For all the talk about the technology industries in Boise, what I see as Idaho’s biggest advantage doesn’t seem to get enough press.
I think the biggest advantage Idaho has is that people want to live here. Good, smart people all over the country who know about all the lifestyle advantages Idaho has to offer would jump at the opportunity to move to Idaho — if only there was a job for them here.
This is a pattern I’ve noticed while living out of state, and while living here. When I would mention Idaho to other engineers I worked with, frequently the response is a great deal of excitement. Some of the best technical people in the country are also very interested in the world around them. They are into cycling, skiing, boating, hiking, camping and all sorts of things we take for granted here. Many of them have families, and would love to get out of big cities and live in a ‘family friendly’ area like this.
So while we may not have a huge supply of technology workers here to entice a large tech company, I wish the state would do more to promote the lifestyle benefits of Idaho (and specifically the Treasure Valley) to companies they are trying to attract. The modern business environment is one increasingly employee focused, and a company located here can and should use these natural resources as a recruiting tool. Back in the dotcom era I helped recruit college kids, and they were interested in more than just the job they’d be working on and how much they would make. They wanted to know about the culture of the city they would move to. They wanted to know what the crime stats were. I wasn’t trying to recruit them to Boise, but my job would have been much easier if I had.
My point is that promoting Idaho in general is good for the tech sector also. Promoting tourism in Idaho should have a secondary effect of bringing more interest in technology companies moving here.
I’d be really interested to hear the experiences of companies who are in Idaho recruiting technology professionals. Do you feel that ‘Idaho’ one of Idaho’s biggest tech advantages?
Update: Check out Ken Dey’s first post over at TechBoise, I think it’s relevant…
June 24th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
Hey Kevin – first, welcome to the blogosphere! It really is a great way to get some thoughts out of your head and see what others are kicking around on the same subject.
In terms of your specific blog above, here at Balihoo we certainly view the Boise/Idaho lifestyle as one of our key recruiting messages. We’ve made an explicit effort to include this mentality into the culture, the overall fabric of our company, and we take signficant steps to ensure prospective employees are aware of this.
One of the things we’ve noticed is that while it can be tough to recruit out-of-staters who are unfamiliar with the area, once you’ve recruited someone they’re typically with you for the long haul. While this may be a case of fewer opportunties to leave for in the immediate area, we like to think it’s a result of recruiting solid, passionate people as a result of the lifestyle and the culture here.
Bottom-line – having a business in Boise should be an ADVANTAGE to your recruiting efforts, especially if your company is organized to capitalize on the benefits we have here.
Shane