OCTOBER 08 2024
The report, The Geography of Europe’s Brain Business Jobs, assesses the share of the working-age population in highly knowledge-intensive companies across Europe. This data is drawn from a detailed analysis of structural business statistics covering European countries and regions. Now in its seventh edition, the index is widely used by governments, universities, and businesses to gain insight into the evolving geography of Europe’s enterprises.
The index, produced by ECEPR and backed by Nordic Capital, tracks the share of the working-age population employed in knowledge-intensive companies across 33 European countries and 244 regions.
“Brain business jobs are expanding, especially in Southern and Eastern Europe. Western European countries like Ireland and the Netherlands, with more competitive tax policies and regulations, are also experiencing growth. The four regions in Europe with the highest concentration of knowledge-intensive jobs are all capital cities in Central and Eastern Europe, where low taxes and access to a young, highly-skilled workforce are prevalent,” says Nima Sanandaji, head of ECEPR.
Klas Tikkanen, COO of Nordic Capital Advisors, comments: “For several years, we’ve observed a trend in Europe where countries with the fastest growth in brain business jobs tend to have lower tax levels relative to GDP. In fact, over a third of the variation in growth rates for these knowledge-intensive jobs can be attributed to tax differences. Understanding this trend is essential, as competitive tax policies are a crucial factor in driving the growth of knowledge-based jobs.”
Switzerland, Ireland, and the Netherlands are leaders in Europe’s knowledge economies. Switzerland tops the list with 11 percent of its population working in brain business jobs. Ireland has risen to second place, with 10.6 percent of its adult population in highly knowledge-intensive jobs, overtaking Sweden from the previous index. The Netherlands ranks third, with 9.8 percent.
The index also highlights a strong relationship between brain business jobs and regional employment. In regions where the proportion of people in knowledge-intensive jobs increases by one percentage point, the unemployment rate is 0.27 percent lower compared to the typical European region.
Ireland, the Netherlands, and Malta have seen rapid gains in the index. Europe is evolving into a more integrated knowledge economy, with jobs moving to countries that offer enhanced competitiveness.
Eastern Europe dominates the top ten regions for brain business jobs, with six regions in the top ten. Two are in Western Europe, one in the Nordics, and one in Southern Europe. Budapest remains the leading European region, with 25 percent of adults employed in brain business jobs. It is followed by Bratislava (23.1 percent), Prague (21.8 percent), Bucharest (20.7 percent), and Paris (18.3 percent). The Walloon Brabant region, just south of Brussels, ranks sixth, followed by Copenhagen, Upper Bavaria, Zagreb, Warsaw, and Vilnius.