Why Copenhagen is a magnet for talent
Global talents consider a great number of details when deciding in which country, city and innovation district to live and work in.
In the competition for talent, cities and innovation districts have emerged as significant competitors that attract and retain talent. Whether big or small, cities hold advantages over national economies in adaptability, agility and flexibility. This is important for global talents that look for local characteristics, such as the distinct possibilities that Copenhagen Science City offer. Innovation districts enhance many of the particular features that attract talent, which has now resulted in Copenhagen ranking first in ability to grow, attract and retain talent.
Led by billion dollar investments in buildings, Copenhagen Science City stands as a beacon for the development currently taking place in the central innovation district of Copenhagen. In the innovation district, facilities are built specifically to increase information connectivity and encourage cooperation. An example of the investment in cooperation and co-creation is the Maersk Tower that was officially inaugurated under a month ago, and now serves as a new home for global top talent and as a landmark for Copenhagen Science City.
Copenhagen – where talent thrives
Copenhagen ranks first in the Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2017 that, for the first time, ranks the ability of cities to attract and retain talent based on a large number of variables, including information and communication technologies, business communities, quality of life and cost of living. Overall, Copenhagen stands out as a magnet for attracting international talent.
The city has a strong infrastructure that continues to develop. In Copenhagen Science City alone we will soon see three new Metro stations that, in combination with the rapid bus service and a network of cycle and pedestrian paths, connects over 30,000 businesses, employees, researchers and students.
Copenhagen has completely new research and teaching facilities, supported by a wide range of educational programmes. It also contains many of the top ranked teaching institutions in Europe. Copenhagen Science City alone is the home of one of Europe’s highest ranked universities, the University of Copenhagen, along with the innovation centres of the Metropolitan University College, the Department of Health Technology and UCPH Innovation Hub. This combined means that the area has one of Europe’s largest concentrations of education and research in the fields of medicine, health and natural sciences, including ICT.
The report also underlines Copenhagen’s unique ability to combine high quality of life with international career opportunities. This means that the city not only grows talent through the educational system, but also attracts and retains international talent.
Technological change – are we ready?
The Global Talent Competitiveness Index is centered on talent and technology. Technological change has revolutionized society as we know it, creating possibilities for man that seemed unimaginable just years before each new technological breakthrough. The power of technology is undeniable. From the creation of fire, invention of the wheel and to the seemingly near breakthrough of the quantum mechanics supercomputer, technology has disrupted the way we work, think and interact. On one side of the table, critical eyes see technology as a disruptive force that reduces workers to poverty and hopelessness. On the other side, supporters argue that technology relieves workers of tedious duties and instead allows for innovation, creativity and new jobs that were previously unimaginable.
At Copenhagen Science City we believe in the latter. We work hard to ensure that human ability equals the hunger of technological change by encouraging creativity, adaptability, sharing and co-operation. For exactly this reason, we are thrilled that the Global Talent Competitiveness Index make a clear case that Copenhagen in general and Copenhagen Science City specifically is an example to follow in a rapidly changing world with many new challenges.
