Virginia led the nation in high-tech job growth in 2004 and has the fifth-highest total number of employees in the industry, according to data released Wednesday by a leading high-tech trade association.
The District and Maryland also fared well, placing fourth and fifth respectively for the highest concentration of tech employees for their population in the country. Virginia ranked second.
“The numbers look very good for our region,” said Greg Poersch, executive director for both AeA, a Washington-based association representing the high-tech industry, and the Potomac Council Technology Company. “The reason [jobs] have increased here is definitely due to the federal government. They’re spending so much in security, and high tech is such a big player in that.”
Northern Virginia has carried much of the job growth in the state, said Hugh Keogh, president and CEO of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, because of its proximity to the federal government.
“Northern Virginia is the bulk of the growth, there’s no question about that,” he said. “The question for Virginia policy-makers now is: How do we diversify?”
Virginia outpaced Maryland and D.C. in job growth with the addition of 9,100 jobs between 2003 and 2004. Maryland ranked third in job growth, adding 2,800 jobs.
Virginia also had a higher concentration of employees, with 89 out of every 1,000 private-sector jobs belonging to the high-tech industry. Only Colorado had a higher job concentration.
Maryland economic officials are also counting the rankings as a victory, saying the entire Washington region is working together to attract new high-tech business.
“The fact that Maryland and Virginia took the No. 1 and No. 3 spots for growth shows me that we are really crushing the West Coast in job growth,” said Chris Foster, deputy secretary of the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development. California lost more than 10,000 jobs between 2003 and 2004.
“We wanted entrepreneurs around the country to see the region as a hotbed of technology,” Foster said. “That’s really been our goal.”
