Central Ohio Attracting and Retaining In-Demand Technology Professionals
The Columbus Chamber of Commerce seeing Central Ohio draw top talent in high-demand fields from across the country.
Columbus, Ohio (PRWEB) February 26, 2009
To most Columbus residents, the idea of young, talented college graduates completing their education and moving to a "big city" is nothing unusual. However, a representative from the Columbus Chamber of Commerce believes that this trend is no longer an accurate representation of Ohio's capital. The fact is, Columbus has become a "big city" itself. The 15th largest city in the nation, Columbus is among the "10 best cities to do business (http://www. columbus. org/media-center/)," according to major publications.
Columbus has been home to The Ohio State University since 1870, which is currently the largest university by enrollment in the US. And the state's capital has been the largest city in Ohio since the early 1980s.
"We're seeing more students stay in Columbus after graduating, and more professionals relocating to Columbus from other parts of the country," said Jamie Timm, Director of Marketing and Communications for the Columbus Chamber of Commerce. "Columbus is home to established companies like Limited Brands, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Big Lots Inc., and Nationwide Insurance. In addition to these corporations, we're also a center for innovative startups and have one of the nation's most vibrant technology sectors," she added.
"Technology jobs are key in attracting and retaining young, talented professionals to Columbus," Timm said. "It used to be that young professionals would need to look to New York or Chicago in order to find jobs which focused on creativity and technology skills. However, Columbus is now able to compete with the coasts with the recent boom of technology companies which have either been created in Columbus or relocated here."
Companies such as interactive marketing agency (http://www. webbedmarketing. com/), Webbed Marketing, have played a large role in re-shaping the way that Columbus is perceived. Webbed Marketing was founded in Columbus in late 2006. In two short years the company has grown to one of the most successful interactive marketing agencies in the Midwest and is serving the online marketing (http://blog. webbedmarketing. com/) needs of more than 60 clients across the US and Europe.
"We're competing on business from large international corporations, going against some much larger agencies, and we're winning that business," Chief Operating Officer Amy Marshall of Webbed Marketing, said.
"Interactive agencies provide a wide range of employment options to young professionals that are all linked through technology," she added. "Webbed Marketing has search engine optimization (http://www. webbedmarketing. com/searchengineoptimization. html) professionals, online advertising managers and web copywriters using some of the most innovative technology and processes in our industry."
Marshall said the company is a case study in attracting and retaining talent. She highlighted several of Webbed Marketing's newest team members as examples. "We are proud of new employees like Courtney Cooper, a social media (http://www. webbedmarketing. com/socialmedia. html) marketing professional who most recently worked in London, England building relationships with online influencers for a new product line. She has a solid education, an agency background and great corporate experience. Her family is in Ohio, but she thought she would have to look to London, New York or Los Angeles for a job in social media marketing. We were able to offer her an exciting challenging position on par with what any city could offer, and she could stay right here in Ohio."
"We also continue to grow our search engine optimization and marketing team by recruiting the best professionals we can find -- no matter where they are located," she said. "Sebastian St. John, a recent addition to Webbed Marketing's search team, came to us from Los Angeles and worked in Yahoo!'s pay per click (http://www. webbedmarketing. com/searchenginemarketing. html) program for four years."
"I wanted to stay active in the search engine optimization and marketing world, but my family is here in Ohio," St. John said. "I was pleasantly surprised to find a company like Webbed Marketing in Ohio and discover just how vibrant the technology and social scene is here in Columbus. It's great to be back."
"It's great to see experienced, talented professionals in areas like search and social media, who have the skills and resume to work anywhere in the world, be part of Columbus," Timm said.
About The Chamber:
Led by a 35-member board of directors (http://www. columbus. org/about-the-chamber/board-of-directors. php) composed of the region's business elite, the Columbus Chamber of Commerce has more than 2,500 members. They include Fortune 500 giants Cardinal Health, Nationwide, Limited Brands and American Electric Power, as well as Big Lots Inc., the headquarters of Battelle (the world's largest private research institution) and hundreds of the region's most innovative and entrepreneurial small businesses. The Columbus Chamber leads and supports economic growth and development for the Greater Columbus community. Learn more at www. columbus. org/ (http://www. columbus. org/).
About Webbed Marketing:
Webbed Marketing is a team of experts in the Internet marketing field. Their goal is to grow businesses through the application of internet resources. The firm specializes in search engine optimization and marketing, as well as viral marketing services, word of mouth and buzz measurement and social media strategies. Visit www. webbedmarketing. com for more information.
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