Boise, Idaho: We Aren't Only Potato Farmers!

Ever wonder what people do for a living in Boise, Idaho?

You may think that Boise is only potato farming, but with Boise’s impeccable quality of life and affordable living, it is not a surprise that highly trained professionals have found themselves calling Boise home.  Today, the Boise region has more than 330,000 skilled workforce individuals.

---Back to potato farming really quick!  Most of our delicious Idaho potatoes are actually grown in Southeastern Idaho; Idaho Falls, Pocatello, American Falls, Burley, Rupert, etc.  Some potatoes are grown in the Caldwell area (30 minutes from Boise).  Thought you might find that interesting!  Okay, now we can continue to what industries we have in the Boise area.---

Quick facts on why working in Boise is so GREAT!
Average Commute:  18 minutes – Can’t get much better than that!
40% of workforce has earned a college degree
You can AFFORD to live here – Total cost of living is only 92% of the national average

The most exciting news is that Boise has also been the hub for many new startups, especially in the tech industry.  I was down in Austin, Texas a few months ago, surrounded by tech start up pros.  Several times over the course of the weekend, they came up to me to share what they knew about the companies coming to Boise.

You may be thinking to yourself... Boise, a technology city? 
Here is some information that breaks it down:

Technology in Boise
Over 26,530 workers in Boise Metro are employed in the technology sector
Between 2000 and 2010, the number of high-tech companies in Idaho grew by 61% Statewide, technology accounts for 17% of all wages earned
Nearly 2,000 of Idaho’s 19,000 businesses are technology companies
Idaho is ranked #1 for patents issued per capita

Hewlett-Packard and Micron Technology were two of the first technology companies to set up shop in Boise and since then, many began to follow suit.

Here are four tech companies that have made a name for themselves in Boise.

#1:  TSheets:  TSheets is a flexible, easy-to-use time tracker filled with innovative tools to help you maximize your most valuable resource: time.

Started in 2006, TSheets has been named the Best Place to Work in Idaho for three consecutive years; 2014, 2015, and 2016.

They have also received the following acknowledgments:
2015 & 2016 Top Company Cultures  I  Entrepreneur
Deloitte Fast 500 Technology  I  2016 North America
2014 Innovation Award  I  Company of the Year
2014, 2015, & 2016 Awesome App  I  the Sleeter Group

TSheets serves over 100 countries and has over 2,000 5 Star Reviews – WOW!  They have recently been building a new headquarters off of Eagle Road and Chinden where they will be occupying 42,000 square feet of office space and might opt in to move into another 11,200 square foot space on the third floor at a later date.

TSheets is Eagle’s largest private employer.
They expect their number to climb to 350 – 400 individuals by the end of 2018.

#2:  Clearwater Analytics:  Clearwater Analytics® is the leading provider of web-based investment portfolio accounting, reporting, and reconciliation services for institutional investors in over 9,000 organizations, including Starbucks, BestBuy, Google, Oracle, Cisco and Yahoo.

Clearwater started in Boise in 2004 and has grown to report more than $1.7 trillion in assets across thousands of accounts daily.

In August 2016, Clearwater Analytics new headquarters opened in the heart of downtown Boise.  Their building is also home of Boise State University’s computer sciences department, convention center, and a bus terminal for Valley Regional Transit.

#3:  Cradlepoint:  Cradlepoint is the leading provider of cloud-based wired and wireless WAN networking solutions for Distributed and Mobile Enterprises.

Another Boise startup, Cradlepoint started in 2006 and has rose to the top receiving awards such as:

2017 Network Infrastructure Product of the Year
2016 SDN Product of the Year
IoT Breakthrough 2016 Award Winner
Big Innovation Award by Business Intelligence Group

Cradlepoint is privately owned company and has shipped over 1.4 million routing platforms.

#4:  Balihoo:  Balihoo was founded in 2004 in beautiful Boise, Idaho.  Their goal is to give national brands control over local marketing and they have worked with clients like Wendy’s, Aflac, Geico, and Kohler.

Balihoo, with over 50 employees, has received recognitions such as one of Idaho’s Best Places to Work in 2017, Outside’s Best Places to work in 2016, and the Bicycle Friendly Business Silver award.

Combine these and other tech startups with our growing brewery and wine production scene, and Boise is becoming extremely well rounded in its offerings and work force.

                                 Here is a list of Boise’s top 10 employers.

                   Top 10 Employers in the Boise Valley  (bvep.org)

#1:  St. Luke’s Regional Medical Centers  I  7,400 – 7,500 employees

#2:  Micron Technology  I  5,900 – 6,000 employees

#3:  West Ada School District  I  4,000 – 4,100

#4:  Boise School District  I  3,600 – 3,700

#5:  Boise State University  I  3,500 – 3,600

#6:  St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Centers  I  3,400 – 3,500

#7:  Wal-Mart  I  2,800 – 2,900

#8:  City of Boise  I  1,900 – 2,000

#9:  Hewlett-Packard Company  I  1,800 – 1,900

#10:  J.R. Simplot Company  I  1,800 – 1,900

More exciting news is that several national and international companies have recently expanded or transferred into the Boise Valley.

Paylocity:  Paylocity is a cloud-based payroll and human capital management software solutions for medium sized organizations.  Paylocity selected Boise in November 2015 as the site for their new expansion.  Since then, Paylocity has outgrown their offices and is currently waiting to move into their new location at Ten Mile Crossing.

Scentsy:  Scentsy is a multimillion dollar direct sales company that manufactures and sells wickless candle products.  In 2013 Scentsy moved into their new headquarters in Meridian called the Scentsy Commons.  The Scentsy Commons is located on Eagle Road and is hard to miss with their 7 buildings, 73.35 acres, 8,000+ square feet of outdoor patio space, 3 miles of walking paths, over 1,000 trees, an on-site corporate restaurant, and an outdoor amphitheater.

Albertsons:  In 1939, Joe Albertson opened his first 10,000 square foot store at the corner of 16th and State Street in Boise, Idaho.  In the following 50 years, Albertsons went from one store, selling $170,000 worth of groceries to having over 497 stores and easily pulling in over $1 billion in sales.

In 2014, Albertsons and Safeway entered into a merger agreement that creates a network of over 2,400 stores, 27 distribution facilities, and 20 manufacturing plants.  Albertsons ranks #11 in Boise’s top employers, employing more than 1,800 locals.

There you have it…. A bit of insight on what the burgeoning Boise business scene is like these days. Is there a up and coming company that we missed on these lists?

Let us know about it!

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