Human progress depends not only on a handful of exceptional individuals with breakthrough ideas, but on the broader array of people who help realize those ideas by keeping the engines running and greasing the wheels of innovation. An essential ingredient in this mix is migration, the blend of talent that populations drawn from beyond a country’s borders can provide—a combination of brain power and brawn, genius and common sense, and expertise and fresh perspectives. Countries and cities that optimize their migration mix for economic potential can reap significant competitive advantage, now and in the decades ahead.

In this article, excerpted from the full report, we present a three-factor framework that public leaders can use to stimulate economic growth through migration policy. BCG’s Global Talent Migration Index (GTMix) describes the elements of a winning migration mix—one that correlates squarely with greater productivity and innovation, as well as with public acceptance of immigrant workers. This novel, research-backed framework can help policymakers understand the current state of their migration mix, benchmark their standing relative to other countries, and ultimately design policies that will make their economy more vibrant, more innovative, and more resilient.