Webinar Recap: From Anecdotes to Actionable Data — How Oregon Plans to Use EcoMap ERM to Strengthen Its Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
- Joyce Arias
- Posted on
- Blog
Jordana Barclay, Innovation Strategist at Business Oregon
This article answers:
- How are states using technology to track and coordinate entrepreneur support?
- What challenges do statewide ecosystems face when trying to standardize collaboration?
- How can digital infrastructure improve both storytelling and funding decisions for economic development?
Oregon is putting its innovation strategy into practice by building systems that track who’s being served, how they’re being supported, and where collaboration can close the gaps.
In EcoMap’s latest Ecosystem Talks, Jordana Barclay, Innovation Strategist at Business Oregon, spoke with Kevin Carter about how the state is rolling out EcoMap’s Ecosystem Relationship Manager (ERM) to strengthen connections across regional hubs. The conversation was not about software demos. It was about why ecosystems need better ways to coordinate, measure outcomes, and tell their story.
Barclay has spent years leading programs that fund and support science and technology companies. Her latest focus is Oregon’s Regional Innovation Hubs, a statewide initiative developed from the state’s 10-year Innovation Plan. The goal is simple in theory but complicated in practice: make sure innovative entrepreneurs have access to resources and support, no matter where they are in the state.
“Our hubs are designed to encourage collaboration and connection, not just deliver services,” she said. “We know every region is different, but we’re trying to find the common ground that allows them to support each other.”
That commitment to coordination is what led Barclay’s team to ERM. Oregon already had a strong entrepreneurial culture. What it needed was a better way to track interactions, share information between organizations, and turn anecdotal stories into data that could support decision-making.
One of the biggest challenges Barclay pointed to was fragmentation. Each hub had its own system, its own way of delivering services, and its own data management practices. While that local ownership is important, it makes it difficult to see the bigger picture.
“We’re not here to tell people how to do their jobs,” Barclay said. “But we have to find ways for these systems to talk to each other.”
The team evaluated several CRM and coordination tools, but many of them came with complexity that required dedicated staff just to manage the platform. That wasn’t feasible for Oregon’s regional hubs. Many of these hubs operate with lean teams and overstretched capacity. ERM offered a different path. It was designed for ecosystems, not sales pipelines.
ERM offered a different path. It was designed for ecosystems, not sales pipelines.
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ERM is easy to use, but it’s not simple,” she said. “It gives us the sophistication we need without becoming its own full-time job to maintain.”
By integrating ERM into workflows that already exist, the state is hoping to reduce friction for ESOs while improving data consistency. Barclay believes that centralizing resource directories, service tracking, and relationship management within one platform will allow the state to identify gaps faster and make more informed funding decisions.
One of the biggest opportunities she sees is the ability to better tell the story of Oregon’s ecosystem.
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We know there’s amazing work happening,” Barclay said. “But we don’t always tell our story well. Having data on how entrepreneurs engage with resources, what they need, and where they’re getting stuck will help us advocate for continued support.”
The data will also help address common funding challenges. If one hub is overwhelmed with referrals, or a specific service is only available in one region, the state can use that information to justify capacity-building investments. Over time, Barclay hopes to build a system where every entrepreneur’s journey is mapped. Not to track individuals, but to understand where support systems need to grow.
The conversation also touched on how the ERM can strengthen collaboration between the hubs themselves. By creating a shared language and toolset, Barclay believes the platform will help reduce silos and encourage more peer-to-peer support.
One of her goals is to make collaboration an explicit part of the work, not just an implied value. “Collaboration can’t be something that’s nice to have,” she said. “It has to be built into the systems we’re using.”
For other states thinking about ecosystem data infrastructure, Barclay suggested they do their research, but don’t wait until everything feels perfect. Oregon spent time exploring options, but once the right solution came along, they prioritized getting started.
“We don’t have a team of people managing this,” she said. “But we found a tool that lets us start where we are and build from there.”
That iterative approach has already helped Oregon refine how it collects data, how it supports hubs, and how it evaluates impact. The state is developing a public dashboard to showcase the work of its hubs and highlight the ecosystem’s contributions to economic development.
For Barclay, the work is as much about people as it is about systems. She described a recent Innovation Showcase where, for the first time, founders, ESOs, universities, and capital providers came together in one space to highlight Oregon’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. The event made it clear that the relationships are there. The next step is making those connections easier to track, strengthen, and scale.
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We want our entrepreneurs to have real-time, valuable information that helps them grow,” Barclay said. “That’s why we’re doing this.”
Watch the full webinar on YouTube.