Rural Bridges

Reports

Rural Entrepreneur Case Studies

Rural Washington State has some inspiring stories to tell about successful entrepreneurs who have made a commitment to growing their businesses in rural communities. Read about some of the best from our case studies &

Outsourcing & Growth Jobs in Washington:

A Report for Businesses and Rural Communities interested in statewide information-based job growth opportunities.

The Rural e-Work Project recently completed a report identifying potential information-based job opportunities for rural communities.

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APPENDIX A
APPENDIX B

Workforce Report Executive Summary

This report is part of a two-year project implemented by Washington State University to create information-based jobs in five rural areas of the state. The purpose of this report is to gather data on information-based jobs with a potential fit with the rural workforce. These jobs provide opportunities for rural communities to expand and diversify their economy. Rural communities can serve urban businesses with a strong workforce and reduced operating costs.

The data we use to identify information-based jobs for rural communities is presented in the report as follows:

Findings

The analysis in Section IV compares trends in outsourcing and projected information-based job growth in Washington with current strengths and successful information-based job activity in rural communities. This section identifies jobs that are a fit for rural communities both near-term and long-term.

Information-based work that can be implemented in the near-term refers to jobs that, with little or no training of the existing workforce, can be accomplished in rural Washington immediately. Many of these jobs are already being fulfilled in rural communities at local businesses, schools and government organizations. Based onthe rural strengths and case studies presented in Section III, the majority of nearterm jobs are back office functions. While some highly skilled work is also being done in rural communities, to our knowledge these are limited in number. The long-term job opportunities include occupations that are being outsourced but that require higher levels of training, education and expertise than are readily available in the rural workforce. The greatest opportunities for future informationbased jobs in rural communities are primarily in the areas of computer technology,finance and medical transcription/coding. These are positions that are being outsourced and also are either growing in Washington or we have identified at least some skills in the rural workforce.

Recommendations

Using information gathered for this report on jobs being outsourced, growth jobs in Washington state and WSU's knowledge of the rural workforce, the following next steps are recommended for communities and businesses interested in increasing rural information-based work.

Download the entire report in pdf
Full report
APPENDIX A
APPENDIX B

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