Celebrating Indiana’s Economic ‘Backbone’

Holcomb says the Regional Cities Initiative is part of his administration's agenda.

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Lieutenant Governor Eric Holcomb says the state is taking an "all hands on deck" approach to raising awareness of the impact of small businesses on the Hoosier economy during this year’s edition of Entrepreneurship Week. More than 97 percent of all businesses in Indiana are classified as small, employing close to 1.2 million people. Organizations and employers throughout the state will be holding events this week to highlight entrepreneurship, including an e-education gathering at Launch Fishers, a roundtable featuring Holcomb at ZWORKS in Zionsville and Fulton Economic Development Corp.’s release of a small business impact study.

Holcomb tells Inside INdiana Business small businesses are "truly the lifeblood" of economic activity statewide.

The week’s events will culminate Friday in a ceremony for winners of this year’s Economic Development through Growth and Entrepreneurship, or EDGE, awards from the Indiana Small Business Development Center. Other events throughout the week include the Doing Business with Crane workshop at the Westgate Academy, NWI Free Coworking Day at Open Door Coworking in La Porte and VERGE Muncie Hub Pitch Night to celebrate the public launch of the organization.The state has posted a calendar of events throughout the state.

Holcomb says in order to build on the existing base with new and expanded businesses, "when you look at the clusters in our economy — whether it’s the defense industry, logistics, bio-life sciences, advanced manufacturing — when you look at what’s occurring in the state of Indiana, we know that what we have to continuously focus on is the STEM subject matter, because that’s the employee of the future, that’s the knowledge that is necessary to solve problems." He says the common denominator for all sectors is the need for a skilled work force, which will feed entrepreneurs and large companies alike.

You can connect to more information about Indiana Entrepreneurship Week by clicking here.