of Handshake Media.

One of the challenges a rural locale faces in developing a local technology industry is attracting and retaining talent - sometimes termed knowledge workers - information technology professionals, software developers, and experts in engineering and science, such as biotechnology and physics. 

For its series on regional economic development, Building a Region, Handshake 2.0 asked:

"What do 'knowledge workers' want from where they work and live?"

An official of a leading software company, who asked to remain anonymous, replied:

I think that for knowledge workers, the role one plays has a significant effect on the desire to be attached to a particular office location. The vast majority of the developers who work for my organization work remotely. They are largely individual contributors, they do not directly interact with customers, and their success in the business is measured by their output and deliverables, so, for all practical purposes, their participation in the business as individuals is secondary: they can go be wherever they want, turn in their code, and not worry about talking to anyone. For junior people especially, this is appealing: live in a hip place, or in a great natural environment, or wherever strikes your fancy personally, escape the office politics, and just write good code.
 
For those whose major focus is customers (consultants, sales reps, etc.), they want to live where their customers do, to minimize travel. Hence, the best thing a community can have is a big account: a Boeing or a Toyota or a UPS or other major firm that requires a lot of services and attention, so that you can spend your time working with one big customer rather than running all around trying to meet the needs of many smaller customers.
 
For people in my role, whose primary responsibilities relate to advising others, the most important thing I can get from a community is a concentration of like-minded people in similar roles. Wherever my management or my peers live, I want to live, and the main thing that a location can provide me is a concentration of people in similar roles, whether in my company or in partner firms. Richard Florida explores some of this clustering phenomenon in his various books (Cities and the Creative Class, etc.)

Essentially, for knowledge workers whose primary economic value is in their interaction with other people, the presence of those other people becomes the determining factor of whether a community is a good place to work. So, the presence of a company headquarters, which has a large concentration of employees with similar roles, weighs heavily in choosing a city to reside in. And then you get the virtuous circle of multiple companies with similar strengths clustering together to compete for scarce talent that was already attracted by their predecessors, hence Boston gets lots of new biotech startups because Genentech is already there, and the new companies are hoping to poach talent from the more established firm.
 
I’m not sure there’s a thing in a city that attracts knowledge workers, rather, there is a sort of critical mass / gravitational attraction process that causes certain types of workers to cluster around each other.

***

In our Building a Region series, are we asking the right questions?  What are better questions?  What are the answers to those better questions?  We welcome guests posts and comments.  With a guest post or an idea for one, please email us at contact@handshake20.com.