Knowledge Jobs

In the old economy, metro areas prospered by having a large number of jobs and workers who could work on "assembly lines" to produce goods or process information. In the New Economy, globalization and the information technology revolution make it easier for more low-value-added standardized goods and information processing jobs to locate in cheaper areas. As a result, larger metro areas will prosper if their workers are good with their minds and are employed in the knowledge- and information-based jobs driving the New Economy. Many of these jobs tend to be managerial, professional, and technical positions held by individuals with at least two years of college.

In the old economy, the focus was on attracting and growing companies, with the view that workers with more or less interchangeable skills would follow the jobs. In a knowledge economy with low unemployment, companies place more importance on attracting and retaining talent. Moreover, highly skilled workers are more geographically mobile than workers with less education, which makes quality-of-life factors much more important. As a result, a key ingredient in determining a region's success is its ability to attract (and develop) knowledge workers.

The knowledge jobs indicators in this section measure two things: 1) the share of the workforce employed in managerial, professional, and technical positions; and 2) the education level of the workforce.

Knowledge Jobs

		100th-76th Percentile
		75th-51st Percentile
		50th-26th Percentile
		25th-1st Percentile

METRO AREAS BY RANK
Rank	Metro Area	Score
1	Washington	14.2
2	Denver	12.8
3	Minneapolis	12.8
4	Austin	12.8
5	Raleigh-Durham	12.3
6	Seattle	12.1
7	San Francisco	11.9
8	Boston	11.7
9	Hartford	11.5
10	Salt Lake City	11.2
11	San Diego	11.1
12	Oklahoma City	10.8
13	Nashville	10.8
14	Philadelphia	10.7
15	Atlanta	10.7
16	Cincinnati	10.7
17	New York	10.6
18	Rochester	10.5
19	Cleveland	10.4
20	Buffalo	10.4
21	Dayton	10.3
22	Columbus	10.1
23	Richmond	10.1
24	Portland	10.1
25	Norfolk	10.1
26	Charlotte	9.9
27	Dallas	9.9
28	Indianapolis	9.8
29	Detroit	9.8
30	Pittsburgh	9.7
31	Houston	9.7
32	Milwaukee	9.6
33	Sacramento	9.6
34	New Orleans	9.1
35	Chicago	8.9
36	Kansas City	8.9
37	St. Louis	8.4
38	Phoenix	8.3
39	Louisville	8.2
40	Miami	7.7
41	Orlando	7.5
42	West Palm Beach	7.4
43	Grand Rapids	7.2
44	Greensboro	7.2
45	Jacksonville	7.2
46	Tampa	7.1
47	Las Vegas	7.1
48	Memphis	7.0
49	Los Angeles	6.6
50	San Antonio	6.4
	Top 50 Metro Average	9.8

ALPHABETICALLY
Metro Area	Rank	Score
Atlanta	15	10.7
Austin	4	12.8
Boston	8	11.7
Buffalo	20	10.4
Charlotte	26	9.9
Chicago	35	8.9
Cincinnati	16	10.7
Cleveland	19	10.4
Columbus	22	10.1
Dallas	27	9.9
Dayton	21	10.3
Denver	2	12.8
Detroit	29	9.8
Grand Rapids	43	7.2
Greensboro	44	7.2
Hartford	9	11.5
Houston	31	9.7
Indianapolis	28	9.8
Jacksonville	45	7.2
Kansas City	36	8.9
Las Vegas	47	7.1
Los Angeles	49	6.6
Louisville	39	8.2
Memphis	48	7.0
Miami	40	7.7
Milwaukee	32	9.6
Minneapolis	3	12.8
Nashville	13	10.8
New Orleans	34	9.1
New York	17	10.6
Norfolk	25	10.1
Oklahoma City	12	10.8
Orlando	41	7.5
Philadelphia	14	10.7
Phoenix	38	8.3
Pittsburgh	30	9.7
Portland	24	10.1
Raleigh-Durham	5	12.3
Richmond	23	10.1
Rochester	18	10.5
Sacramento	33	9.6
Salt Lake City	10	11.2
San Antonio	50	6.4
San Diego	11	11.1
San Francisco	7	11.9
Seattle	6	12.1
St. Louis	37	8.4
Tampa	46	7.1
Washington	1	14.2
West Palm Beach	42	7.4

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The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI)
Technology, Innovation, and New Economy Project
600 Pennsylvania Ave., S.E., Suite 400, Washington DC 20003
Phone: (202) 547-0001
www.ppionline.org

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