Jena

Jena is the leading high-tech location in central Germany, featuring innovative companies in a variety of growth sectors and top-tier research institutions. Multinational corporations such as Zeiss, Schott and Jenoptik have a major influence on the city, along with Jena’s two large universities and a number of federal and regional research centres, including branches of the Max Planck Society, the Fraunhofer Society, the Leibniz Society and the Institute of Photonic Technology. Highly innovative small and medium-sized businesses with global connections complement Jena’s technology portfolio.

About 50,000 of the city’s 105,000 residents are employed, making a positive economic impact, and Jena’s export quota is about 50%. In addition to the traditional optical technologies, Jena’s most important areas of expertise are in medical technology, software and e-commerce, analytics and bio-analytics, the pharmaceutical and biotechnological industries, precision engineering and photovoltaics/green technologies.

The city is also home to approximately 25,000 students, and the close cooperation between science and the local economy has been one of the strategic factors in Jena’s success. As a result this strategy, some 25% of employees hold a university degree and there is a growing immigration of skilled people. Meanwhile, the ability to provide a family-friendly environment both at public and private level has enabled Jena to exceed the national average of 8.1 with 10.6 births per 1,000 inhabitants (2011). However, as with other cities whose economy and specialisation is linked to health and the medical sciences, the ability to attract and to retain skilled staff remains a constant challenge.