
It placed ahead of Germany, France and Japan. Switzerland was rated first, ahead of Singapore, USA, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark. In a similar ranking for cities, Vienna was rated 15th out of 90 cities which were evaluated.
The authors of the study measured competitiveness for global talents on the basis of six criteria: regulatory conditions, quality of life, professional and technical skills, know-how, growth (e.g. formal education) and attractiveness (external and internal publics). Austria ranked particularly high with respect to political stability (7th), research and development expenditures (7th) and active labor market policies (6th) as well as with respect to its social security system (6th), social insurance (7th) and talents with intermediate skills, especially technicians (6th). Austria was rated first globally with regard to the subitem of lifestyle habits.