These 4 things will help Baton Rouge attract more remote workers

Tulsa, Oklahoma, has a larger population than Baton Rouge, but the two midsize cities in conservative states known for the oil and gas industry have a lot in common, including similar concerns about attracting and retaining talent.

In 2018, Tulsa Remote, with backing from a local foundation, began offering $10,000 grants to selected remote workers who commit to moving to Tulsa for at least a year, in hopes of enhancing the city’s knowledge economy one person at a time. More than 2,400 people have gone through the program, most of whom have stuck around and even helped recruit others.

What can Baton Rouge learn from Tulsa’s experience? Justin Harlan, the program’s managing director who was in town Thursday for the Assembly Required conference, suggests a few takeaways:

• Quality of life is paramount. Build a place people want to live in, not just work in. A thriving downtown, a busy arena and a highly regarded park along a river are among Tulsa’s assets, he says.
• A relatively low cost of living, which Baton Rouge and Tulsa have in common, is appealing to coastal knowledge workers.
• Community matters. Welcoming people into the city and helping them make connections quickly makes them more likely to stay.
• Be transparent about your flaws instead of setting unrealistic expectations. Tulsa doesn’t hide from the dark chapter of its history that includes the 1921 race massacre.

Tulsa Remote boosts the city’s economy by about $14 per dollar spent, and Tulsa gains three residents for every two participants, Harlan says. Though Tulsa, again, not unlike Baton Rouge, may be seen as a backward town in flyover country by some, recruits are often surprised by what they find when they visit.

“Tulsa as a city is very different than Oklahoma as a state,” he adds.

This story originally appeared in a June 23 issue of Daily Report. To keep up with Baton Rouge business and politics, subscribe to the free Daily Report e-newsletter here.