Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com January 19, 2015 • Worcester Business Journal 33 But how likely is it that the Boston organizers will concentrate nearly all the Olympic activities within Route 128? That won't be easy, and it's probably a bad idea. That's where Central Massachusetts could come in. Along with nearly 11,000 athletes, the Games will draw millions of tourists, potentially doubling the commonwealth's current population of about 6.7 million during the roughly two weeks the Games will take place. Boston has suggested it can keep all the events close to the city. But that invites unnecessary congestion in an area whose road network is already quite difficult to navigate within the densely populated communities inside Route 128. Since public transit between Boston, MetroWest and Central Massachusetts has been enhanced significantly over the last two decades, there clearly ought to be a role for this region. Also, how could organizers not seriously consider Lake Quinsigamond, a superb location for crew events? How could the area's colleges and universities not be considered for their housing or facilities? Or, how could organizers not consider running the men's or women's marathon along the same Hopkinton-to-Boston route as the world renowned Boston Marathon? Earlier this month, Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty told the Telegram & Gazette that he would like to see Worcester reach out to the Boston organizers about bringing some events out here. That would bring direct economic benefit to Central Massachusetts, and we encourage such an effort. Yet, one danger to this region in having an Olympic event so highly concentrated in and near Boston is one of infrastructure investment. Already, leaders in Central Massachusetts are wary of Greater Boston consuming the lion's share of the investment and resources for the Games, effectively starving the rest of the state of those resources. While we support a move to bring part of the Games here, we also agree that appropriate — and long-lasting — infrastructure investments should find their way outside Route 128 as well. The separate issue of whether Boston should follow through with its bid, with overwhelming evidence about the downside of being an Olympic host, will also be debated in the court of public opinion. n E very year, the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative releases its Annual Index of the Massachusetts Innovation Economy, benchmarking Massachusetts against other leading technology states and measuring 20-plus key economic indicators. In the 2014 edition, we reported that the innovation economy added 100,000 jobs over the past decade, which helped Massachusetts weather the Great Recession. To stay ahead of increasing competition and extend our innovation economy's reach to the whole state, industry, along with academia and government, must keep communicating and collaborating. Here are some ways business leaders in Central Massachusetts can work with the commonwealth to increase economic opportunity over the coming years: • Grow entrepreneurship culture. Business owners or technical experts can help foster regional innovation by sharing expertise with startup entrepreneurs. One option: Link up with one of many accelerators or incubators in Massachusetts, such as The Venture Forum in Worcester or TechSandBox in Hopkinton. These organizations offer many opportunities through direct mentoring, pitch contests and education seminars. MassTech provides investment and partnership support to several of these organizations around the commonwealth, and we have seen that local industry's involvement as mentors and partners provides the foundation for success. • Engage in local workforce development. Local employers, educators and regional organizations can work together to find and train workers for roles that are in demand. Activities like this are only successful if industry provides feedback to their partners at vocational schools, community colleges and universities on the critical skills they need to teach. Engaging in these important conversations can help improve the talent pipeline and drive job growth. • Hire an intern for a "win win win." Through the MassTech Intern Partnership, the commonwealth supports local technology firms by matching them with talented local students and recent graduates. Companies select prospective hires from our applicant database and if they find a match, we'll pay half of the intern's salary – up to $4,800. To date, we've supported more than 200 interns at over 100 small and medium-sized Massachusetts companies, such as Rejoiner, in Holliston, and Disruptor Beam, in Framingham. And in several cases, interns have gone on to full employment with the company. We call this program a "win win win" because it provides companies with needed support, gives local students a meaningful professional experience, and helps Massachusetts retain a critical asset: our talented pool of students and grads. Plus there's no shortage of potential talent in Central Massachusetts, as 36,000 students attend school in Worcester alone. By fostering innovation locally, businesses can help drive job growth and create a foundation for sustainable long- term economic competitiveness for the commonwealth. n Pamela Goldberg is CEO of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, based in Westborough. Locally-grown efforts help lift innovation across Massachusetts BY PAMELA GOLDBERG Special to the Worcester Business Journal Central Mass. can play a role in Boston Games V I E W P O I N T Pamela Goldberg E D I T O R I A L S The Worcester Business Journal welcomes letters to the editor and commentary submissions. Please send submissions to Rick Saia, editor, at rsaia@wbjournal.com. Letters can also be faxed to 508-755-8860. The recent announcement by two of Massachusetts' largest utilities — National Grid and Northeast Utilities — to pull out of the Cape Wind project is a serious setback to the estimated $2.6 billion undertaking. And that could be an understatement given the change in the governor's office this month, which could presage a different level of support for the project on Beacon Hill. Deval Patrick was a fierce advocate of the offshore wind farm, even wresting a commitment from NStar to buy power from Cape Wind in 2012 as it sought to merge with Connecticut-based Northeast Utilities. But his Republican successor, Charlie Baker, though a supporter of renewable energy, is much less likely to jump in to save it, if a recent statement by his energy and environmental affairs secretary, Matthew Beaton, serves as an indicator. Beaton, the former state representative from Shrewsbury, told State House News Service that the Baker administration will leave it to the courts "to determine the best path forward" as Cape Wind faces legal hurdles, especially from its chief environmental and political opponent, the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound. No matter how the court rules, we doubt the new governor is going to become an active advocate. While we believe Baker's support for the development of renewable energy is genuine, we don't believe the administration will do the level of heavy-handed lobbying that would force the hand of any utility into a deal it doesn't like. And the administration shouldn't. n Cape Wind's cloudy future W hat are the chances Boston will host the Olympic Games in 2024? If you're attentive to where previous Games, and the 2016 and 2020 Summer Games (Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo, respectively), have been sited, the chances are not all that long that the world's elite athletes will compete on U.S. soil in the summer for the first time since the 1996 Games in Atlanta.

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