|
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Travis County. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, Austin has a population of 656,562 people, making it the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 16th largest in the United States. Situated in the region of Central Texas, the Austin-Round Rock metropolitan area is one of the fastest-growing in the United States and is home to an estimated population of 1.4 million as of 2004. Residents of Austin are known as Austinites.
The local economy
Austin is considered to be a major center for high tech. Thousands of graduates each year from the engineering and computer science programs at The University of Texas at Austin provide a steady source of employees that help to fuel Austin's technology and defense industry sectors. The metro Austin area has much lower housing costs than Silicon Valley, but much higher housing costs than many parts of rural Texas. As a result of the high concentration of high-tech companies in the region, Austin was strongly affected by the dot-com boom in the late 1990s and subsequent bust. Austin's largest employers include the Austin Independent School District, the City of Austin, Dell, the United States Federal Government, Freescale Semiconductor (spun off from Motorola in 2004), IBM, the State of Texas, Texas State University-San Marcos, and the University of Texas. Other high-tech companies with operations in Austin include 3M, Apple Inc., Hewlett-Packard, Google, Cisco Systems, eBay/PayPal, Hoover's, Intel Corporation, The proliferation of technology companies has led to the region's nickname, "the Silicon Hills," and spurred development that greatly expanded the city. The concentration of high-tech companies has led the former American Airlines flight between Austin and San Jose, California to be dubbed the "nerd bird."
Austin is also emerging as a hub for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. About 85 companies from this industry are based in Austin.
In addition to global companies, Austin features a strong network of independent, locally-owned firms and organizations. The success of these businesses reflects the high level of commitment by the citizens of Austin to preserving the unique spirit of the city and has been tied to the "Keep Austin Weird" campaign.
See also
External links
- Austin Small Business Development Program - Program administered by the City of Austin
- AustinSmallBiz.com Calendar of small business events, classes and seminars maintained by the Austin Small Business Development Program.
- Austin-American Statesman - City's daily newspaper
- Austin Business Journal
- Austin Chamber of Commerce - website
- Austin Chamber of Commerce - Small Business Resources
- Austin Independent Business Alliance - A nonprofit organization of locally owned and operated independent businesses that have joined together to promote the cultural and economic benefits of shopping locally. Affiliated with the American Independent Business Alliance.
- Austin SCORE - Austin SCORE counselors are executives with a wealth of expertise and experience in many industries. SCORE Austin offers: Free confidential business counseling and advice, low-cost workshops, free business resources and special customized services.
- BigAustin.org - BiGAUSTIN is a non-profit organization offering a single-source solution for entrepreneurial education, tailored business counseling and flexible loans.
- Historically Underutilized Business - The statewide HUB Program facilitates the use of HUBs in state procurement and provides information on the state’s procurement process to minority and woman- owned businesses.
- Small & Minority Business Resources Department - The Small & Minority Business Resources Department(SMBR) assists small, minority-owned and women-owned business enterprises (MBE and WBE) as they pursue contracting opportunities with the City of Austin.
- The Military Loan Store - Themilitaryloanstore blog provides useful information and tips on personal loans, debt consolidation, mortgage, and other loans for the military community.
- Texas State University Small Business Development Center (SBDC) - Works with existing and startup small businesses to help them grow and compete in today’s global economy.
