Munich is doing well: High levels of innovation, a dynamic economy, and an attractive job market—and the city and its district will remain at the forefront in the future. This is the conclusion reached by the economic research and consulting firm Prognos in its current 2016 Future Atlas.
The study compares German locations and asks: How well are Germany's districts and cities prepared for the future? The district and the state capital Munich occupy the top two places in the nationwide ranking of all 402 districts and independent cities.
Ingolstadt, Böblingen, and Wolfsburg follow in the next places. The Starnberg district also makes it into the national top ten, ranking eighth. The district and the city of Munich already topped the last Future Atlas three years ago.
The index is based on a total of 29 macro- and socio-economic indicators from the areas of demography, labor market, competition and innovation as well as prosperity and social situation.
Munich is also best positioned for digitalization
For the first time, the study includes a digitalization compass. This assesses locations based on their ability to master the transition to a digital economy. Here, too, the district and the city of Munich occupy the top two places with the highest rating of 5*+.
The second-best rating of 5* in the Digitalization Compass goes to 15 cities and districts, including Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Ingolstadt and Starnberg.
The study uses the proportion of digital initiators, the number of IT start-ups per 10,000 employed persons and the demand for corresponding specialists as indicators for digitalization opportunities.
A detailed presentation of the results and methodology of the Prognos Future Atlas 2016 can be downloaded here.
