SoCal Is Winning the Tech Game

LOS ANGELES—Southern California is producing more tech talent than any other US market, according to a new report from JLL. The Southern California market has more than 76,000 students currently enrolled in engineering undergraduate programs at universities and approximately 11,000 in graduate programs. For undergraduate programs, Northern California comes in second with more than 60,000 enrolled, and New York and Boston follow. Boston, Northern California and New York follow Southern California in students enrolled in graduate programs. To find out more about tech talent and how it is attracting more tech companies, we sat down with Blake Searles, EVP at JLL.

GlobeSt.com: Why is SoCal leading in tech talent?

Blake Searles: Southern California is home to many of the nation's top universities, and a number of them boast high-ranking engineering programs. CalTech, UCLA, and Harvey Mudd are just a few. Young graduates are attracted to the quality of life Southern California offers and it's comparatively more affordable than the Bay Area and New York.

GlobeSt.com: Is there concern that the talent pool exceeds the tech jobs available?

Searles: We've seen slower tech company growth than the Bay Area over the last five years, but so has every other market. Southern California has attracted $1 billion in venture capital each quarter since 2014, something unprecedented in any previous cycle. The organic growth from hometown companies, along with outposts established by Bay Area firms, are both providing opportunities. Adding to that are the unique opportunities for collaboration between tech and media that can only happen in a place like Los Angeles.

GlobeSt.com: Has the talent pool helped to attract companies here? How do start-ups in L.A. compare to other metros?

Searles: Tech companies offer competitive salaries because the best talent is in short supply. In the Silicon Valley, employees earn an average of just over $226,000, including meals, stock options, benefits, and other perks. In Southern California, that figure only gets as high as $114,540, and that's in Los Angeles, which is a relative bargain for growing firms. Couple that with office rents that are pushing more than $9 per square foot in the best space in San Francisco, the cost of doing business has become prohibitive for some firms. It's a pinch for workers, too, and employers are increasingly more focused on access to housing and transit for their employees. Southern California offers an advantage in some of these areas. Traffic may be a universal issue, though!

GlobeSt.com: Is the tech talent pool growing? How has it evolved recently?

Searles: There is a large pool of talent here. Nearly 350,000 people are employed in computer and math occupations, more than double the number in Silicon Valley, and almost triple the number in San Francisco. Our region is so much larger, so there's naturally more talent to draw from. And then going back to those engineering grads, I think the timing is right for tech firms to continue to grow here.

LOS ANGELES—Southern California is producing more tech talent than any other US market, according to a new report from JLL. The Southern California market has more than 76,000 students currently enrolled in engineering undergraduate programs at universities and approximately 11,000 in graduate programs. For undergraduate programs, Northern California comes in second with more than 60,000 enrolled, and New York and Boston follow. Boston, Northern California and New York follow Southern California in students enrolled in graduate programs. To find out more about tech talent and how it is attracting more tech companies, we sat down with Blake Searles, EVP at JLL.

GlobeSt.com: Why is SoCal leading in tech talent?

Blake Searles: Southern California is home to many of the nation's top universities, and a number of them boast high-ranking engineering programs. CalTech, UCLA, and Harvey Mudd are just a few. Young graduates are attracted to the quality of life Southern California offers and it's comparatively more affordable than the Bay Area and New York.

GlobeSt.com: Is there concern that the talent pool exceeds the tech jobs available?

Searles: We've seen slower tech company growth than the Bay Area over the last five years, but so has every other market. Southern California has attracted $1 billion in venture capital each quarter since 2014, something unprecedented in any previous cycle. The organic growth from hometown companies, along with outposts established by Bay Area firms, are both providing opportunities. Adding to that are the unique opportunities for collaboration between tech and media that can only happen in a place like Los Angeles.

GlobeSt.com: Has the talent pool helped to attract companies here? How do start-ups in L.A. compare to other metros?

Searles: Tech companies offer competitive salaries because the best talent is in short supply. In the Silicon Valley, employees earn an average of just over $226,000, including meals, stock options, benefits, and other perks. In Southern California, that figure only gets as high as $114,540, and that's in Los Angeles, which is a relative bargain for growing firms. Couple that with office rents that are pushing more than $9 per square foot in the best space in San Francisco, the cost of doing business has become prohibitive for some firms. It's a pinch for workers, too, and employers are increasingly more focused on access to housing and transit for their employees. Southern California offers an advantage in some of these areas. Traffic may be a universal issue, though!

GlobeSt.com: Is the tech talent pool growing? How has it evolved recently?

Searles: There is a large pool of talent here. Nearly 350,000 people are employed in computer and math occupations, more than double the number in Silicon Valley, and almost triple the number in San Francisco. Our region is so much larger, so there's naturally more talent to draw from. And then going back to those engineering grads, I think the timing is right for tech firms to continue to grow here.