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Life Employment & Economy are going to be their tools for attracting business and investment.”
Using a different set of measures but
coming to similar conclusions, The Atlantic magazine ranked Utah as the sixth best performing state economy in the nation.
Utah’s quality
For the second time in three years Utah has
of life ranks
been named the best state in the country for
third best in
delivering digital services to citizens from the Center for Digital Government. Utah along
business
with Michigan were the only two states to earn
climate. Photo: Steve Greenwood
an ‘A’ grade from the Digital States Survey.
Utah even found itself on a list that measures
social connectedness, called the NetProspex Social Index. The index put Salt Lakers as the eighth-most socially connected city, just behind Austin, Boston and Seattle. The index takes a
City Creek Project is planned for a completion date of 2012
54
enterprises are the most dynamic job generators,
snapshot of employees with at least one social
Utah’s high placement as an entrepreneurial
media profile, the average number of
Mecca is particularly positive indicator for
connections across the social networks, the
continuing job growth in the State.
number of followers, tweets, users and the like.
Business Facilities magazine’s annual
Both investors and entrepreneurs have
Rankings Report graded Utah’s quality of life as
embraced the promise of Utah’s future.
the nation’s highest. But it also scored the state
as second best in education climate, third best
interest in a state like Utah,” says Michael
in business climate and seventh best in
Goguen, the managing partner at Sequoia
economic growth potential.
Capital. “Because we’re always interested in
being shareholders in what will eventually be
The report “Pollina Corporate Realty”
“Folks like us are starting to take more
recently named Utah as the second most “Pro-
the most valuable companies, especially in
Business State.”
technology wherever they germinate. We’re
noticing more and more interest in companies
“From a policy standpoint,” writes Brent
Pollina, the author of the study, “clearly Utah
coming out of a place like Utah.”
is making the statement that it has set up a
very pro-business operating environment.
legendary Sand Hill Road in Silicon Valley, was
Economic development efforts and incentives
an original investor in a number of name brand
Sequoia Capital, headquartered on the