3 takeaways from the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore’s annual report

For more evidence that tech is moving into the mainstream economic conversation for Baltimore, look no further than the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore’s annual report. The 2015 edition was published earlier this month.
Read the full report
The overview of the region’s “key economic indicators” touches on new development, exports and other business indicators. But there’s plenty of entrepreneurship talk.
Here are three takeaways on companies and workers:

1. Startup Formation was double the national average in Baltimore. Since 2010, startup activity increased by 7.4 percent. The national average among metro areas was 3.1 percent over the same period, the report states. For the report’s purposes, the rate of startup formation is defined as the percentage of companies that are less than one year old.
2. Job Growth was traced to new and expanding firms in the area. Those firms generated 9,900 jobs over the last two years, the report states. Tech-oriented companies like Amazon (albeit with low-paying shipping jobs locally), Social Solutions, IronNet and Sourcefire are highlighted on a list of growing firms.
3. Young, Educated Workers are an important asset for that job growth, and it’s a segment that’s gaining in numbers. From 2010-2014, the region ranked 8th among U.S. metros in growth of young professionals (10 percent), and fourth-fastest growth in 25-39-year-olds with degrees in STEM fields. The report states those workers are among the “next generation of entrepreneurs and executives.”