Where should I grow my company? (university, pros and cons, salary)

[flco]

Thanks everyone, this is some really great feedback - extremely helpful!

Please do keep the comments rolling, both pros and cons.

Thanks!

[Cardiff by the Sea]

See. You are getting a taste of what makes Sarasota so great. The people in Sarasota are really NICE, common sense smart, friendly, and helpful.

[blondeFatChick]

As a business person, I never subscribe to the notion of "if you build it, they will come".


That's folly, and dangerous. You must do the research as to what is "on the ground" now. That means looking at the currently available educated labor pool. That doesn't favor Sarasota-Manatee. It favors places such as Tampa/Brandon/South Hillsborough.


All demographics change over time. Sarasota-Manatee is no different, but the current levels of available, employable workers in those ancillary fields don't match up well with the levels in Hillsborough County (Tampa MSA). But again, things are changing.


I will say however that Manatee County (southern Manatee) is far more business friendly (in re manufacturing, large service organizations etc) than anything in Sarasota County and in The City of Sarasota. In fact, I would avoid Sarasota County in toto in favor of Manatee (e.g. along the I75 corridor-LWR north etc).


Manatee County is a good choice, but so are lots of other counties in Florida that have better access to transportation, distribution, networking etc.


And, so what if Miami is LATIN (as if that's a negative) - there are lots of places in Florida that are LATIN and not lily-white, which may come as a shock to CARDIFF who uttered such nonsense. The business community in and around Tampa and Miami and Orlando is also very much influenced by LATINs - so is the influence right here in SARASOTA probably much to the chagrin of sneaky white racists. The world has changed, and continues to evolve in the look and cultures of the workforce, client-base and community.

[Cardiff by the Sea]

Originally Posted by blondeFatChick

And, so what if Miami is LATIN (as if that's a negative)

Point well taken. I did not mean that to be negative, just descriptive, but I can see how it came across as a negative since it followed 3 negatives. I was more thinking of the wealth from South America that is migrating there and how it is a more international city. The comment was meant as an elaboration of the culture of each part of Florida with the west having a midwestern culture, the east having a northeastern culture, and Miami having a Latin culture.

[Sunshine Rules]

When looking into the Sarasota area, I would also suggest checking Bradenton/ Manatee, immediately north of Sarasota, as well.

Last year the residents of Manatee county approved a referendum to allow county commissioners to offer tax incentives to businesses that relocate to Manatee county.

Business tax incentives win voter approval in Manatee | Elections | Bradenton Herald

[kmarc]

Originally Posted by flco

Thanks everyone, this is some really great feedback - extremely helpful!

Please do keep the comments rolling, both pros and cons.

Thanks!

Very interesting that you've written this, because Sarasota seems to have a bit of a tech/internet services corridor, although it's sort of developed quietly. Which means there are places you can probably raid for talent. Also some start-up, entrepreneurial type businesses. I found this out on my own when I was looking for work myself and was very pleasantly surprised. I think you would do well there, especially if you're willing to pay just a tad more than some of the other companies in the area.

Y'all come!

[sware2cod]

Originally Posted by kmarc

Very interesting that you've written this, because Sarasota seems to have a bit of a tech/internet services corridor, although it's sort of developed quietly. Which means there are places you can probably raid for talent. Also some start-up, entrepreneurial type businesses. I found this out on my own when I was looking for work myself and was very pleasantly surprised. I think you would do well there, especially if you're willing to pay just a tad more than some of the other companies in the area.

Y'all come!

Yes. There are quite a few smaller tech companies in the Sarasota/Bradenton area. Many newer ones over the past few years.

Jacksonville area also has a very healthy tech market...actually bigger than Sarasota.

[flco]

The debate is heating up a bit - @blondeFatChick, fair points. It would be interesting to hear from you where you think the top 1-2 locations in Florida might be considering our model and the talent pool we need if we set aside Sarasota for a moment? We are not against Miami at all, for example, although our instinct is that somewhere like Sarasota or possibly Tampa might be a better fit - we could be totally wrong here.

@kmarc, thanks for the perspective - can you elaborate a bit further? I know it's hard to pin down, but I'm trying to get a sense of the size of the growing tech community.. meaning, is it a single cluster of 2-3 companies and 50 people and growing, or several times larger than this? We need an interesting mixture of tech/developer talent and young sales and support talent - a growing tech vibe and culture would be ideal if it is just large enough, if that makes sense?

Thanks!

[Cardiff by the Sea]

I have a serious question for you. Is it difficult to get the kind of talent you are looking for?

The news is filled with stories about college graduates with big student loans who are having difficulty finding jobs commensurate with their education.

If you were seeking experienced people in a specialty area, I would understand the big concern. But new graduates who are not tied to a location.... I just don't get it.

While 200 jobs is a lot, but I thought most skilled jobs were getting 200 applicants per job.

Internet business is pretty vague. What is it that you need specifically and why is the existing talent pool on the ground so important to you?

Also is transportation and distribution important to you?

[macyny]

I find this post hard to believe.

A growing business in the Northeast finds it hard to find skilled IT people???? Why would anyone think there would be a larger pool of skilled IT people in Florida?

The whole thing sounds fishy to me. I'm not buying it.