Minnesota Tops List Of Fastest-Growing Tech States

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A new list says that the Land of 10,000 Lakes is adding technology jobs faster than any other state.

The list produced by Dice.com, a leading tech job posting site, says that Minnesota companies have been hiring tech workers rapidly over the last six months, causing the state's tech workforce to jump 8.36 percent to a total of 37,600 people.

In an article on the list, Forbes.com pointed out that Minnesota is known as "Medical Alley," because it's home to companies like Medtronic, St. Jude Medical and Boston Scientific, all of which have "armies of tech workers." The state also has several major corporations, including Target, General Mills, 3M, and U.S. Bank, and they, too, have legions of tech workers.

The state to take the second spot on the list might also come as a surprise. It wasn't California, New York or Texas; it was Utah. That western state saw its tech workforce jump by 5.75 percent, as its major cities all employ a hefty amount of high tech workers.

California -- home to Apple, Google and all sorts of massive tech companies – came in 10th, while New York snagged the seventh slot.

Washington – home to Microsoft and Valve – saw its tech workforce decline, and didn't even make the list.