Investable capital is required for technology-based companies to start and grow. While technology is Indiana’s fastest growing sector, Indiana ranks 30th in America for venture capital deployment, lagging behind all of our neighboring states. According to Kauffman Foundation research, new and young companies are responsible for nearly all net new job creation in the U.S., but Indiana ranks 47th in the nation for job creation by firms 0-5 years old and 34th for entrepreneurship. Ensuring Indiana’s entrepreneurs and startups have access to capital to grow companies and create jobs is more urgent now than ever before as our state and local economies work to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic. Incentivizing and increasing the speed of capital to companies at all stages will accelerate the growth of Indiana’s technology industry and help us remain a leader in the 21st Century, data-centric economy.
ITIA supports policies to encourage investment in entrepreneurs and early stage tech companies to help accelerate the development of new, innovation-based ventures with high-growth potential, and to increase investment in and expand support services around helping Indiana startup companies take their products to market, including:
ITIA supports efforts to facilitate the growth of existing venture capital funds and the creation of new venture funds to grow Indiana technology companies, and to make Indiana more competitive for national venture capital investment, including:
To help the State rebound from COVID-19, ITIA advocates for specific recovery efforts aimed at accelerating the creation of startups and supporting entrepreneurs as a critical economic development engine, including:
Indiana has built a reputation as a low-tax, low-cost, business-friendly state, and these efforts have helped attract companies and jobs in recent years. To continue this momentum as we transition to a 21st-century, technology-driven economy, Indiana must position and brand itself as a welcoming and attractive place to live and work in tech. Efforts to ensure Indiana has a thriving tech ecosystem and support structure are critical to our industry’s ability to attract and retain top tech talent, investment and resources. Also important to making Indiana an attractive place for the tech economy are policies that improve the quality of life metrics important to today’s workforce, including diversity, equality, sustainability and more.
ITIA supports continued investment in high-speed broadband and connectivity for all Hoosiers, including:
ITIA supports efforts to improve and expand transportation options for Hoosiers to better connect our state with major technology and business hubs, and to grow Indiana’s technology ecosystem and support structure, including:
ITIA supports efforts to foster an economic climate that enables technology-driven companies to start and grow in Indiana and compete across the globe, including:
ITIA supports efforts to protect consumer data privacy without stifling industry innovation and burdening small businesses, and to improve cyber security, including:
ITIA supports additional policies to embrace autonomous vehicle technologies, and ensure Indiana has receptive and adaptive regulatory frameworks for this emerging industry, including:
ITIA supports efforts to facilitate and accelerate Indiana’s transition to clean energy, and to embrace clean energy technology and innovation, including:
ITIA supports efforts to tell our state's tech story and advertise the benefits of calling Indiana home, including:
Technology job postings in Indiana are increasing year after year, with more than 184,000 net tech jobs in 2020 creating a $15.6 billion impact on our economy. Indiana tech employment is projected to grow faster than all of our neighboring Midwest states, and median tech wages in Indiana are 72% higher than the median state wage (CompTIA Cyberstates 2020). To embrace this tech job growth, we must ensure Indiana has the trained workforce to match.
ITIA supports policies that help train and prepare our students for technology careers, better integrate technology into the classroom and help grow the pipeline of young talent needed to fill high-demand tech jobs, including:
ITIA supports efforts to provide more direct pathways into the tech industry from high school, & to connect the technology industry with Indiana’s higher education institutions to ensure coursework is aligned with industry needs, including:
ITIA supports policies to help skill up our existing Hoosier workforce with the training needed to fill high-paying, high-demand tech jobs, including:
ITIA supports efforts to recruit out-of-state technical talent to Indiana, and to make Indiana more attractive to tech workers that operate in non-traditional environments, including:
We simply cannot have a thriving technology and innovation community in Indiana without diversity, inclusion and equity. Our industry recognizes the very real gap in tech talent representation. More than 60 percent of tech industry employees are men, 30 percent are women, 7 percent are Black and 8 percent are LatinX. The tech industry equity gaps begin emerging in elementary and secondary education, with girls and students of color much less likely to enroll and/or perform proficiently in STEM courses that lead to careers in tech. Indiana should position itself as a leader in closing these gaps to help our tech sector thrive and build on our State’s rich heritage of innovation and entrepreneurship, and we should aim to change policies that create or fuel disparities.
ITIA supports policies to identify and address gaps in access to resources and capital, including:
ITIA supports efforts to address equity gaps in access to STEM education, technology-focused skills training and tech career pathways, including:
ITIA supports efforts to drive transparency and accountability around equity issues, and to inject transparency into our criminal justice and law enforcement systems by creating:
ITIA supports efforts to combat bias, discrimination and racism in Indiana, and improve quality of life and place for impacted populations so that they can succeed in the workforce and beyond, including:
Contact: Jennifer Hallowell, ITIA Executive Director, Jennifer@HallowellConsulting.com