Tag: San Diego: Life. Changing.

Saving the best for last, project management software company Wrike celebrated the opening of three office locations worldwide: Melbourne, Dublin, and San Diego. The celebration took place back-to-back over the course of just 16 hours, in what the company called a #WrikeRelay.

Named among Deloitte’s 500 Fastest Growing Companies in North America, Wrike has grown from 300 employees in 2015 to 700 today (and hiring), serving customers across 130 companies.

Three office openings in one day’s time. Congrats @wrike on a successful, global #wrikerelay ???????????????????????? #GlobalSD #SDlifechanging pic.twitter.com/L1dFh0u0ub

— SD: Life. Changing. (@SDlifechanging) December 5, 2018

This marks Wrike’s third location in San Diego. The first San Diego office opened in February 2016 with the company well on its way to meeting its goal of creating 150 jobs in three years. The new office in UTC will accommodate the increasing number of sales and customer success roles that make up the bulk of its local team. Wrike has grown its customer base in North America by 362 percent and its total annual recurring revenue in the region by 287 percent over the last three years.

“The collaborative work management market has really taken off in the last few years as a variety of trends from digital transformation to the rise of the remote workforce and the consumerization of IT all converged,” said Wrike Senior Director of North American Sales Alex German. “It has been exciting to witness firsthand as high-growth companies have discovered how Wrike could help them increase productivity, improve collaboration, and create new revenue opportunities. Moving into this new space will give us the room we need to expand our team and continue driving exponential growth for the company.”

JLL, a world leader in real estate services, represented Wrike in the search and negations for its new San Diego office.

With and through our investors, EDC works to maximize San Diego’s economic competitiveness. Learn how in our Q3 report, which is segmented by our key teams/initiatives below:

Regional Support

EDC convenes resources and stakeholder groups to help talent and a diversity of companies thrive in the San Diego mega-region.

In order to grow jobs, EDC dispatched the following company support tactics and events in Q3:

• Unveiled 15 companies selected to participate in DIV program
• Hosted 26 PhD students from around the U.S. for Life Sciences Trek
• Hosted VIP tour of SPAWAR
• Learned best practices from peers in Indianapolis
• Helped AI startup Aira sign deals with San Diego Regional Airport Authority and San Diego Convention Center
• Engaged startup community in North County through Startup78

WTC San Diego

As part of EDC, World Trade Center San Diego works to cultivate a pipeline of export-ready firms, maximize FDI opportunities, and grow the region’s global connectivity.

Amid increasing uncertainty over national trade policy, ensuring that local companies get the tools they need to be successful overseas is more important than ever. WTC deployed the following tactics in Q3:

• Launched 2018 MetroConnect export accelerator program supporting 20 local businesses in going global
• Released new study, “Trade and Competitiveness in North America”
• Hosted Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce in San Diego

SD: Life. Changing.

EDC’s marketing efforts serve to elevate the region as a top destination for talent, business, and investment.

As part of the San Diego: Life. Changing. campaign, EDC showcased why San Diego is a hotspot for talent and investment with and through the following in Q3:

• SD: Life. Changing. Summer Bash
• Comic-Con and Pride
• #TakeoverTuesday with LunaDNA, Veyo, West Health, Viasat, and even yours truly

Research

Understanding our economy begins with strong data. EDC develops economic reports to help business and civic leaders make informed decisions.

Telling a data-driven and inclusive story of San Diego, EDC released the following economic reports in Q3:

• Building San Diego’s Talent Pipeline
• San Diego’s Economic Pulse
• Quarterly Economic Snapshot

This work would not be possible without the investment and support of EDC’s members/partners. Thank you for allowing us to support the businesses that make this region truly #SDlifechanging.

San Diego Aira is changing how people see the world, literally. The EvoNexus graduate was formed by several Rady School of Management alumni that had a vision to help blind and visually impaired individuals have a higher quality of life. The company has created a wearable technology that a blind or vision impaired (BVI) person can wear, which better connects them to their surroundings via a live individual who sees exactly what they would. These navigators transcribe the visual world into an auditory one. From shopping, to reading ingredients and instructions, picking out an outfit to traveling or calling an uber, Aira helps BVI individuals live a more independent lives. Based in San Diego, the company now employs 50 people, developers and navigators, that help clients across the country. And Aira is just getting started. Partnering with institutions like UC San Diego and San Diego International Airport, Aira Enabled Zones are being stood up to ensure BVI individuals are able to access this assistance for free while at school, on travel, etc.

San Diego Regional EDC has been proud to support Aira in creating strategic partnerships via introductions to San Diego institutions and regional partners. EDC was able to leverage its existing network to open new doors for Aira at key San Diego business and organizations including the San Diego Convention Center, San Diego Tourism Authority, Petco, Viasat, BD, Cubic, Canadian Department of Commerce, Zero8Hundred, Seaworld, Tijuana EDC, and more.

The company was also recently named to WTC San Diego’s export accelerator program, MetroConnect.

Aira truly is another example of a truly #SDlifechanging company in San Diego.

Well, that was fun.

Thank you to those who joined EDC last night for the SD: Life. Changing. Summer Bash. Since the beginning, this has been a community-driven campaign, and last night was no exception.

This event would not have been possible without the vision of Dan Ryan and his team at Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc., as well as our sponsors DPR Construction, BNBuilders, and many more. A huge thanks to Dawn Barry and Nate Wiger for telling us their San Diego stories, and to Brian Malarkey for dishing up some culinary magic. These are exactly the kind of companies and people that make this place Life. Changing., and these are exactly the types of stories that we need to continue to tell.

But we cannot do this alone. We need your help. As part of SDlifechanging.org, we’ve created a Talent Recruitment Toolkit and a directory + map of the region’s most innovative companies – You can request free access to those here. We’re asking you – as San Diegans that know and love this region – to share these resources on your company and personal channels.

Please be sure to follow along and engage with us at @SDlifechanging and stay tuned for additional updates.

Stay life-changing, San Diego.

– Team EDC

p.s. Event photos will soon be available for download here.

If you are interested in engaging more in the campaign, please drop us a line at communcations@sandiegobusiness.org.

It’s Comic-Con week, San Diego. Whether you’re one of the 135,000 attendees or you’re just heading downtown to people-watch, Comic-Con has the power to turn the mundane into the magical – if done right. The international convention has a $147.1 million regional economic impact, and spurs 57,7000 hotel room nights. And in an attempt to attract attendees from outside of the region to live and work here, San Diego: Life. Changing. is hosting a Comic-Contest on social media and is even setting up a skylight downtown. Location hint: it smells like chocolate and looks like a hipster’s closet…. See below for a Comic-Con how-to guide.

How to Comic-Con

1. Don’t be afraid to walk. All of downtown San Diego will be jam-PACKED with cool activations on buildings, buses, trolleys, street corners, our sunny skies, and bars/restaurants galore. Parking far away might not be such a bad thing.
2. Download Ace Parking app. If you’re one of the many people who weren’t quick enough to get the sold-out Comic-Con parking spaces, you can download the free Ace Parking app to see where all of the available public parking spots are at. Thursday morning is usually the most challenging time for parking, since many people will be trying to navigate around downtown for the first time. Just be patient and embrace it.
3. Or take the Trolley. The SDCCU Stadium (Formerly Qualcomm Stadium) is an easy and convenient alternative to braving downtown in a car. For the small price of a trolley ticket, you can park and enjoy a ride to and from downtown, most likely seated next to your favorite superhero and villain.
4. Wear comfortable close-toed shoes and socks. We get it. It’s San Diego, and people wear flip-flops here. But Comic-Con draws thousands of people into downtown San Diego. That means the streets, sidewalks, and any other surface will be taken up by people walking every which way. You are most likely to get stomped on and/or will be walking a couple miles. Wear your comfy shoes and you’ll be thankful later.
5. Embrace the lines. Lines are everywhere. For the panels, the crazy cool photo ops, and especially at all of the nearby restaurants and bars. It’s okay, just hop in and know that whatever you’re waiting for will be worth it. The people-watching alone will surely set your spirits back up.
6. Know your way around. A lot of time can be wasted by trying to navigate around the crowds. Don’t be that lost soul, desperately in need of an iced coffee but can’t figure out where to get it. Do your homework to know where you’d want to get food/drinks from and where they are located in downtown. Also note that Harbor Drive will be closed for the first time this year. The Convention Center put together some helpful maps, so you don’t drive around like a newb.
7. Have fun! This is a time for you to explore everything nerdy with people all around who share that same passion. From comics to tabletop games to movies to books, it has everything. Talk to people in lines, make friends. Who knows, you could meet your new BFF…or roommate for when you finally take the San Diego plunge.

The fun doesn’t have to end with Comic-Con. Enter the #ComicContest

We’ve teamed up with local illustrator Jon Condry (@joncondry) to develop custom-made pins, in the spirit of San Diego: Life. Changing. So head to IDW Publishing‘s booth #2743 (did you know they were a San Diego-based company?) to collect one. And keep a lookout for San Diego: Life. Changing.’s street team (@bernoraptor & @bree_burris) this weekend for another shot. Follow @SDlifechanging on Twitter, where they’ll keep you up-to-date on their location. Then, once you have your hands on one of these exclusive pins, head over to our one of our social channels – @SDlifechanging in case you were wondering – and post it. Check out sandiegolifechanging.org/comiccontest/ for more details and info. And check out #ComicContest to see some posts.

And if you want to start your job search today, head over to the company map to learn about some of our companies that are hiring.

Good luck, and don’t forget your sunscreen.

EDC launched the San Diego: Life. Changing. campaign to attract talent and investment to San Diego by celebrating the smart and innovative people that call this place home.

Join us August 9 for a night of local food + drinks served up by celeb chef Brian Malarkey, campaign giveaways, and more to learn how we can take San Diego: Life. Changing. to the next level. We’ll also hear a keynote from Dawn Barry, co-founder and president of Luna DNA, and Nate Wiger of Amazon. Stay tuned for word on another special guest..

Where: Farmer & the Seahorse | 10996 Torreyana Rd, San Diego, CA 92121 (one of the hippest spots in SD)
When: Thursday, August 9, 2018 | 5:00-8:30pm

Celebrate With Us

San Marcos-based MetroConnect company Ocean Reef Group proves just what we mean by San Diego: Life. Changing.

When twelve Thai boys and their soccer coach were trapped in a partly flooded cave, the diving equipment company quietly stepped in behind the headlines. On its own accord, Ocean Reef shipped thousands of dollars worth of full-face dive masks to Thailand to be worn by the young boys as they escaped the cave. After a two-week ordeal, all team members survived and were successfully extricated. This is how #SDlifechanging gets to work.

More details here.

With and through our investors, EDC works to maximize San Diego’s economic competitiveness. Click through the links below to see how.

EDC’s Q2 in review

Regional Support

EDC convenes resources and stakeholder groups to help talent and a diversity of companies thrive in the San Diego mega-region. The economic development team led and advised on a variety of projects with the following outcomes:

• San Diego was selected for a national drone pilot program
• San Diego was a top contender for Army Futures Command
• Six local companies awarded Cal Competes Tax Credits
• Red Door Interactive set to open international operations close to home
• Inclusive growth steering committee convened to set measurable goals
• Link to San Diego played host to 75 students at MiraCosta College

WTC San Diego

As part of EDC, World Trade Center San Diego (WTC) works to cultivate a pipeline of export-ready firms, maximize FDI opportunities, and grow the region’s global connectivity.

The WTC team connected local businesses and industry leaders to foreign markets. Here’s how:

• Closed out year-three of MetroConnect program; awarded $35K Grand Prize to CureMatch
• Supported Lufthansa as it officially began its nonstop service to Frankfurt, Germany
• Attended World Trade Centers Association General Assembly in Leeuwarden with Port of San Diego
• Hosted 50-person delegation from China

San Diego: Life. Changing.

EDC’s marketing efforts serve to elevate the region as a top destination for talent, business, and investment.

As part of the San Diego: Life. Changing. campaign, EDC’s marketing-communications team debuted the following to equip businesses with the resources necessary to ‘sell’ the region:

• Made in San Diego beer in partnership with Ballast Point
• Online Recruitment Toolkit and Company Map
• Regional marketing brochure

Research

Understanding our economy begins with strong data. EDC develops economic reports to help business and civic leaders make informed decisions.

Our research team released the following economic reports in Q2:

• The Importance of Water Reliability to San Diego’s Economy
• San Diego’s Economic Pulse
• Quarterly Economic Snapshot

See the full Quarterly Report here.