Twenty-Year Tech Surge (OPINION)

When I relocated to Northwest Arkansas from San Diego in 1995, there was little tech, and little savvy.

The supplier world was fairly isolated to Bentonville. Boundaries between the cities were distinct, and we debated which would reign as king. It looked to be ultra-hip Fayetteville for a time, then shopping-rich Rogers, and more recently upscale, trendy Bentonville.

Ultimately, our polycentric model is flourishing — particularly when it comes to spreading economic potential and prosperity.

Our region has evolved to be staggeringly cooperative. Forbes contributor Erica Swallow wrote in 2013, “It’s all love, no hate,” as she described being blown away by the regional collaboration and fresh tech startup success on a trip to her native Northwest Arkansas.

Our economic flagship is retail — in large measure because of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., but increasingly only in part. Walmart has attracted immense talent here, and now we boast exciting, retail-centric startups like DataRank, Collective Bias, Rockfish and Acumen Brands.

Directly and indirectly, Walmart helped us morph into a region boasting a world-class art museum, an impressive outdoor music venue in the Walmart AMP, phenomenal mountain bike and city trail systems, foodie food and now a Walton Arts Center expansion — genuine, quality-of-life acquisitions that boost our region’s appeal.

Two challenges remain: nurturing tech talent and investing in our own ideas and ventures.

Yes, we have progressed light-years in recruiting talent, but we need many more tech-minded, seasoned workers. Only one in 17 technologists in Arkansas are native, we heard from Karenann Terrell, executive vice president and chief information officer for Walmart, at last year’s Bentonville Tech Summit.

We need a bold move, like building a technology-development center and/or attracting a big-name tech company to open a campus here.

For years, the retail industry rumor mill has said the latter is possible.

Cisco Systems global account manager Jason Knight said he has watched Walmart pull VP-level talent from throughout the country, but the area needs to lure experienced tech talent in order to attract tech companies.

“We can’t ever be considered a true innovation incubator without bigger companies being willing to invest and set up shop here,” he said.

The region also needs personal and professional communities to invest in its own ideas and ventures.

Northwest Arkansas has a higher-than-average number of households that qualify to be accredited angel investors through the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (based on income and net worth), but doesn’t even blip on the map of our nation’s angel investing. Fifty-one percent of seed funding goes to Silicon Valley-based companies, mostly tech ventures, according to data company CB Insights.

 Only about 50 of the 500 members of local investor group the Natural State Angel Association actively make angel investments, said Jeannette Balleza Collins, director of startup accelerator the ARK Challenge.

Those types of investments create jobs with higher wages — and more importantly jobs that develop intellectual innovation, said Clint Lazenby, a NSAA member.

We have key components: a deep pool of retail expertise, the fostering of innovation, and an increasingly rich backdrop of activities and facilities in which to raise families and recreate.

An emphasis on mathematics, science and technology in our homes and schools and a mindset to cultivate our cooperative nature will propel us to the next level of innovation and success. 

Robin Mero is content director for Bentonville-based Selling to the Masses, a destination for resources to help early-stage, consumer-product companies get and stay on the shelves of the country’s top retailers. She can be reached at [email protected].