Post by Nathan Sigworth

Coming out of the incredible energy of Startup Maine Week, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about what comes next. Maine’s recent economic progress is something to celebrate based on the pioneering work of groups like Maine Technology Institute and Maine Department of Economic and Community Development and the The Roux Institute at Northeastern University among others. With primary elections just a couple of weeks away, we are preparing to choose our next wave of state leadership. Regardless of who sits in the Governor's office or the State Legislature next year, the economic challenge remains exactly the same. I recently moved my family and company from #Zug, #Switzerland — a quiet canton that engineered one of the greatest economic miracles of the 20th century — to #Portland, #Maine to establish our US HQ. The parallels between where Maine is today and where Zug was decades ago are striking. To compete with the gravity of Boston or New York, Maine doesn’t need to change its soul. We just need to flip the corporate math. This isn't just a debate about simply "high vs. low taxes" — it's about reducing the administrative friction that makes business formation and growth challenging. We need to give founders and leaders the undeniable "permission structure" they need to justify relocating or scaling here to their boards of directors. I put together a roadmap on how Maine’s next generation of leaders can adopt the "Zug Playbook" to scale our homegrown innovation, unlock our massive geographic advantages, and rethink talent flow. Read the full piece here: https://lnkd.in/dHPEnCsZ I'd love to hear your thoughts as I continue to learn more. Special thanks to Conor J. M., Jonathan Bush, Tom Kittredge, Fletcher Kittredge, Walter Hoelzle and Kimberly Sigworth for the recent discussions and critical feedback that helped shape my own thinking here. #Maine #EconomicDevelopment #Startups #Innovation #VentureCapital