Howlers aren’t just monkeys

Jackie Maguire, Chief Executive, Meath County Council

 16^th January 2017

A glaring blunder

I only included the photo of Howler monkeys to attract your attention because what has got my attention was another type of howler (Oxford English Dictionary – howler – a glaring blunder). This particular howler was by by property professionals @LisneyIreland in this morning’s @IrishTimes ;
…major IT, financial services and foreign direct investment (FDI) companies based in Dublin require a prime central location to retain and attract talent both in Ireland and from overseas.

 Moving out

The Meath County Council Economic Development Team keeps a very close eye on what’s going on internationally with the types of companies we’re most likely to attract to Meath with our #MakeItMeath campaign. What they’ve been saying to me is that IT companies are being priced out of Silicon Valley and they’re heading north, south and west of San Francisco.

Cities are not the centre of it all

IT companies are not wedded to city centre locations. Irish property professionals need to understand that locations like Meath, next to an international airport and seaport, are ready made for their multinational clients.  Here are some reasons why IT companies are moving out of Silicon Valley according to a recent @VanityFair article; “There are a number of reasons for the exodus, according to @WSJ The Wall Street Journal, In the last year, there’s been a constant flow of workers moving from San Francisco to Seattle, Denver, Austin and the Los Angeles area. Many tech workers start out in San Francisco to boost salary and establish themselves before moving to more affordable markets”, he added.

More of the same

Businessman @JohnBoitnott wrote in @Entrepreneur, “…a new report reveals that residents are leaving Silicon Valley for more affordable places. Many of these departing residents are American-born technology professionals, who take their knowledge and expertise to other markets. Here’s the view of businesswoman @PromisePhelon writing in @Forbes on why she moved to Boulder, Colorado… http://bit.ly/2jBcfSP

Better advice needed

The takeaway for Irish property professionals is that IT companies want space, talent and access. Meath has all they’re looking for, plus a great quality of life. That’s why we say to #MakeItMeath. So instead of zeroing in on the problems of one small area of this island, would property adviser please think bigger and give our Economic Team a buzz to find out the benefits of making It Meath?