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PERIMETER BUSINESS
Q&A on tech jobs: 'An ideal location to draw from high-tech talent'
The mobile device management company AirWatch
was founded in 2003. The Sandy Springs-based compa
ny now claims more than 3,000 customers in retail, fi
nancial services, healthcare, government, distribution,
education, hospitality, manufacturing, telecommunica
tions and transportation.
AirWatch Chairman Alan Dabbiere joined the com
pany in 2006. Before that, Dabbiere founded Manhat
tan Associates, a supply-chain executive software com
pany that went public in 1998. Ernst & Young named
him the Southeast Industry Entrepreneur of the Year
in 1999.
On Jan. 25, AirWatch announced that over the next
six months, it planned to add about 800 jobs, most of
them at its Sandy Springs headquarters.
Reporter Newspapers posed some questions to Dab
biere about AirWatch and its growth and high-tech
businesses in the Perimeter area.
Q Wliat convinced you to locate AirWatcli in
Sandy Springs and the Perimeter area?
/\ AirWatch is a fast-growing business in mobile se-
'* curity and management. Our customers can be
every business that uses a phone, from five to 100,000
mobile devices. Given this rapid growth and opportu
nity, Sandy Springs is an area where we can attract tech
nology talent from the greater Atlanta area.
Q AirWatch has grown from 150 employees to
1,000 employees in about two years, with
about 650 of your employees located in Sandy
Alan Dabbiere, chairman of AirWatch
“We find the Georgia business
climate, with the continual support
from the governor, the city and
the Metro Atlanta Chamber of
Commerce, a huge competitive
advantage for our growth strategy.”
Springs. How many employees do you think Air
Watch will have working in Sandy Springs and
worldwide in five years, or 10 years?
/\ With our rapid growth, we expect we could dou-
' * ble our employment in the next year to over
1,000 employees. In five to 10 years, we could grow to
3,000 to 5,000 employees in the area.
Q What does the Perimeter area have to offer to
high-tech businesses? What does the area need
in order to attract more high-tech businesses?
/\ The area offers a friendly business climate and an
'* ideal location to draw from the high-tech talent
that resides everywhere from the northern suburbs to
the downtown city area. The MARTA station makes it
easy for commuters, and, to some extent, proofs us
against future congestion.
Q What s the biggest hurdle your company faces
at present?
/\ Expanding our employee base at more than 100
'* percent year-over-year growth creates good chal
lenges. We have to be flexible in terms of management
of growth, facilities, training and hiring the workforce.
Q During the recent press conference at your
headquarters, you called Georgia “the kind of
place you want to build a company” and said you
might not have been able to build your business as
effectively elsewhere. Why is that?
/\ Georgia has such a high quality of work force.
'* Their loyalty to companies, combined with a cos
mopolitan city environment where you can recruit
from anywhere in the world, creates the perfect situa
tion. The Atlanta airport allows employees and custom
ers to travel anywhere in the world, which can’t be beat.
We find the Georgia business climate, with the contin
ual support from the governor, the city and the Metro
Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, a huge competitive
advantage for our growth strategy.
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8 | FEB.22 —MARCH7,2013 | www.ReporterNewspapers.net
