This post was originally published as part of HBS’ 聽series,聽featuring the day-to-day work of the School and the people who do it.
Columbus, Starkville, and West Point comprise an area in eastern central Mississippi that has come to be known as the 鈥淕olden Triangle.鈥� Though Mississippi is the lowest-income state in the United States, the Golden Triangle (GTR) region has earned the new moniker thanks to its economic resurgence and future potential as a manufacturing hotbed.
With a labor pool of 500,000 people within a 60-mile radius, a bustling regional airport, several sizeable colleges and universities nearby, and plenty of available land, the GTR has attracted some $5.9 billion in industry and investments in the last ten years, including an advanced-tech steel mill, a drone plant, and a helicopter factory. In short, the region has been putting itself on the business world鈥檚 map, and 性视界 Business School (HBS) faculty have been taking notice.
鈥淭here are so many good things happening in this area of the country,鈥� said聽, Senior Associate Dean for Research at HBS. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a story of leadership, cross-sector collaboration, and local competitiveness. This corner of Mississippi is competing for global firms, and often it鈥檚 winning.鈥�
Prof. Mitch Weiss, Dean Nitin Nohria, GTR LINK’s Joe Max Higgins, and Prof. Jan Rivkin
The Golden Triangle鈥擧BS Connection
Rivkin鈥檚 interest in this region was initially piqued by an article in聽, which prompted him to write to the team at聽, east central Mississippi鈥檚 main nonprofit economic development organization overseeing the revitalization, and express his admiration for their efforts. At the same time, there was a feeling among senior HBS leadership, including聽, that while faculty had spent decades traveling and studying the global economy, perhaps they could benefit from a renewed focus on this country. This idea came to a head following the 2016 election, when Nohria, Rivkin, and聽聽(then the Senior Associate Dean for International Development) were processing and unpacking the election results and were struck by the structural changes afoot domestically.
鈥淲e realized that we had a much better understanding of other parts of the world than we had of certain parts of America,鈥� Rivkin recalled. 鈥淗BS faculty members used to spend a lot of time visiting those parts of the country, but we had lost touch. There was a stark need for us to reconnect with these areas and learn about them, and from them, in a changing social and political context.鈥�
The Golden Triangle was a perfect venue for faculty to reconnect. Through a mix of planning, creativity, and initiative, the area had engineered its own substantial advanced manufacturing boom in a short time and attracted global commercial and media attention in the process. It was well worth a deeper look. And far from eschewing this attention for fear of giving away their secrets, Rivkin said the Golden Triangle team was excited about sharing what they had learned.
鈥淣ot only were they enormously gracious and hospitable,鈥� Rivkin said. 鈥淭hey were eager for us to come and learn more.鈥�
LINK worked closely with the HBS Division of Research and Faculty Development (DRFD) staff to develop a rigorous schedule for a mix of 16 junior and senior HBS faculty who would visit on October 30 and 31. Beyond the three topics of interest Rivkin had mentioned鈥攍eadership, cross-sector collaboration, and local competitiveness鈥攖he trip dovetailed well with the School鈥檚聽U.S. Competitiveness Project, begun in 2011 under the leadership of Rivkin and University Professor聽, and the newer聽聽(MFW) project directed by Professors聽听补苍诲听, both of whom participated in the trip.
鈥淢any of the faculty, including Dean Nohria and Professor Rivkin, intentionally selected the Golden Triangle because of the significant economic development there in the last few years,鈥� said Alain Bonacossa, Senior Director for Research Administration and Behavioral Research Services at HBS. 鈥淭hey wanted to understand how that came about so they could bring those lessons to bear in the classroom and for other communities in their research.鈥�
Much to Learn in the Magnolia State
The first day of the trip began in Columbus with a series of meetings hosted by LINK鈥檚 charismatic CEO, Joe Max Higgins, a driving force behind the organization鈥檚 (and region鈥檚) success and ability to recruit almost 6,000 high-end manufacturing jobs and nearly $6 billion in investment since its inception. To offer a sense of his larger-than-life personality and significant ambitions,聽聽that Higgins鈥檚 Mississippi license plate reads 鈥�2EQLAST.鈥� 鈥淚n the economic development business,鈥� he explained, 鈥渃oming in second equals coming in last.鈥�
Over the next 24 hours, HBS faculty then visited聽聽(learning about how advanced manufacturing skills can be integrated into a school鈥檚 curriculum),聽Steel Dynamics聽(touring a 1,400-acre property and cutting edge steel plant), The TRUST (which hosted a panel discussion about the private investment group鈥檚 13-year support of GTR LINK),聽聽(to study the intersection of academic research, policymaking, and industry in the region), and the聽聽(to tour the facility where 10 percent of the nation鈥檚 truck engines are built, and where several faculty even got behind the wheel of a semi-trailer big rig). Beyond the chance to bond with both junior and senior colleagues as well as have what Rivkin called 鈥済reat heart-to-heart conversations鈥� with Mississippi leaders about the state of the US and the pervasive political divides in the country, he also had three key takeaways from his time in the GTR:
“THE IMPORTANCE OF TRUST AND HOPE鈥攃reative collaboration is very hard without those things. When people are fearful and suspicious, they鈥檙e not going to come together to do something innovative. But when they trust each other and have hope, they鈥檒l take great, often rewarding creative risks. Leaders in the Golden Triangle have developed trust and hope, and it shows in the novel ways they work together.鈥�
“IN PURSUING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INCENTIVES, the Golden Triangle is doing a great job of playing a game that鈥檚 crazy. I hadn鈥檛 realized how out of control state and local efforts to attract companies had become. The Golden Triangle folks helped me see that if you鈥檙e going to be in a game like this, you鈥檇 better be very well organized and very talented. And they are.鈥�
“CONVERSATIONS WITH THE THOUGHTFUL LEADERS OF THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE聽and other faculty gave me new insights into what ails America. For instance, they helped me realize that somehow in this country, we鈥檝e gotten to the point where if I know one thing about you, I assume I know everything else. If I know you own a gun, I assume I know how you think about gender equality or how you think about the social safety net. Those kinds of stereotypes are deeply dangerous and divisive.鈥�
In all, the trip confirmed for Rivkin that all of what he was reading and admiring about the region was merited.
鈥淭hough plenty of work remains to be done, remarkable things are going on in the Golden Triangle,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou always wonder when you go to a place that鈥檚 received such glowing reviews if it will live up to its billing. The Golden Triangle did and then some.鈥�
On-Campus Impact
Inspired by former Senior Associate Dean for Strategy and Innovation Youngme Moon, the School recently launched faculty excursions鈥攊mmersive and collaborative efforts conducted within one or two days鈥� time. As such, they complement the faculty 鈥渋mmersions鈥� that began in 2011 and have taken faculty to Israel, Turkey, Brazil, Munich, Silicon Valley, Southeast Asia, and China (twice) on intensive, week-long trips spearheaded by a faculty member with a specific area of interest (either topical or geographic) and attended by 15-20 faculty colleagues.
鈥淭hese trips are developmental opportunities where our faculty deepen their areas of expertise from a research perspective and also bond across units and ranks,鈥� DRFD鈥檚 Bonacossa said. 鈥淲e have a very large faculty, so we make sure to do all that we can to help them cross-pollinate their ideas and expertise.鈥�
The Mississippi visit is already paying dividends for attendees. For example, Professors Fuller and Kerr built upon the GTR visit for their new Managing the Future of Work project, which explores how businesses and society must respond to the challenges posed by upcoming technological and demographic changes. With other faculty鈥檚 help, they co-wrote a case on the Golden Triangle that Kerr taught in his聽MFW course, a new offering in the School鈥檚 second-year Elective Curriculum. Joe Max Higgins and Macaulay Whitaker of GTR came to HBS for the day, where they met with students and faculty and recorded a soon-to-be-released MFW podcast.
鈥淪tudents were deeply impressed by the collaboration shown in GTR鈥檚 revitalization, and they learned a lot about leadership from their time with Joe Max and Macaulay,鈥� Kerr said. 鈥淭heir southern charm and humor also made for a riotously fun day.鈥�
Rivkin added that excursions like the one to the Golden Triangle will inform faculty work for a long time to come. 鈥淢any of the ideas from trips like these percolate in the backs of our minds and, eventually, find their way into research or teaching,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here are short-term and long-term benefits, and it鈥檚 a win-win for everyone involved. Getting out into the world is vitally important for our work here on campus.鈥�
