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“Orlando
is a great business location for SAIC because of the synergies
among the military services (our customers), the business
community and the University of Central Florida, which all work together
to generate success in the high tech domain. What I like best about
the region is that here, more than anywhere I have lived there is
a sense of community. There are so many great people who are willing
to get together and help each other both on a business and on a personal
level.” |
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— Beverly
Seay, senior vice president
business unit general manager, SAIC
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"Central
Florida offers a wide variety of recruitment options for diverse
skills sets. We partner with local educational institutions,
Workforce Central Florida, local employment council career fairs
and other traditional means to attract talent. We have had no
major problems filling the several hundred positions we have
recruited for over the last few years We found it was critical
to ensure that we were offering a competitive compensation and
benefits package to attract candidates in this market." |
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— Holly
Faries, quality assurance manager
CuraScript Specialty Distribution |
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Over
the past 24 years I have been the VP of Human Resources for large
employers here in Central Florida. In that time we have recruited
thousands of people predominately in the publishing and technology
areas. Over the years the concerns of long ago seem to persist
as myths long after their demise. Let me address the dominant
ones.
Myth: You cannot find qualified candidates, it is an unskilled workforce.
Reality: There has been and continues to be an influx of people with
professional, technical and scientific skill sets.
Myth: Central Florida is all theme parks and low wage jobs.
Reality: The diversity of the industries and the available workforce
has increased dramatically over the years.
Myth: The school system is poor quality.
Reality: The influx of professional people brought with it parents who
highly value education and demanded that the schools be upgraded.
There are also more options from which to choose.
Myth: It is difficult to attract skilled professionals to Central
Florida.
Reality: Work location is one of the strongest selling points when recruiting.
The east coast population still “drains” toward
the South.
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— Jim
Brescia, vice president, human resources
SunGard HTE, Inc. |
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"The
success of Accent Marketing has been the result of our ongoing
team effort
with the Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission.
Our membership and continued support of that organization has many
times over paid for itself, not only in revenue to the city but also
in the many jobs for our residents." |
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— Alton
Roane, director of development services
City of Eustis, Lake County |
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“Bank
of New York’s original plan was to have 300 people located
in Central Florida. We opened our first office here with two
business units three months before the 9/11 tragedy. Two more
business units moved here as a direct result of 9/11. Additional
units commenced operations here after seeing the success of
the others. Now we have a total of nine Orlando business units
with about 750 employees, and growing.”
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— Joe
Brady, vice president/mutual fund accounting group
The Bank
of New York
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“Orlando
and Orange County are wonderfully positioned in the global
economy. You are one of the world's greatest travel destinations.
You have such a young population. You have economic diversity,
including all the high tech start-ups. You have a great climate.
In short, the Orlando area is extremely well-positioned for
this new millennium.” |
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— John
Naisbitt,
author
Megatrends |
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“We applaud the Metro Orlando EDC’s hard work and perseverance,
for they have helped create an environment in which we can continue
to hire outstanding local talent who can help us make great games.
We’ve always loved this area, and now, with the combined support
from state government, local business and academic institutions,
we can build the infrastructure needed to sustain our rate of growth
here. We appreciate the State of Florida and the University of Central
Florida’s commitment to videogame development and thank
them for their ongoing support of EA in Central Florida.” |
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— Steven
Chiang, vice president and studio general manager
Electronic
Arts Tiburon |
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"I
could base Dynetech anywhere, but the quality of life for my
family is very important. And, frankly, this area just isn't
subject to the economic downturns that most areas go through.
While tourism/hospitality
play a large role, the real story is its highly energetic economic
environment. Orlando attracts so many highly trained people that
I've only had to hire two people from outside the area. Not many
places can offer all of that." |
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— Larry
Pino, chairman and CEO
Dynetech Corporation |
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“The
factor for us was our recruiting ability in Orlando. We just
felt the
opportunity to recruit people was a bit stronger
here with such a well-educated work force. Orlando is also a multiethnic,
multinational area, which is helpful in recruiting a bilingual staff.” |
— Jorge
Tovar, director
Adelphia’s National Sales Center |
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“There
is an immense brain trust in Metro Orlando for the digital
media industry that is hard to find anywhere else.” |
— Bob
Allen, CEO
i.d.e.a.s.
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"We
have a critical mass of businesses in simulation and related
technologies in Metro Orlando and a world-class university
that provides a ready
population of well-trained employees. We have everything here
that a business needs for success." |
— Russ
Hauck, director
National Center for Simulation |
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"In
deciding to locate our headquarters and service center in Metro
Orlando, we found that the region can easily support corporate
and manufacturing operations not only through solid infrastructure
and transportation systems, but through a workforce that is
young, literate and eager to hold a good job." |
— Hector
Ponce, EVP
Mitsubishi Power Systems, Inc |
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“Orlando
is a natural fit for our needs; among other things, it has great
weather, things for our students to do while they’re here
in training, a cooperative business climate, and land.” |
— Mike
Barger, chief learning officer
JetBlue Airways |
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"Metro
Orlando offers many strengths to the aviation and aerospace industry — an
abundance of land available adjacent to runways for hangars,
maintenance, air cargo, and other aviation related facilities;
ample supply
of power and recycled water capabilities for manufacturing
facilities; and a world-class simulation and training cluster.
This industry
will only continue to grow here." |
— Jim
Laria, aviation consultant |
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"Because
Photonics is an enabling technology, enhancing most other high
tech sectors, as well as growing its own sector, it will continue
to see significant steady growth and have a major impact on
savings in most industries." |
—Dr.
James Pearson, director of research and administration
UCF College of Optics and Photonics |
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”Metro
Orlando provides a strong center of support for research and
advances in the fields of biotechnology and life science at
all levels,
from academic to corporate. Some of the world’s most
leading-edge work is being conducted here in our research centers
by an interdisciplinary
community of academics, post-graduates and undergraduates to
revolutionize medicine and greatly improve the human condition.” |
— Dr.
Pappachan E. Kolattukudy, professor and director
UCF Biomolecular Science Center and Chair |
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“There
is an aggressive and enabling atmosphere in the Metro Orlando
area for high-tech companies and new research, which make it
an ideal
locale for the energy and alternative fuels industry.” |
— Dr.
Robert Stonerock, Jr.
Clean Power Engineering Company |
