[THIN] Is Citrix going to move it's HQ to California? Maybe.
- From: "Jim Kenzig ThinHelp.com" <jkenzig@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: THIN <thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 13 Mar 2008 08:34:22 -0400
An Article in the Miami Herald from a few weeks ago hints that Citrix may be
looking to move their HQ out of Florida. Several of their latests
acquistions are in California. This makes a lot of sense if they are trying
to woo new technology professionals.
JK
http://www.miamiherald.com/breaking_business/story/437361.html
<http://www.miamiherald.com/breaking_business/v-print/story/437361.html#>
Posted on Thu, Feb. 28, 2008
Citrix may be looking to move jobs out of Florida BY SCOTT ANDRON
Citrix Systems may be looking at moving at least some of its 1,500 Fort
Lauderdale-based employees out of Florida.
The fast-growing technology company is often hailed by local leaders as an
example of the kind of employer the region needs to provide good jobs for
the community.
A board member of a statewide economic development agency alluded to the
possibility of the move Thursday morning during a meeting of business and
government leaders at Citrix's world headquarters on Cypress Creek Road.
Responding to criticism of Enterprise Florida's efforts to keep businesses
from moving out of the state, agency board member Traver Gruen-Kennedy said
his group has been working to retain jobs in the very location in which
Thursday's meeting was taking place.
Gruen-Kennedy, a vice president of Boca Raton-based DayJet, is a former
Citrix executive. DayJet was founded by Ed Iacobucci, who was one of the
founders of Citrix.
Asked after the meeting to clarify that he was talking about Citrix,
Gruen-Kennedy acknowledged that he was. But he referred further questions to
Enterprise Florida staff.
''I can't speak directly to what Citrix is doing,'' he said. Then he added:
``Citrix is a company that has been growing dramatically, but most of that
growth has been buying companies in California.''
In response to inquires from The Miami Herald, company spokesman Eric
Armstrong e-mailed a statement saying that the company was reviewing its
long-term options in response to its rapid growth in recent years.
''With that growth phase we have additional needs for top technology talent
and modern facilities to house employees,'' he wrote. ``We've struggled to
recruit top technology talent to South Florida. We have not had an easy time
finding the skill set we need locally.
``We approached the state and county recently to talk about Citrix's future,
our employee presence and community involvement in Broward and Palm Beach
counties, and how we might work together to accommodate our business needs
here in South Florida. While we are still very early in the process, the
state and county's interest in working with Citrix has been very encouraging
to us.''
State and local governments sometimes offer money to big companies that
threaten to move away. These payments are known as ``economic incentives.''
Jo Moskowitz, Citrix's director of community and governmental affairs and a
host of Thursday's meeting, said the company's CEO has expressed doubt about
the company's ability to grow in South Florida unless the schools improve.
She added that seven of Citrix's last 10 acquisitions were in California and
that the company now has about 1,000 employees out there.
The company makes hardware and software applications that enable businesses
to access information from many locations and devices.
Miami Herald staff writer Patrick Danner contributed to this report.
--
Jim Kenzig
Microsoft MVP - Terminal Services
http://www.thinhelp.com
Citrix Technology Professional
CEO The Kenzig Group
http://www.kenzig.com
Blog: http://www.techblink.com
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