New Zealand has ranked 11th in a global index of talent competitiveness.

The report, which covers 125 national economies and 114 cities, focuses on entrepreneurial talent and how it is encouraged, nurtured and developed.

While Switzerland, Singapore and the United States continue to lead the world in talent competitiveness, countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa are seeing a progressive erosion of their talent base, the report revealed.

Talent issues have become a significant concern for firms, nations and cities, with talent performance seen as a critical factor to growth and prosperity.

According to the Global Competitiveness Index, cities, rather than countries, are developing stronger roles as talent hubs and will be crucial to reshaping the global talent scene.

The growing importance of cities is due to their greater flexibility and ability to adapt to new trends and patterns – as nimble economic units where policy can be changed more swiftly, cities are thus more attractive for talent, especially entrepreneurial talent.

The top-ranked city in this year’s list is Washington, DC, followed by Copenhagen, Oslo, Vienna and Zurich

“As the world of work rapidly changes, there is a danger that if countries and cities do not have the right conditions for attracting talent, people and businesses will move away and look for opportunities elsewhere,” said Alain Dehaze, Adecco Group CEO.

“The results of this year’s GTCI report are further evidence of how entrepreneurial talent is being increasingly seen as one way of successfully navigating a world in constant flux. Nurturing it is a vital part of creating the right environment for talent to flourish and to lay the seeds for success in the future.”