It just doesn’t make sense to sweat the small stuff.
Especially if you’re in the life sciences, these “Best Of” magazine-sales gimmicks ranking states and cities in everything from business friendliness to doctor quality to dating prospects, just don’t mean much.
Most of these rankings have little to say to the delicate, complex orchestration needed to sustain a robust life-science state like North Carolina.
Take Forbes’ annual “Best States for Business” ranking, published today. North Carolina got bumped this year, from third to fourth. The Old North State switched places with a new North state: North Dakota. Just as winter’s seriously crinkling water into hammerheads up Bismarck way.
My initial take was disappointment mixed with a dollop of disbelief. But then, on second thought, it made complete sense. After all, Forbes isn’t playing in the life-science sandbox here. They’re looking at overall changes in business activity. And if you start with a small number, a little change makes a big difference.
North Dakota has an oil and gas boom right now. Job-hungry single men are flocking there to grab some of the big money working on fracking rigs. Married ones are leaving their families behind in Nebraska and other places, to cash in. It’s a gold rush all over again. With some of the same hardships.
So of course North Dakota moved up in rank. That doesn’t mean anyone I know wants to pull up stakes here and try to pound them into that frozen tundra.
Proper housing doesn’t exist for most of the North Dakota newcomers. Nor do adequate groceries, restaurants, entertainment, cultural events and diversity, you name it. Scarce would be a generous way to put it.
This year, Utah, Virginia and North Dakota, in that order, finished ahead of North Carolina in Forbes’ contest.
I’ll stay here and take it, thank you.
Editor’s note: Jim Shamp is Director of Public Relations for the N.C. Biotceh Center. He writes and edits news and other web copy, brochures and other internal and external Biotechnology Center materials, and supports the Corporate Communications unit’s marketing and media relations activities.
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