Business Oregon is the state’s economic development agency, administering more than 80 grants, loans, and other programs to accelerate business growth and development in Oregon. They launched with EcoMap just six months ago, including a submap for 9 regions across the state’s 36 counties. We spoke with Jordana Barclay and Ambar Solarte, who work within the Innovation and Entrepreneurship team at Business Oregon, about how the platform is working to support innovation-based entrepreneurs and companies.
Jordana: There have always been people who come to us and ask for a list of resources for any customer or business we serve. And, as a state agency, that’s always been overwhelming because you need the time and capacity to develop and maintain it, which we never have. But even if we did have capacity, the information can go out of date so quickly.
Ambar’s technically savvy and she knew there were resources out there that could do a lot of the work with limited staff time and capacity. We just started talking about it, researching different opportunities and hearing different demos.
When we saw EcoMap’s demo, I was like, “Oh my gosh, this is it!” This is what I had been imagining but didn’t have the technical expertise to articulate. It solves the need for accurate and up-to-date resources with a lot less staff time to maintain it.
Was there a primary challenge or need that led you to partner with EcoMap?
Ambar: From the beginning, we had a clear understanding of the kind of data we wanted in the ecosystem. The University of Oregon had created a list of economic development resources several years ago, so that was a base for us to start this process. But, by the time we got that database, it was out of date. It was only two years old, but everything had changed.
It was interesting to have, what we thought, was a list of robust organizations but not the right resources. The discovery was the resources. Knowing who’s out there is one thing, but knowing what they do and what they provide to clients, businesses and the ecosystem itself is really valuable.
When EcoMap did the initial data curation, was there anything surprising in what you learned?
Jordana: Some regions have really embraced it and are trying to be creative in how they use it. They find it useful to have all the information in one place and be able to see what’s there. As Ambar said, Oregon is a small state, but Portland, our biggest city with the largest population, is where programs and resources most likely fall through the cracks. Being able to see it all from that 10,000-foot perspective, people have been pretty excited about it.
What’s the response from entrepreneur support organizations on your EcoMap?
Ambar: There is a digital divide in many communities and that’s a huge thing in Oregon, in general. We’ve been using the platform for less than six months, and having the resource helps to show that there’s always some supporting organizations in each part of the state. That’s something that was invisible to this point. The more we use it, the more we engage with it, and the more we promote it, the more it’s going to help to increase access for sure.
EcoMaps can be helpful in addressing some regional disparities or improving access for certain communities. Do you find that’s true?
Jordana: Definitely uptake, widespread usage. And using it as an entry point to have a larger, more nuanced conversation with entrepreneurs and organizations about next steps in their business growth.
What are some of the things you’re monitoring? Six months from now, what are you expecting some of the benefits to be?
Ambar: Sometimes, with other tech companies, they behave as if they have all the answers immediately, but we found a much more collaborative experience with EcoMap. Everyone is learning from the experience, not just us. Something I really appreciate is the curiosity and the willingness to say, “We’ll try to fix it. We didn’t notice this.”
Also, it’s not just the tool but all the thinking about economic development and supporting entrepreneurs behind it. I greatly appreciate this, which is uncommon among other tech providers.
Anything else you want to share about working with EcoMap?
You can tell with EcoMap that you aren’t just selling a tech product or addressing a gap in the marketplace. The organic desire to solve a problem for economic development is palpable, and I think the product reflects that.