Can I Have a Tech Career in Maine?

The past weekend in Maine was abstech career in maineolutely beautiful. The sun was shining. It was hot, but not suffocatingly so. All in all, it was a great weekend for outdoor activities, and to get away from it all.

If you tech professionals from “away” had the pleasure of experiencing this beautiful weekend and dreaded heading back home , you may have been asking yourself “Can I have a tech career in Maine?” The short answer is yes – and there are four reasons why it’s possible.

 

The 4 Reasons Why It’s Possible to Have a Tech Career in Maine

 

1) Portland, ME is a tech hub

When you think of tech hubs what comes to mind? Silicon Valley? Seattle? Boston? None of those are surprises, though you may be startled to find out that Portland, ME is an up and comer on this list. In 2012, Travel + Leisure ranked Portland as America’s 15th Techiest City, while techie.com rated Portland as one of the 10 most unexpected cities for high-tech innovation.

The takeaway? The tech scene is alive here in Maine, and continues to grow.

 

2) There’s interesting work in nationally recognized companies

If you’re afraid that moving to Maine from Boston or NYC means that you’re giving up working in a large enterprise environment, you don’t need to worry. There are a number (no fewer than 12) of nationally recognized companies with offices in Northern New England. TD Bank, Anthem, Unum, L.L. Bean, and Liberty Mutual are just a few of these organizations.

These companies are constantly looking for new technical talent in Northern New England. In fact, between the biggest seven, there are currently 106 open tech gigs. By moving to Maine, you don’t have to stop working for top tier companies or stop solving their interesting technical problems. You just get to do it from a new location. There also are employers here that advertise job positions by making interesting video presentations about the company and the job itself, and after gaining a significant number of likes on YouTube due to promotion done in partnership with The Marketing Heaven, they achieve such visibility that attracts qualified and creative candidates.

 

3) There’s a variety of organizations and opportunities

Not interested in working for a big company? That’s fine. In Maine, there are also dozens of midsized companies and countless small organizations. Looking for a startup? We’ve got those too; some have even been so successful that larger organizations have ended up buying them, visit maximumfitnessvacaville.com. The thing about the Maine tech scene is that there is something for everyone; you’ll find the environment that best suits you, and helps you to develop your career.

 

4) Maine companies want local talent

Our Maine clients are constantly lamenting the talent shortage in Maine. They want local resources but have to go after people who are willing to relocate, work remotely, or off-shore individuals because of the shallow local tech talent pool.

When you have a tech career in Maine, you don’t have to worry about job security. Even if you decide to leave your current role, there are a variety of different organizations who will be desperately fighting for your skills. It feels nice to wanted, doesn’t it?
Our tech firm is dedicated to working with Maine’s enterprise organizations, and, at any given time, we’re looking to fill dozens of roles. With this sort of demand, we’ve already moved scores of consultants from outside of Northern New England to Maine. We give this anecdote because it exemplifies that you can have a successful tech career here if you so choose. And we hope you do. We’re pretty partial to it here.

 

What’s your biggest concern about starting a tech career in Maine? Let us know in the comments section, or join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.

 

 

 

 

Thanks to Base36’s Morgan Chessman for the use of her photograph.