ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

If you're looking for talent, you're in luck

The Black Hills is home to four Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Companies.
South Dakota Mines and local industry partners support The Mining Hub.
For the second year in a row, Rapid City has been named the Most Educated City in South Dakota.
A student from South Dakota Mines has won first place in the Governor’s Giant Vision Awards Competition for six straight years!
The Elevate Incubator has graduated 25 companies into commercial spaces and created over 400 jobs in the Black Hills region.

Talent & Education in the Black Hills Region

What our business leaders are saying

Todd Kenner

Chief Executive Officer, RESPEC

"The entrepreneurial spirit, work ethic, and values of the local business community strongly align with RESPEC. These characteristics, combined with the natural environment and the young talent developed at the SD Mines, create a great place for enduring success." (RESPEC, Inc. Established 1969)

Shon Anderson

President/CEO, B9Creations

What has been an ongoing expansion of technology as a driving force of Rapid City, South Dakota’s economy has surpassed critical mass as Rapid City continues to elevate its standing in the arenas of talent, investment, and opportunity. In a post-pandemic world, where talent works from where it wants to live, the Black Hills are a magnet for entrepreneurs, the companies they build, and the talent that fuels them. In the past year, we’ve seen interest in job posts and investors from other parts of the country increase significantly as freedom, opportunity, and safety increased in value.

Rob Hrabe

CEO, VRC Metal Systems

We have had success at recruiting talented people that are working at bigger companies that want to move back to Rapid City and/or remain in the area. We’ve also had success at recruiting retiring military folks from Ellsworth AFB that typically have 20+ years of experience and want to stay here.

Nicholas Kingsbury

CEO, Phase Technologies

Here at Phase Technologies we are lucky to live in an area that is attractive to candidates across the country. The Black Hills provide beauty, hiking, skiing, and our dining opportunities are rapidly expanding. As a rapidly growing company in the area, we find it is very easy to convince candidates to make the leap to Rapid City.

Carol Rae

President/CEO, ImmutriX Therapeutics

We have attracted people from all over the world for our project, and they actually say the quality of life is better here than anywhere they have lived. I believe in the talent pool that we have locally and have successfully recruited from outside the state. This is a place where I can get things done because of the accessibility to community leaders and ranking officials in Rapid City and the Black Hills. The combination of the work ethic and business-friendly climate at a local and state level makes Rapid City the ideal place to develop and grow here!