A recent Wall Street Journal article by Alistair MacDonald, How College Students Beat Boeing in a Battle to Take Down Drones, tells the remarkable story of a group of college students who outperformed defense giant Boeing in an anti-drone technology competition. Using nothing more than a car speaker and a $17,000 budget, these students developed a system that knocked drones out of the sky with sound waves – outshining more sophisticated, expensive systems.

This story is packed with lessons for small towns and local economies. Like these students, communities with limited resources can still achieve big things by fostering innovation, resourcefulness, and agility. At BusinessFlare®, we believe economic development isn’t about relying solely on large companies or massive budgets but leveraging local potential and creating environments where innovation can thrive.

Here’s how small communities can follow in the footsteps of these college students and “beat Boeing” in their own economic development efforts.

David vs. Goliath: The Power of Small Players

In MacDonald’s article, the students’ success against defense giants highlights the ability of small players to make a significant impact. The same is true in economic development. Local entrepreneurs and small businesses are often the lifeblood of revitalization and growth, bringing innovation and a unique character that larger corporations often lack.

Why This Matters: Small communities may feel overshadowed by larger cities or big corporations, but local entrepreneurs have the agility and resourcefulness to spark significant economic change.

Actionable Insight: Local governments should support small businesses by creating entrepreneurial hubs, reducing regulatory barriers, and offering small-scale grants or incentives. This support helps create dynamic local economies driven by innovation and local needs rather than outside interests.

Innovation Doesn’t Need a Big Budget

The students, as described in the Wall Street Journal piece, developed their groundbreaking technology on a modest budget of $17,000. This demonstrates that major innovation can happen with limited financial resources, a lesson that small towns can take to heart in their own development efforts.

Why This Matters: Tight budgets don’t have to be a barrier to innovation. The success of the students shows that creative solutions often come from working within constraints, a challenge that small communities are familiar with.

Actionable Insight: Local governments can encourage innovation without breaking the bank by organizing public-private partnerships, hosting innovation challenges, or facilitating collaborative spaces. Initiatives like these allow local talent to address community needs and generate creative solutions, just as the students did in their makeshift lab. Communities can use these programs to foster local innovation on a shoestring budget.

Collaboration Across Disciplines Drives Innovation

One key factor in the students’ success was their interdisciplinary approach, combining expertise in material science, robotics, and electrical engineering. This same collaborative spirit can help small towns thrive, as innovation doesn’t happen in isolation.

Why This Matters: In small communities, collaboration across different sectors can unlock new opportunities. By encouraging professionals from diverse backgrounds to work together, towns can foster innovation in unexpected ways.

Actionable Insight: Small towns can create shared workspaces and innovation hubs that bring together professionals from various industries. These collaborative spaces can turn unused downtown real estate into vibrant centers of creativity, where local entrepreneurs and innovators can work together to address community challenges.

Resilience and Adaptation

While the students’ innovation was impressive, as MacDonald points out, they now face the challenge of scaling up and refining their technology. Similarly, small towns must be resilient and adaptable to sustain long-term economic growth.

Why This Matters: Small towns must be prepared to adapt to long-term technological shifts, workforce needs, and consumer preferences. Building resilience into economic development plans is crucial to weathering these changes.

Actionable Insight: Communities can use real-time data insight platforms like Street Economics to track demographic, labor force, and market trends, ensuring they stay ahead of economic changes. Investing in workforce development and diversifying industries can also build resilience, helping towns thrive in an ever-changing landscape.

Amplifying Local Success Stories

Major media outlets like the Wall Street Journal picked up the college students’ story, amplifying their success on a global scale. Similarly, small towns should amplify their local success stories to attract attention, investment, and talent.

Why This Matters: Sharing local stories of innovation and entrepreneurship can inspire pride within the community and signal to potential investors or businesses that the town is a place of opportunity. A well-told success story can shift perceptions and attract investment.

Actionable Insight: Local governments should make storytelling a key part of their economic development strategy. Whether through social media campaigns or partnerships with local media, communities should highlight the unique stories of their businesses, entrepreneurs, and innovators. As we often emphasize at BusinessFlare, telling the right stories is critical to creating a place people want to live, work, and invest in.

Unlocking Local Potential

Alistair MacDonald’s Wall Street Journal article about a group of college students beating Boeing powerfully reminds us that even the smallest players can have an outsized impact. Small communities can apply this lesson in their own economic development strategies. By fostering innovation, collaboration, and resilience, small towns can unlock their local potential and achieve big things: no billion-dollar budget required.

At BusinessFlare, we believe that every community has the potential to create a vibrant, innovative economy. By focusing on what makes your town unique, leveraging the strengths of local talent, and telling your story in your own words, you can create the future you want – just like those students who took down drones with a car speaker and a dream.