Cities across the country are racing to outdo one another to land Amazon’s second headquarters. As the deadline for their proposals approaches, local officials from D.C. to Detroit to Dallas are working overtime to polish their pitches.
This national frenzy for HQ2, though, only proves that city officials are no better at long-term thinking than are Powerball prize chasers. Building a tech-based economy isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme, and local officials are selling their citizens short by investing in gimmicks rather than the future.
A strategy with an emphasis on computer science education, workforce development and technical training, and broadband deployment — especially in rural areas — is the key to local economic development impact. This strategy can and should be adopted across the country.
Amazon’s HQ2 promises 50,000 high paying jobs and billions of dollars in direct and indirect investments to the one lucky winner, but a report released last month by Software.org: the BSA Foundation shows the widespread boost provided by the software industry.
This growth is not exclusive to a small number of coastal elites. In fact, the states that experienced the greatest job growth are not where you might expect. In Louisiana, software had a $1.5 billion impact on the economy between 2014 and 2016 and created 20,533 jobs. Kansas has shown 37.5 percent growth in software jobs with a $3 billion-dollar direct value-add to the state’s economy. It’s clear that software is having a sweeping impact; now we must continue to build tech talent pipelines and expand access to broadband.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that not only will technology-related jobs make up the majority of STEM jobs, they will also account for 58 percent of total jobs through 2024. Twenty-six percent of those jobs will be in software development. These jobs are found across several industries including manufacturing, healthcare, retail, and many others that incorporate software and computing into their operations. The ubiquity of computing in our daily lives is spurring the creation of jobs.
Right now, there are nearly half a million computing jobs waiting to be filled, yet only a little over 40,000 computer science students graduated into the tech workforce last year. The race for Amazon’s HQ2 has shown us that the American spirit of competition and innovation is strong. But we need to continue to nurture the foundations of the very things that have allowed this country to lead in science, technology, and innovation. Amazon itself notes that in its HQ2 search that it is seeking “strong local and regional talent, specifically in software development and related fields.” This means that a city that has already fostered its tech talent will be rewarded.
Beyond education, communities should take into account the importance of workforce development and broadband deployment; elements that will allow industries to flourish and grant workers the education and access to one of those 500,000 open jobs.
In the end, the city that Amazon chooses for HQ2 will not be the one that changes its name to “Amazon City” or the one that wraps its city hall in Amazon packaging. It will be a city that has already made efforts to promote computer science education, one that re-skills its workforce, one with advanced telecommunications capabilities; Amazon’s HQ2 will be enjoying the fruits of its labors.
What if we could replicate the frenzy over Amazon’s HQ2 into a frenzy over STEM education, workforce development and technical training, and broadband access?
Yes, one region is going to reap huge financial benefits from becoming this company’s second home.
But all of the runners-up, in fact, every U.S. city, should consider a long-term approach and compete to become the best: employ best computer scientists, offer the best software jobs, and enable the best connectivity. That’s the real key to embracing the broad benefits that can be delivered by software.
Chris Hopfensperger is the Executive Director of Software.org: the BSA Foundation.
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