Visit the original article in the Nashville Post by Julianne Akers here.
Leaders encourage cross-sector collaboration as city aims to become technology hub.
The Nashville Innovation Alliance Thursday hosted its annual forum at the National Museum of African American Music, where Mayor Freddie O’Connell and Metro officials, along with university leaders and guest panelists from Atlanta and Pittsburgh, spoke about the intersection of economic development and tech and how Nashville can advance in the field.
Nashville Innovation Alliance Interim Executive Director Sally Parker noted the alliance’s recent Nashville Tech Studio initiative, which helps pair researchers at Nashville’s universities with Metro departments to help find solutions to industry-specific challenges the departments face. The alliance recently announced the five winners of grants to help fund pilot projects, which include technologies to traffic control, multilingual code interpretation systems, pedestrian safety dashboard improvements, bus-delay prevention strategies and AI-assisted reporting at the Family Safety Center.
“If we want to be one of America’s leading centers of innovation, we have to do more than attract talent,” Parker said. “We have to develop it here, and we have to keep it here.”
She noted a recent partnership between Amazon, the alliance, the mayor’s office and local universities and businesses aiming to bridge a gap in tech skills seen in Nashville.
Last week, the alliance launched its Cowrite the Future branding campaign seeking to further Nashville’s position as a tech city by attracting interest, talent and investment to the area.
“Through this campaign, what you will see is founders learning from programs with the [Nashville] Entrepreneur Center, university researchers partnering with local businesses and organizations leveraging one another’s strengths to move ideas forward,” said Parker. “In other words, you’re gonna see collaboration and co-writing of innovation together.”
The forum included a panel conversation featuring Nashville’s Kate Wittels, partner at HR&A Advisors; Invest Atlanta President and CEO Eloisa Klementich; and Sean Luther, president and CEO of Pittsburgh-based InnovatePGH Partnership.
When it comes to attracting tech talent to Nashville, Luther emphasized authenticity.
“We are at the outset of a global, really competitive war for talent attraction in all of our cities, and the next generation of workers in the tech space, and the healthcare space, and the university space, they are looking for authentic places to be a part of,” Luther said.
“I think the [Nashville Innovation Alliance] is really driving that home by combining the positive elements of Nashville’s past, what the contemporary strengths are and accelerating that into a future message.”
As Nashville develops and tries to grow its tech presence, Klementich said taking a thought-out, equitable approach is important.
“I think it’s being very purposeful from the get-go, about ensuring that the work you’re doing benefits everyone,” she said. “Before the building gets built, you should be thinking, how is that building going to displace a neighbor? How is that going to impact the senior? How is that going to impact your mom, your dad, who’s going to be able to live in that area, or will they be able to stay in that area?”
Susan Margulies, vice provost for research and innovation at Vanderbilt, also spoke and noted the university’s recent expansion with campuses in San Francisco, West Palm Beach, New York City and Chattanooga, as well as other innovative goals of the higher education institution.
“Ultimately, our goal is to ensure that Vanderbilt’s growing resources and expertise remain accessible to the innovators, the business leaders, the entrepreneurs who are driving Nashville and Middle Tennessee forward,” said Margulies. “The Vanderbilt ethos is one of radical collaboration.”
O’Connell closed out the forum, praising the work of Nashville Tech Studio and saying that the alliance is working on a process to allow some of the studio projects to be commercialized and generate revenue.
“When government aligns with our business sector, our brilliant universities and industry leaders, alongside our incredible Metro workforce, we create a more resilient, competitive city,” O’Connell said.
“What it takes for us to be an attractive place is changing, and when we invest in talent, research, entrepreneurship and cross-sector collaboration, we grow the types of jobs that well position Nashvillians for success.”