NH Business: Technology companies in New Hampshire
Host Fred Kocher is joined by Julie Demers to discuss New Hampshire’s growing tech industry
BUSINESS. I’M TRYING, FRIEND. CONQUER NEW HAMPSHIRE’S TECHNOLOGY COMPANIES ARE AMONG THE MOST INNOVATIVE AND CUTTING EDGE COMPANIES OF THAT TYPE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE’S HISTORY. THEY’RE INTO THINGS LIKE SETTING LIGHTS, SELF-DRIVING CARS, SMART PHONES AND 3-D MANUFACTURING. AND MY GUEST WILL TALK ABOUT THAT IN A MINUTE. BUT FIRST, HERE ARE THE NUMBERS FOR THE TECH INDUSTRY. CONTRIBUTES 11.12 BILLION TO NEW HAMPSHIRE’S GDP EMPLOYS NEARLY 72,000 PEOPLE. SOFTWARE AND SOFTWARE SERVICES COUNT THE MOST JOBS. BIOTECH AND BIOMEDICAL ALONE COUNTS 200 PLUS COMPANIES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. DENVER’S US QUOTE FROM THE NEW HAMPSHIRE CENTER FOR PUBLIC POLICY THAT SAYS THE TECH SECTOR IS THE STRONGEST ENGINE OF ECONOMIC ACTIVITY IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. AND THIS QUOTE FROM MY GUEST. AND IS NEW HAMPSHIRE BUSINESS REVIEW ARTICLE QUOTE, JEFF BEZOS AND RICHARD BRANSON AREN’T LAUNCHING ROCKETS OUT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. HOWEVER, THOSE BILLIONAIRES AREN’T GOING FAR WITHOUT COMPANIES LIKE NEW HAMPSHIRE BORN ROGUES, SPACE SYSTEMS, ROGUE DESIGN, SATELLITE VEHICLES, AND SUBSYSTEMS TO PROVIDE ON ORBIT SERVICE LIKE UPGRADE REPAIRS AND SO FORTH. AND THE PERSON WHO SAID THAT I WROTE THAT IS JULIE DEMERS, WHO IS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE TECH ALLIANCE. WELCOME. NICE TO HAVE YOU HERE. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME. BEFORE WE TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF THESE AMAZING COMPANIES, WHAT’S THE BIGGEST ISSUE FACING YOUR MEMBERS RIGHT NOW IN NEW HAMPSHIRE? YEAH, SO WORKFORCE HAS BEEN AND CONTINUES TO BE THE BIGGEST ISSUE FACING NEW HAMPSHIRE COMPANIES. AND I THINK WE’RE GOING TO SEE A CONTINUATION OF THAT BECAUSE TO YOUR POINT, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT STAFFING AND LOOKING AT TALENT PIPELINES FOR EMERGING INDUSTRIES THAT DON’T EVEN EXIST YET. RIGHT. WE’RE TRYING TO TRAIN THE NEXT GENERATION OF TALENT FOR ROLES THAT SEEM LIKE SOMETHING OUT OF THE JETSONS. YEAH, YOU HAVE. IT’S INTERESTING. JUST A SIDE NOTE, I’VE NOTICED DURING THE PANDEMIC THAT TECH COMPANIES WHERE THE WHERE THE EASIEST TO WORK REMOTELY RATHER THAN OTHER COMPANIES BECAUSE THEY HAD THE TECHNOLOGY. JUST TO COMMENT, YOU HAVE SOME NEXT GENERATION TECH COMPANIES THAT ARE ON THE CUTTING EDGE. I’M THINKING OF THOSE THAT WERE IN YOUR ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD THIS PAST YEAR, LIKE MAINE STATE TECHNOLOGIES IN MANCHESTER, FOR INSTANCE. MAINSTAY TECHNOLOGIES IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF OUR MEMBERSHIP AND ALSO TYPES OF TECHNOLOGY COMPANIES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. THEY HAVE SUCH A STEADFAST COMMITMENT TO CREATING A REALLY POSITIVE CULTURE AND GROWING, AND THEY DO WHAT THEY DO MANAGE IT SYSTEMS. RIGHT. YEAH. OUTSOURCED I.T. FOR FOUR COMPANIES. SO THEY’RE ALSO HELPING OTHER COMPANIES SCALE AND GROW. AND THEY’RE JUST A SHINING EXAMPLE OF A NEW HAMPSHIRE COMPANY THAT’S DEDICATED TO THE CULTURE, TO THEIR EMPLOYEES, AND THE GRANITE STATE ITSELF. WHAT OTHER ONE? WHAT OTHER COMPANY COMES TO MIND? YEAH, THIS IS THE BEST PART OF MY JOB IS GETTING TO KNOW AND GETTING TO PEEK BEHIND THE CURTAIN OF SOME OF THE TECHNOLOGIES THAT ARE COMING OUT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. RECENTLY, WE TOURED MICROS TECHNOLOGIES UP IN CLAREMONT. SO WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THESE COMPANIES THAT ARE SUPPORTING THE LARGER COMPANIES, MICROSOFT CREATES LIQUID COOLING SYSTEMS FOR MICROCHIPS THAT ALLOW THINGS LIKE A AI, AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES, LASERS. THEY’RE WORKING WITH GROUPS LIKE NASCAR. SO THEY ALLOW THOSE TECHNOLOGIES TO ADVANCE BY PROVIDING THAT BACKEND SUPPORT. WOW. I KNOW ANOTHER OF YOUR FOCUSED AS AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, YOU HAVE TO LOOK AT THE LEGISLATURE AND CONCORD TO SEE WHAT THEY’RE DOING. WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT UP THERE? YEAH, SO WE’RE PAYING ATTENTION TO ANY LEGISLATION THAT COULD HAVE A POTENTIAL IMPACT ON WORKFORCE WRITE WORKFORCE HOUSING. AND WE ALSO TRY TO BE THE CONNECTIVE TISSUE BETWEEN OUR MEMBERS CONCORD AND THEN SOME OF OTHER OUR OTHER STAKEHOLDERS, LIKE HIGHER ED PARTNERS IN THE STATE TO DO INFORMATION SHARING BOTH WAYS. LET THEM KNOW WHEN THEY NEED TO BE PAYING ATTENTION TO SOMETHING AND WHEN CONCORD NEEDS TO BE IN FORMED. ON WHAT TECHNOLOGIES ARE BEING DEVELOPED HERE. AND RATHER SORT OF GUIDED THROUGH. NOW MEETING WHAT THOSE TECHNOLOGIES ARE. THAT’S WHERE WE COME IN AND CAN CAN BE A CONDUIT. QUICK ELEVATOR SPEECH. YES. ON WHY A COMPANY OR A GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS OUGHT TO LOOK AT NEW HAMPSHIRE TO ESTABLISH A TECH COMPANY RATHER THAN SOMEWHERE ELSE. THAT’S A VERY EASY ONE. AND IT’S ACCESS. I DON’T THINK THERE’S ANOTHER STATE IN THE COUNTRY THAT PROVIDES THE LEVEL OF ACCESS TO KEY DECISION MAKERS, OTHER CEOS AND PEERS LIKE THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. SO AT ANY GIVEN TIME, YOU CAN BE IN CONTACT WITH WHO YOU NEED TO BE TO MOVE SOMETHING FORWARD. AND IN ADDITION TO THAT, THERE’S THE IDEA OF ACCESS AS A COMMUNITY AND THEN ACCESS TO TALENT, BECAUSE WE ARE RIGHT FOR BOSTON. JULIE, TOMORROW’S EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE TECH ALLIANCE. THANK YOU. AND IF YOU MISSED PART OF HER BRIEFING, YOU CAN GO T
NH Business: Technology companies in New Hampshire
Host Fred Kocher is joined by Julie Demers to discuss New Hampshire’s growing tech industry
Updated: 7:40 AM EST Feb 5, 2023
New Hampshire may not be the biggest state, but its technological prowess can be felt throughout the country. According to Julie Demers, executive director of the NH Tech Alliance, the tech industry is, “the strongest engine of economic activity in New Hampshire.”On the latest installment of NH Business, Demers sits down with host Fred Kocher to discuss what makes New Hampshire’s tech industry so unique.
New Hampshire may not be the biggest state, but its technological prowess can be felt throughout the country. According to Julie Demers, executive director of the NH Tech Alliance, the tech industry is, “the strongest engine of economic activity in New Hampshire.”
On the latest installment of NH Business, Demers sits down with host Fred Kocher to discuss what makes New Hampshire’s tech industry so unique.
