A recent Brookings Institute study on growing cities across the nation highlighted South Bend, Indiana, alongside Nashville, St. Louis, and Boise, Idaho.

The study concluded that successful cities have a highly-skilled workforce for existing local industries while also attracting and growing many different types of companies with complex jobs.

Marcela Escobari is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institute and was one of the authors of the study. She said they chose to highlight South Bend because it was an example of a city that was growing despite a past history of industrial decline.

“Being able to take this dual approach of investing in startups while maintaining these large companies is the right approach for the population it has and for bringing the talent that it needs,” she says.

The authors of the study hope both local and national policymakers will use the information to inform workforce strategies in their regions.