LAU RIE PEARMAN
Chris Blanchard of TechBoise, is working to bring people together through technology.
Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce—to attract companies and talent from around the country and the world. “The mayor does go out and do business visits once a month,” Gassner said. “That can range from [visiting with] manufacturers and tech companies to health companies. We are also in contact with HP and Micron. We talk to large companies and small companies and across the sectors.” The city partners well with the state, and someone hoping to move or start headquarters in Boise will receive information on state and property taxes, including incentives and exemptions. But regardless of how much money a company may potentially save by moving to Boise, corporations like Microsoft are not likely to up and move their headquarters here. They might, however, be looking for a place where they can open a branch or a group of offices where the people who will manage those offices will want to live. “We have two different sets of information we present to these companies [considering Boise],” Gassner said. “One is the business case, what they can achieve in real estate and labor and taxes. Then on the personal side, what they will see in this community. It’s a community that cares about each other, we have one of the best park systems in the West if not the whole country, we have a true commitment to the environment, lower cost of residential real estate.” In the 25 percent of outside businesses Gassner spends her time talking to, the majority of them have 50 to 100 employees— companies considered small in other markets but relatively large here. They are businesses that are probably going strong and may be poised to grow even larger, and by moving to Boise, those tax incentives and a lower cost of living may make that expansion easier. Ultimately, however, the commodity Gassner and Brunelle are dealing with is people. “A big part of what we do every day is to connect people,” Gassner said. “It’s one of the best services we provide and it’s free. Getting companies talking to each other and learning about each other is really helpful.” Idaho TechConnect is another organization, albeit not a governmental one, that is also in the business of connecting people. The statewide nonprofit links people with other people and a large number of services. “We help people who have an idea make it a reality, make it a business, make it a product, whatever it is. We focus on business and technology. We’re a service provider. We work with small business and we like to say we turn Idaho ideas into Idaho businesses,” said Krissa Wrigley, vice president of WWW.BOISEWEEKLY.COM
research and evaluation for ITC. Each year, ITC holds an event called Tech Launch in conjunction with the Idaho National Lab and the Idaho Economic Development Association, as well as other private and public entities. The purpose of the event to is to gather university students with science and technology companies, government agencies, economic development professionals and business investors. “It’s a friendly face environment for them to get up and talk about what they’re doing and get feedback from everyone,” Wrigley said. “We coach them through [starting a business].” In the six years since ITC’s inception, Tech Launch has helped 39 companies raise more than $37 million in investment capital and for research and development. ITC welcomes anyone, but the focus is on innovation and technology. “We have an open door policy here,” Wrigley said. “But if someone wants to open a cupcake shop, we’ll probably point them to in the direction of the Small Business Development Administration.” But they don’t just help with funding. ITC also assists start-ups with prototyping, accessing the universities and the Idaho National Lab, obtaining equipment and even helping would-be business owners prepare investor pitches, regardless of whether they’re pitching to an angel investor, a venture capitalist or a best friend or brother. ITC also helps with market research, a complicated but vital component of a small high-tech business. “Sometimes someone will come in and say, ‘It’s a $10-billion market and I’m going after 1 percent.’ We tell them that’s great, but that’s probably not going to happen. We help them hone it down and find out exactly who their customer is.” The mayor’s office and ITC can provide valuable resources to local start-ups or tech companies looking to expand, but is that enough to retain the tech talent that’s already here? Or more importantly, encourage outside innovators to come to Boise? James Hepworth doesn’t think so. Hepworth is co-founder of MarkMonitor and chief technology officer for First to File. Hepworth is a tech person who moved to Boise in 1989, and he believes that, from a technology standpoint, Boise is at an “inflection point.” “There are a lot of people here who will probably not stay here,” Hepworth said. “I think Idaho will suffer greatly in the next five to seven years if somebody doesn’t do something dramatic. My view is probably a lot different than what people like to talk about.” Hepworth doesn’t think Boise is in a
BOISEweekly
| SEPTEMBER 2–8, 2009 | 13