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MTI Blog

3/8/12 - Innovation Economy Good News

Last week the Department of Community and Economic Development released Maine's 2011 R&D evaluation. Highlights of the report include:

•Companies using Maine programs grew jobs at a rate of 4.5% and revenues by over 11%

•Patents, licenses and spin-offs from academic and non-profit R&D are up

•Maine's innovation-based companies are finding greater access to capital

•Programs supporting Maine's entrepreneurs are poised for growth, due in large part to resources that have come into Maine, such as the recent $3 million grant from the Blackstone Charitable Foundation

•Early results from the Maine Technology Asset Fund show job creation and retention as well as some very productive collaborations between industry and research institutions

This year, I was again reminded how valuable this data is for legislators and the administration as they plan for the state's future investments. This annual evaluation is prepared for DECD by an independent team including Camoin Associates (ME), EntreWorks (VA) and Scruggs and Associates (NC). For the last 10 years, this team has assessed the impact of public investment on R&D and innovation-based economic development efforts to help Maine policy leaders and taxpayers understand the impact that programs encouraging company innovation and applied research at universities and nonprofit research institutions are having on the state's economy. The evaluation team members work nationally to study the impact of R&D investment on economic growth. They know the competitive landscape of state policies and programs across the US seeking to grow innovation-based companies, are highly regarded and bring many insights from the field to their work with Maine.

That the team is independent is important both to provide an objective view of Maine's progress to the State and to providing feedback on the services that MTI and the other support organizations provide to Maine businesses. It is one of the very important ways that MTI's performance is measured. As many of you know, the process requires obtaining data from businesses who have received state support and I want to thank those businesses who are involved in the surveys for their willingness to provide that information for several years after they receive support.

Critical information provided from an objective, third party review team is an essential component as we continue to build a strong foundation for innovation, a robust entrepreneurial environment and competitive and well-connected innovation industries.

See the full report on the DECD website by clicking here.

Cheers,

Betsy

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