1. Midsize Cities With
Big Tech Ambitions
THESE FOUR CITIES OFFER
INTRIGUING OPPORTUNITIES
FOR TECH COMPANIES

2. Fort Collins,
Colorado
Situated along the
Colorado Front Range
and with a population
of more than 160,000,
Fort Collins has a
well-established
tech community that
welcomes new business.
FORT COLLINS TECH COMPANIES
These are just a few of Fort Collins’s many tech businesses.
• Avago Technologies - With offices in Fort Collins, Avago
recently completed its $37 billion acquisition of Broadcom.
• Numerica - This Fort Collins company makes intelligence
systems for defense and law enforcement.
• Otter Products - The designer and manufacturer of
Otterbox products was founded in Fort Collins in 1998.
• Madwire - This successful digital marketing software
company recently moved to Fort Collins from nearby Loveland.
SITTING AT AN ALTITUDE of 5,003 feet, Fort Collins is a mere 277
feet shorter than the mile-high city, Denver, and a shade under 65
miles to the north of the Denver metro. But Fort Collins isn’t your
average midsize city. It features a long list of huge tech companies
that have a sizable presence in the community—among them
AMD, HP, Intel, and Microsoft—and a similarly long list of enti-
ties—tech accelerators, incubators, venture capital firms, and the
like—focused on new business development, particularly in the
technology sector. Joshua Birks, economic health director for the
City of Fort Collins, spoke with CyberTrend about the benefits of
doing business in the Fort Collins area.
CREDIT:THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
FORT COLLINS KEY FACTS
• Fort Collins ranked 6th in San Francisco-based NerdWallet’s
top 10 list of America’s Most Innovative Tech Hubs for 2015.
• Multiple venture capital firms operate in Fort Collins,
invigorating an active and growing population of tech startups.
• Innosphere, a Fort Collins incubator, supports entrepreneurs
in clean tech, biosciences, software, and other tech areas.

3. JOSHUA BIRKS
Economic Health Director
City of Fort Collins
CREDIT:THECITYOFFORTCOLLINS
What makes Fort Collins particularly enticing
for tech businesses?
There are two main attractors of tech businesses to Fort
Collins. The first is the available talent pool—over half of the
working age population in Fort Collins possesses a bachelor’s
degree or higher education. The second is the quality of life—
everything from the schools to the recreation system and rela-
tive affordability. Together, these two attractors make it very
easy for businesses to find employees both within and outside
of the community, and to manage the cost of doing business
by reducing the cost of hiring and retaining talent.
Does proximity to Denver factor into Fort
Collins’s success as a tech hub?
First, the Front Range (Fort Collins to Colorado Springs)
functions in many ways as a single economic region. This
means that talent and resources flow freely within the region.
Second, Denver makes a lot of national headlines, which
draws attention to the whole region. Finally, Denver and its
size support a number of key supporting industries—legal
firms, venture capital, patent office—that make it easier for
tech companies to succeed.
What is the Fort Collins business community like?
Fort Collins is a collaborative community at every level—
from residents helping each other to businesses helping each
other. This is evidenced by the numerous industry cluster enti-
ties that have been formed and developed in the community.
These entities bring together businesses in the same industry
and space—often competitors—to discuss the state of the in-
dustry and think about how they can work together to evolve
it. This happens in the tech industry as well as our craft brew
industry. The general sense is one of abundance. Most of the
market for these businesses is outside of Fort Collins so even if
they compete there is enough market share and opportunity to
go around.
How would you characterize talent availability?
With a very low unemployment rate (hovering around
2.8%) you would assume it’s difficult for companies to find
talent. However, we hear anecdotally from several area em-
ployers that they are having the opposite issue. They are re-
ceiving hundreds of applicants for nearly every open position.
This has certainly been the case for the City of Fort Collins
lately. In many cases, a significant portion of the qualified ap-
plicants already live in Fort Collins.
The city is home to Colorado State University, which pro-
duces top talent. Every year, many of the graduates choose to
stay in the community, accepting jobs at less than their top
capability, making them ready and able employees when tech
companies move to or expand within the city. Also, our existing
and successful multi-national tech companies—for example,
Microsoft, HP, Intel, AMD, and Avago—attract talent to the
community that chooses to stay on after their employment ends
with these companies. These folks either start their own firms or
take positions, similar to recent grads, at levels below their top
ability. They also provide a wealth of ready and able talent to fill
the ranks of new and expanding businesses.
Fort Collins, Colo., has a thriving
downtown (above) that also has
charm; it was famously the model
for Disneyland’s Main Street U.S.A.
The Fort Collins-based Innosphere
(left) is an entrepreneurial hub.
CREDIT:THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
CREDIT: INNOSPHERE

4. Lincoln,
Nebraska
Seated in the Great
Plains state of Nebraska,
Lincoln has a population
approaching 270,000 and
is part of the area known
as Silicon Prairie, which
includes nearby Omaha
and Kansas City.
LINCOLN TECH COMPANIES
These are just a few of Lincoln’s many tech businesses.
• Bulu Box - Operating a web-based subscription service for
health products, Bulu Box was founded in Lincoln in 2012.
• Hudl - Founded in 2006, Hudl’s multi-platform software has
become the top choice in sports video editing and analysis.
• MyRacePass - Founded in 2008, this racing-focused social
network company moved to Lincoln earlier this year.
• Travefy - A startup developer of cloud-based tools for travel
planners, Travefy was founded in Lincoln in 2012.
LESS THAN AN HOUR’S DRIVE from the Omaha-Council Bluffs
metropolitan area, which has a population exceeding 900,000,
Lincoln is a rapidly growing city in its own right with a keen focus
on new business development, particularly in the tech sector. IBM
and banking software giant Fiserv have offices in Lincoln, and the
city is headquarters for law enforcement software company Pen-
Link and AuctionTime.com developer Sandhills Publishing (pub-
lisher of CyberTrend). Christina Oldfather, director of innovation
and entrepreneurship at the Lincoln Partnership for Economic
Development, spoke with CyberTrend about the benefits of doing
business in the Lincoln area.
CREDIT: LINCOLN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
LINCOLN KEY FACTS
• The density of sports tech companies, with Hudl as an anchor,
has made Lincoln enticing for other sports tech companies.
• More than 100 software startups call Lincoln home,
prompting CBS News to call the city “a mini Palo Alto.”
• Nebraska Innovation Campus offers business space and will
soon have a wet lab incubator for startups.

5. CHRISTINA OLDFATHER
Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Lincoln Partnership for Economic Development
CREDIT:LINCOLNCHAMBEROFCOMMERCE
What makes Lincoln especially enticing for
tech businesses?
The low cost of doing business and the low cost of living allows
companies to grow faster with less capital than in other markets.
Also, Lincoln’s booming startup ecosystem helps companies
thrive. The density of startups in Lincoln, particularly in our
Haymarket area and in the sports tech vertical, is attractive to
companies seeking to innovate, connect, and collide with other
entrepreneurs and be in close proximity to successful companies
like Hudl. The NMotion business accelerator is a huge driver
for tech startups, taking companies on the fast track and helping
them succeed. Fuse Coworking offers entrepreneurs a place to get
started and find a wide range of opportunities. Nebraska Global
provides capital and development support for tech startups.
Does proximity to Omaha factor into Lincoln’s
success as a tech hub?
Being part of the Silicon Prairie—which includes Omaha,
Kansas City, and Des Moines—is crucial to Lincoln’s success as
a tech hub. Working on a regional basis gives our local entrepre-
neurs the benefit of a wider pool of resources, including capital,
talent, customers, and a much larger entrepreneurial community.
What is the Lincoln business community like?
A survey of businesses this year found that a positive business
climate was among the top community strengths. In addition to
all of the regular indicators of a positive business climate, it’s the
people in the business/entrepreneurial community that make
Lincoln the place to be.
How would you characterize talent availability?
Availability of talent, especially in tech, is somewhat of a chal-
lenge here, as it is in many cities. However, Lincoln has several
pipelines that are filling that gap. The University of Nebraska-
Lincoln is a great pipeline for talent, particularly its Jeffrey S.
Raikes School of Computer Science and Management. Programs
like Star City Code School offer training in software development,
taking students with little to no tech experience to junior devel-
oper in 16 weeks. Overall we are seeing a symbiotic relationship
here between tech startups and talent retention. As the startup
community continues to grow, students coming out of local col-
leges recognize there are great opportunities here in Lincoln and
they don’t necessarily have to leave to chase their dream job.
Are there other standout incentives?
The Nebraska Department of Economic Development offers
several funding options for tech companies, including the pro-
totype grant program, commercialization investment program,
and research and development grant funds. These programs have
proven to be helpful in attracting companies to the area. Lincoln
also has an engaged and supportive local government, and prox-
imity to a research university is a strong benefit.
Firespring participates in a Lincoln, Neb.,Young Professionals
Group event (left); Lincoln’s Railyard district (above) and connected
Haymarket areas are home to tech startups including Hudl (right).
CREDIT: LINCOLN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

6. Provo,
Utah
Less than an hour away
from Salt Lake City and
with a population of
over 116,000, Provo has
successfully asserted its
independence as a city
with a great deal to offer
tech businesses. PROVO TECH COMPANIES
These are just a few of Provo’s many tech businesses.
• Omniture - Founded in 1996, this Provo-area company was
sold to Adobe Systems in 2009 for $1.8 billion.
• InsideSales.com (founded in 2004), developer of an inte-
grated sales acceleration platform, and Qualtrics (founded
in 2002), maker of a platform for helping enterprises capture
customer insights, are Provo-based unicorns.
• Vivint - Founded in Provo in 2010, Vivint makes smart home
solutions for improved control, security, and energy efficiency.
YOU MIGHT RECOGNIZE PROVO, Utah, as one of the six U.S.
cities in which Google has thus far launched Google Fiber,
providing super-fast Gigabit Internet for the benefit of busi-
nesses and consumers alike. Or you might recognize Provo
as the home city of many startup companies, particularly in
the past couple of years, prompting some to call Utah the next
Silicon Valley. Provo continues to grow, and continues to find
new ways to support new businesses, particularly in the tech-
nology arena. Allison Lew, business development coordinator
for the City of Provo, spoke with CyberTrend about the ben-
efits of doing business in the Provo area.
CREDIT: CAREY MOORE
PROVO KEY FACTS
• Provo is a smaller city and yet it has a $16 billion economy.
The New Yorker dubbed the area “the next Silicon Valley.”
• In 2013, the Kauffman Foundation ranked Provo-Orem 11th in
the U.S. for info and communications high-tech startup density.
• In a report covering Q1 2015, the Brookings Institution
ranked Provo first in the nation for job growth acceleration.

7. What makes Provo particularly enticing for
tech businesses?
The high quality of life and low cost of living are two big
factors. Owlet Baby Monitors, for example, had investors from
New York who were surprised at how much office space they
could afford with New York investment dollars. Provo is also
home to two large universities with talent to pull from: the
Entrepreneur Institute at Utah Valley University and the Rollins
Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology at Brigham
Young University.
The Startup Building Co-Working space (a renovated 1898
candy factory) houses coding bootcamp DevMountain as well
as office space for up-and-coming local startups. Other local
bootcamps include V School, Startup Ignition, World Tech
Academy, and Market Campus. The space is also host to free
entrepreneurship community events like 1 Million Cups and
LaunchUp. Being the second city in the nation to get Google
Fiber up and running has also been a great asset to business and
tech within the community.
Does proximity to Salt Lake City factor into
Provo’s success as a tech hub?
Provo and Salt Lake City are fairly independent of each other
in terms of entrepreneurship and tech communities.
What is the Provo business community like?
The business community is very collaborative. We hold lots
of community events, like 1 Million Cups Provo, that are free
and attended by 80 to 100 entrepreneurs, students, investors,
and community members who want to hear about great ideas.
Current Mayor John Curtis is really supportive of the entre-
preneurship community, which is very tech-oriented. He has
consistently won awards for his social media presence—you’ll
find him on Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, and his blog
at ProvoMayor.com. Mayor Curtis worked with Google Fiber
to offer $30 installation—one tenth of the cost of installation in
other communities—and seven years of 5-megabit service at no
cost to citizens. Small business offerings start at $100 per month.
What is talent availability like in Provo?
Provo is a unique area because within its metro, there are
two universities with over 60,000 enrolled students. These uni-
versities are full of talent, so their presence definitely attracts
tech companies to the Provo area.
ALLISON LEW
Business Development Coordinator
City of Provo
CREDIT:PETERINOUYE
CREDITS: BEAU SORENSEN
(DOWNTOWN), BRYANT LIVINGSTON
(MAYOR CURTIS), CHRIS BENNETT
(THE STARTUP BUILDING)
Provo, Utah, has been recognized as a top city for tech startups for the past few
years. Mayor John Curtis (center) is an avid supporter of the tech community.

8. Tacoma,
Washington
Situated less than
30 miles away from
Seattle and with a
population exceeding
200,000, Tacoma is
currently among the best
locations in the U.S. for
technology companies.
TACOMA TECH COMPANIES
These are just a few of Tacoma’s many tech businesses.
• Avue Technologies - Founded in Tacoma in 1983, this
company makes Avue, a cloud-based federal HR management
solution, the first to be approved as FedRAMP-compliant.
• Infoblox - Infoblox acquired ActiveTrust cybersecurity solu-
tion developer IID for $45M and maintains its Tacoma office.
• RedQuarry - RedQuarry offers a cloud-based collaborative
research management platform and helps investment firms
develop compliant and scalable internal research capabilities.
• Topia Technology - Founded in Tacoma in 1999, Topia
developed the military-grade Secrata platform. Secrata shreds
and encrypts data for cloud, mobile, and big data.
• SiteCrafting - In addition to its web management and
native apps services, Tacoma-based SiteCrafting runs
GearLab, a user experience and design research lab.
• TagMaster North America - Airports, hospitals, mass
transit systems, and many other entities use TagMaster’s RFID
solutions for tracking all manner of moving objects.
IN MANY WAYS, TACOMA is a typical college town, a midsize city
with a thriving arts scene and a growing population of young pro-
fessionals. There are many factors, however, that make Tacoma
more than typical. Resources such as Centeris’s 86-acre data
center, supporting the first transpacific broadband data and fiber
hub in the nation, are located nearby, as are tech giants including
Amazon and Microsoft. Tacoma, then, offers a unique playing
field for today’s technology companies. Kathleen Cooper, com-
munications manager with the Economic Development Board
for Tacoma-Pierce County, spoke with CyberTrend about the
benefits of doing business in the Tacoma area.
CREDIT:TRAVEL TACOMA

9. What makes Tacoma particularly enticing for
tech businesses?
Tech companies’ biggest resource in Tacoma is the University
of Washington’s Institute of Technology, which focuses on the
rapid development of high-technology academic programs to
serve the state. The institute partners with companies to stay
on the cutting edge of industry trends and needs, and it gives
students practical work experience. The institute’s 40 faculty
members are research leaders in the fields of cryptography, in-
formation theory and information security.
Another unique resource is Centeris, the nation’s first transpa-
cific data and fiber hub located minutes from Tacoma. Centeris
also provides direct fiber connections to the most significant
West Coast network access points, including Portland/Hillsboro
(Pittock), Silicon Valley (Great Oaks) and Los Angeles (One Wil-
shire); and dark fiber to Seattle (Westin). The cutting edge facility
includes direct connections to major public clouds, including
Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and IBM SoftLayer.
Tacoma is a beautiful, affordable city with a vibrant arts
and culture scene—a key part of life that draws young, creative
people working on the industries of tomorrow. San Jose and
Austin showed a similar pattern of a blossoming tech sector ini-
tially attracted by a thriving arts culture.
Tech-appropriate office space can be found throughout
downtown Tacoma, which is a mix of eclectic historic buildings
and modern skyscrapers. The space is ample and well-priced—
less than half the cost of space in Seattle or the Bay Area. Cost
of living is reasonable and includes downtown condos with mil-
lion-dollar waterfront views within walking or biking distance of
the University of Washington Tacoma and the Central Business
District. Tacoma also has several distinct, bustling neighbor-
hoods just minutes from downtown, including the Stadium and
Proctor districts.
How does proximity to Seattle factor into
Tacoma’s success as a tech hub?
Seattle’s tech sector is established and, in fact, is changing the
face of the city as the tech giants jockey for more office space
and ratchet up costs as competition for employees increases.
Meanwhile, just 30 miles away on the I-5 corridor, Tacoma
is near enough to benefit from Seattle’s tech nova but not be
buried by it. The city, the second largest in the region, is part of
the Puget Sound metro area of 3.5 million people and is home to
several startups and firms established in cybersecurity, medical
technology, clean water technology, and more. Tacoma shares
amenities with Seattle that make it attractive to business invest-
ment, including the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, the
Ports of Tacoma and Seattle, and access to tech leaders like
Amazon and Microsoft.
What is the Tacoma business community like?
Tacoma is a midsize city with the personal approach of a
small town. Economic development officials from the City
of Tacoma as well as the Economic Development Board for
Tacoma-Pierce County work closely with businesses every day
to connect them with resources including workforce training
and tax incentives. There is no “phone tree” or general phone
message line here: One phone call gets businesses connected
with a person whose job it is to help.
The City of Tacoma also offers a tax credit for new job cre-
ation—$500 per year for five years for every new, permanent,
family-wage job that a business creates.
Tacoma’s downtown Brewery District is home to Surge
Tacoma, a startup and co-working office space that is unique
to the Puget Sound region: it houses Surge Launch, where each
company accepted into the program receives between $20,000
and $80,000 in seed capital and over $100,000 in perks, in ex-
change for up to 9% equity stake. Surge Launch also features a
mentoring program.
New Tech Tacoma is a meetup group that gathers
monthly to connect, grow and support the technology eco-
system across the Pacific Northwest. New Tech Tacoma is
part of New Tech Northwest, which has 21,000 members and
adds more each month.
KATHLEEN COOPER
Communications Manager
Economic Development Board
Tacoma-Pierce County
CREDIT:ECONOMICDEVELOPMENTBOARDFORTACOMA-PIERCECOUNTY

10. How would you characterize the availability of
talent in Tacoma?
It’s excellent. The University of Washington’s Institute of
Technology was founded on the Tacoma campus 15 years ago,
and it’s growing. This fall, some 950 juniors, seniors and graduate
students are enrolled at the institute. More than 1,200 undergrad-
uate and graduate degrees have been granted since the Institute
began. The Institute offers degrees in the areas of computer sci-
ence, computer engineering and information technology, as well
as a master’s degree in Cybersecurity and Leadership. The Center
for Web and Data Science, which takes on the challenges of man-
aging big data, is housed at the UWT’s Institute for Technology.
Bates Technical College, also in downtown Tacoma, offers
several degree and certificate programs in the information tech-
nology field, including in software and web development.
Tacoma is home to the University of Puget Sound and
Pacific Lutheran University, two storied institutions pro-
ducing high-caliber graduates for more than 100 years. UPS
was named as one of the “Top 20 Most Entrepreneurial
Colleges” by Forbes magazine.
Tacoma also offers access to thousands of military members
transitioning out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM), the
largest military installation on the West Coast and the location
most requested for final postings. Many of these veterans have
relevant and transferrable IT experience. The Washington
National Guard’s cyberteam has worked out of JBLM for
years. Their team is currently led by Lt. Col. Tom Muehleisen,
a recognized leader in regional cyberdefense. Muehleisen is
currently working on expanding Army National Guard cyber-
security capabilities. He co-wrote the concept of operations
and guiding document for managing critical cyber resources
during a declared state emergency.
What are some other reasons tech companies
should consider doing business in Tacoma?
Tech companies have led the way not only in product de-
velopment and innovation, but also in emphasizing quality
of life for employees. Tacoma checks all those boxes.
The city boasts several distinct and eclectic neighborhoods
and a notably wide array of dining options. Your home, your
office, your favorite restaurant: everywhere in Tacoma is just
five to 10 minutes away. Tacoma is also 30 miles from Seattle,
a two-hour drive from two major ski resorts, and is home to
Point Defiance Park, a 760-acre urban park that includes a
zoo, an aquarium, a five-mile wooded trail, and a public sec-
ondary school focused on science, math, and robotics.
The University of Washington’s Institute of
Technology (at bottom left and at right) provides both research and
talent to the tech community. SiteCrafting (top left) is a Tacoma-based web and
content management company.Tacoma also offers a spectacular view of Mount
Rainier (center), the tallest mountain in the Cascades.
TACOMA KEY FACTS
• Tacoma is a midsize city with a small-town approach, yet it
is part of the Puget Sound metro area, population 3.5 million.
• Downtown business space is plentiful and costs less than
half as much as space in the Bay Area or nearby Seattle.
• Surge Tacoma offers startup and co-working space and is
home to the Surge Launch tech accelerator.
• The University of Washington Tacoma’s Institute of Technology
serves a growing population of youth interested in tech careers.
IMAGE CREDITS: University
of Washington Tacoma (bot-
tom left, right), SiteCrafting
(top left), Economic Devel-
opment Board for Tacoma-
Pierce County (center).