DeepLocal, a Pittsburgh based start-up that has been building a reputation for innovation in design and new media technology has added another bright young star, Dimitry Bentsionov, to its team of designers and developers in East Liberty. Dimitry, a native of Ukraine and Pittsburgh transplant, was lured back from the San Francisco bay area where he had been working as a developer at Yahoo!. For DeepLocal, being able to attract Dimitry back to Pittsburgh illustrates the allure of their unique business model to its clients and employees. DeepLocal considers themselves a rarity in Pittsburgh – an art group turned research team, turned innovators for hire. The company works closely with clients to solve complex technology and media challenges, and to design, develop and deploy new technology, all from their loft office in East Liberty.

DeepLocal only recruits passionate people with strong creative backgrounds. Dimitry joins other notable DeepLocal new hires including Ayça Akin, a Visual and Interaction Designer who recently graduated from CMU’s Graduate School of Design, and Stanley Shivell, who joined the company as a Software Engineer specializing in online advertisement systems. These hires mark what DeepLocal CEO Nathan Martin believes is an increasing trend in high quality employees who demand workplaces that operate more like an art studio with open dialogue, quick turnaround, and highly visible real-world impact.

DeepLocal, spun out of CMU’s College of Fine Art in 2006, prides itself on it’s arts background, exemplifying this with a CEO that holds a Mater’s in Fine Arts degree rather than the traditional MBA. In fact the company has no sales or business team whatsoever. DeepLocal continues its love for invention by bucking old business models and working closely with its clients from concept through to deployment, continually building their knowledge of domains and related problems. They also build a laundry list of proprietary technology primarily in the areas of geospatial intelligence, mobile communication, and real-world urban gaming. Locally, they have worked for The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, The Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh and Kennywood Entertainment.

DeepLocal was named one of the nation’s ‘Top 40 Under 40’ startups of 2006, was a semifinalist for the Peoria Prize for Creativity that same year, and its CEO Nathan Martin has recently had several notable appearances, including testifying to the FCC in August on the monopolistic behaviors of wireless carriers, and appearing on popular BBC game show ‘Beat the Boss’ as one of three local ‘Big Shots.’

A report released yesterday by national career center Dice.com, states that Pittsburgh ranks fourth in the nation in technology job growth. With the support of local universities and cutting edge technology firms…we are not surprised. Pittsburgh ranked behind Hartford, CT; Cincinnati, OH; and Miami, FL at 22 percent growth. Hartford had a 30 percent growth.

Tom Silver, senior vice president of Dice.com said, “there are five cities in the U.S. where tech job listings have ballooned by more than 20 percent year over year, and you won’t find the traditional strongholds of Silicon Valley and New York on the list.”

“This report validates what we have been seeing through our own Career Center web site,” comments Mark Whitaker, strategic analyst for the PTC. ”Over the last 12 months, nearly 8,900 individual positions have been posted to the Career Center, which is an increase of over 600 jobs from the previous year. A lot of people say that there are no jobs in Pittsburgh, but I think more and more people are beginning to realize that there are actually plenty of great career opportunities in southwest Pennsylvania. And at the Council, we are proud to report that through our Career Center site, we have helped fill over 650 of them in less than a year.”

In the meantime, check out the “work in progress” Career Incline Blog aimed at helping students and career seekers connect with regional employers. The Career Incline Blog will be launched fully soon, but feel free to stop by, take a sneak peek and send us something to post. Other PTC initiatives dedicated to talent and Human Resources include CareerCasts, Career Fair listings, Internship Services, the HR Network and more.

The Pittsburgh Technology Council is dedicated to increasing the number of jobs and building talent attraction to our region. Got ideas…we’d like to hear them. Leave a comment…

The Allegheny Conference has identified this as one of the central issues to be addressed within our next three year strategic plan. I am sure that you know about the Pittsburgh Compact. In the fall we will launch a new initiative to support our employers and those engaged in talent attraction efforts. We wanted to have the opportunity to brief you on this new effort and to discuss ways in which we might work together for our collective benefit.

I hope you are able to participate in a meeting on Monday, August 25, from 9:30 to 11 a.m. on the 31st floor of the Regional Enterprise Tower located at 425 Sixth Avenue, Pittsburgh PA 15219 . RSVP to Mickey Denner at 412.281.4783 ext. 3103.

Dewitt Peart
Executive Vice President, Economic Development
Allegheny Conference on Community Development

Company: Allegheny Conference Web Site: www.alleghenyconference.org Location: Pittsburgh, PA 15219 Description: Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce, an affiliate of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, supports and enhances the growth of the 10-county region’s business community by advocating for improvements in the business climate and quality of life and providing educational seminars, business networking events and government affairs services. Read more.

Interestingly, despite today’s complex business environment, the most prominent challenges are fairly simple (though perhaps not in practice):  finding new customers and attracting/retaining/developing employees. Challenges such as health insurance, energy, and business taxes are all surprisingly low on the list, especially given the attention being paid to them during this election season. 

What do you think of these rankings? Agree? Disagree?  Leave a comment!

Encountering some of these challenges right now? Contact us to learn how we can help you overcome some of these pressing issues – for free as part of your membership!