Delaware came in second in a ranking of states based on their progress on a path to a new economy that can compete in the global marketplace.
The survey is conducted every two years by the Information and Technology and Innovation Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based organization.
Massachusetts ranked first in the survey, a position in has held in all previous surveys made by the foundation.
However, Delaware came in a solid second.
The index is based on factors that include world-class universities, technology companies and foreign investment.
“Second-place Delaware is perhaps the most globalized of states, with business-friendly corporation law that attracts both domestic and foreign companies and supports a high-wage traded service sector,” a summary of the report noted.
Delaware ranked third in information technology jobs; second in foreign investment; and seventh in fast-growing companies.
Two of the factors keeping Delaware out of first place was immigration of knowledge workers (40th) and workforce training (23rd).
No. 3 was the state of Washington, followed by California, Maryland and Virginia. Neighboring New Jersey ranked No. 10.
The two states with economies that have lagged the most in making the transition to the new economy are Mississippi and West Virginia.
Arkansas, Oklahoma, Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, South Dakota, Indiana and Wyoming round out the bottom 10.
The economies of many of these Southern and Plains states depended on natural resources or on mass-production manufacturing, and relied on low costs rather than innovative capacity to gain competitive advantage.
To improve their economic fortunes, states’ old economy economic development policies must be adapted to the hyper-competitive New Economy, with states developing innovation strategies, the report indicated.
Delaware has moved up steadily in the rankings, The state was No. 9 in 1999 and sixth in the last survey in 2010.
Copies of the survey are available at this link.
