What is Joint Venture?

Established in 1993, Joint Venture Silicon Valley is a joint undertaking by the region’s leaders across every major sector (government, business, labor, academia, philanthropy, and community-based non-profits).

The organization fulfills two major purposes:

First, Joint Venture is the region’s think tank, providing research, analysis and insight. The work emanates from the institute that we house, the Silicon Valley Institute for Regional Studies. The Institute also serves as the region’s clearinghouse for data, made freely accessible to the region on data hubs and interactive dashboards.

Second, Joint Venture convenes the region’s leaders, to take up the findings of the research and catalyze action. This occurs through a variety of forums including large-scale gatherings like the State of the Valley conference, as well as smaller-scale seminars and symposia.

On occasion the region’s leaders also use Joint Venture to house or incubate fiscally sponsored initiatives.

In this way, Joint Venture can be understood as:

• A platform for the public, private, and non-profit sectors to develop shared priorities.
• A magnet for civic entrepreneurs to take collaborative action, action that is rooted in data and analysis.
• A catalyst challenging the region to recognize new realities and consider new ideas.
• A steward of the long-term well-being of the region.
  
  

Publications

The Silicon Valley Poll is an extensive public opinion survey placed in the field annually by Joint Venture and its research arm, the Silicon Valley Institute for Regional Studies. Carried out in partnership with The Mercury News and Bay Area News Group, the Poll tracks recurring questions probing how residents feel about the general direction of the region and their stance on a range of policy and planning questions. Each year the poll also poses timely and topical questions about current events.

The Silicon Valley Index is the annual centerpiece publication of Joint Venture. It is prepared by the Institute with participation from additional organizations, leaders, and academic partners. The Silicon Valley Index is available in two formats: as a static PDF document and as an interactive data dashboard on the Silicon Valley Indicators website.

The Institute also distributes new data via news releases on a regular basis, and publishes a steady stream of research briefs and reports on a variety of topics. Institute publications are available on the Publications page of the Joint Venture website and the Special Reports section of the Indicators website.

Leadership

Joint Venture is led by a 35-member board of directors, with public and private sector co-chairs. Russell Hancock has served as Joint Venture's president and chief executive officer since 2003; he also serves as president of the Silicon Valley Institute for Regional Studies. Rachel Massaro is the Institute’s Director of Research, and is assisted by a network of affiliates with a broad array of expertise, including workforce, regional economics, transportation, public policy, clean energy, business dynamics, and more.

For more information on the Institute’s team of researchers, please visit Joint Venture’s Research Team page.