RAND - Public policy organization handpicked Pittsburgh for new office

When the RAND Corporation decided to open a third American research office -- in addition to its headquarters in Santa Monica, CA, and Washington, DC -- the public policy research organization developed a list of priorities for the type of city that would house the new office.  The organization's leaders wanted a second-tier city with a reasonable cost of living that was close enough to Washington, DC to travel there and back in a single business day.  They also stipulated that the city contain a major research university, a medical school, a large corporate presence, and a thriving philanthropic community.

After some deliberation, said Barry Balmat, director of the RAND Pittsburgh office, eight cities or regions were designated as strong possibilities -- Atlanta, Research Triangle (NC), Miami, St. Louis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh.  RAND executives visited each of the cities and met with government, industry, and academic leaders. Following the visits, they narrowed the decision to three cities: Pittsburgh, Miami, and Minneapolis-St. Paul.

One of Miami's strongest advantages was its closeness to Latin America, but at the time of the decision, RAND did not have any strategic interests in Latin America, said Balmat. So that left just Pittsburgh and Minneapolis-St. Paul. In the end, the final decision was influenced by the fact that Pittsburgh had not just one, but two, research universities, with strengths in health sciences and technology -- two growing components of RAND research. Pittsburgh's affordable cost of living and quality of life were also important factors in the decision, said Balmat. It also helped that former Alcoa executive Paul O'Neill was a member of RAND's board of directors, and was rallying government and business leaders to welcome RAND with open arms.

RAND, which stands for Research and Development, was founded in 1946 as an Air Force think tank. Balmat said that RAND employees jokingly refer to the organization as "Research and no Development" because it is not directly involved in the development of products. In 1948, RAND

spun off from the military, and has since been a non-profit, non-partisan agency, which analyzes policies for government entities and private sector industries on issues ranging from national security, to education and poverty, to medicine and technology. Most of the firm's work is done on behalf of the federal government, and is supported by grants from foundations. In addition to its three research agenda offices, RAND has a small office in New York, plus international locations in Berlin, Cambridge, and Lyden in Europe and Doha, Qatar in the Middle East.

RAND opened its Pittsburgh office in March 2000, and now has close to 90 employees. Leaders deliberately located the office on Craig Street in Oakland, to be in close proximity both to the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University. Almost immediately, the organization entered into formal research programs with both universities. RAND has partnered with Pitt's Health Sciences on the RAND Pittsburgh Health Institute, which has developed recommendations for improving maternal and child health care delivery, and is working closely with the CMU Robotics Institute to study how robotic platforms would perform on the battlefield for the U.S. Army.

In March, ground was broken for a new building at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Craig Street in Oakland, for which RAND will be the major tenant. Balmat said that the organization is expected to grow to 200 employees in the Pittsburgh office. The local office, like those in Santa Monica and Washington, is focused primarily on research for the federal government, often in matters of national security. However, some topics of local interest have included a study of a potential city-county consolidation, work in support of emergency preparedness, and a study of the Pittsburgh public school system.

Balmat said that opening an office in Pittsburgh was a good decision.

"We've been very happy with the decision," he said. "We've been well-received at all levels -- business, academic, foundation  -- and we've found good work to do." Balmat said RAND has had good success in recruiting new employees, as well as retaining those who transferred to Pittsburgh. And personally, Balmat said he's enjoyed the change of pace from the Los Angeles area.

"I like it a lot," he said. "It's a more manageable type of place. It's easy to get to things Downtown, and not only can you get to them, you can actually get tickets. We're very happy here."

"It's unfortunate that more people in the country aren't exposed to Pittsburgh," he said. "The people are terrific here."

Susan Jacobs for Sustainable Pittsburgh