policy - New Mexico Technology Council

Answers to NMTC's Mayoral Candidate Forum held on August 17, 2017:

To the tech and small business community members who attended our Mayoral Candidate Forum on August 17, 2017:
My name is Lisa Adkins and I moderated the tech and small business Mayoral Candidate Forum held at FatPipe ABQ the evening of August 17, 2017. We had a fabulous turnout with 7 of the 8 candidates participating in the forum and about 200 audience members.
Our theme and format meant to be inclusive of our tech and small business community and we allowed attendees to drop their question in a bucket for the mayoral candidates. Like all the forums being held in our city this summer, there were more questions than could be answered in a single two-hour session.
Before we broke for the evening, I asked the candidates if they would be willing to respond to ALL of our questions if I typed them off and sent to each of them. We seemed to have agreement, so I took on the task of compiling our questions and sent them to each campaign. We requested answers by September 8, knowing it was a near impossible task with the campaign trail in front of them.
I’m happy to report that we got answers from three of the mayoral candidates and we will share them with you HERE. In the linked document, you’ll find answers to our questions from Tim Keller, Brian Colón and Gus Pedrotty. No other candidates responded to our request.
We hope everyone takes the time to vote for our next mayor. The continuity of our efforts in our local ecosystem is imperative and we can’t complain unless we take action to vote. Early voting is already open (find location here: http://where2vote.unm.edu/) and the Albuquerque Municipal Election will be held on Tuesday, October 3, 2017.
Happy reading!!
Sincerely,
Lisa J. Adkins
COO & Director, FatPipe ABQ & The BioScience Center
COO & Cofounder, Ingenuity Software Labs, Inc.

ljadkins2017-09-25T12:10:04+00:00September 25th, 2017|

Talent, Jobs and ABQ’s Growing Tech Scene

For the technology sector, in any city, during any stage of its’ growth, talent (abundance or lack) is always a popular topic of discussion.
After talent, there is always a discussion of the availability of jobs (or not) to keep and attract said talent.
f_gi_1 Over the past several months at NMTC, we have observed vastly different opinions from our members and in the press about these topics. Opinions range from a perceived lack of good tech jobs to an abundance of new jobs (brought about by expansions and recruitment) that we are unprepared to fill.

“In my first several weeks in Albuquerque, I have heard a recurring challenge from the business leaders I’ve sat down with: Good talent is hard to find. It’s also the NO. 1 complaint I heard from business leaders in Houston….West Michigan…and multiple other cites with vastly different economies for more than a decade,” — Candace Beek, Albuquerque Business First

“Any time I’ve tried to hire tech talent here, it’s hard. People don’t live here,” — Garrett Smith, Bryte Studio

“We picked Albuquerque because of the talent in this city.” — Shaun McHugh, Fidelity Investments

“Skilled talent is in short supply,”– Renay Moya, Robert Half Technologies

“Albuquerque scored at the top of every one of those criteria,”– Monty Hamilton, Rural Sourcing Inc. (referring to the high quality of life with a low cost of living, a talented and educated workforce, as well as a city that understands the digital economy)

The conversation doesn’t stop there. We talk about new job training programs. That’s good. Until it’s followed by talk of the lack of positions or adequate ways to place people once they are trained. That’s bad.
All this does not even cover the conversations about if we are reaching far enough into K-12 to attract and train the next generation of tech professionals. Or, whether we are paying enough (or too much) attention to the types of talent we need (millennial, baby boomer, women in tech).
It’s mind boggling.
It’s distressing.
AND, it’s encouraging.
We have something to talk about. The technology industry in New Mexico is establishing its identity and is having real growing pains. Sometimes we just need to say our worst fears out loud to see if our problems are real and our evolution as a business sector is normal. At some point it will all make sense and be good.
And it is good. We are seeing tech companies like Ideum grow their employee base. We are watching start-ups like Lavu receive significant investment and gain national attention. We are seeing new companies like Rural Sourcing establish new roots here in part because of our educated workforce. We are getting serious about job training and placement programs.
Just a few examples include:

TalentABQ, led by Jamai Blivin of Innovate+Educate — on a mission to find 350 tech employees by the end of the year.
CNM, through a $3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor, will launch an information technology apprenticeship program for 300 students, bridging its students’ work skills gap over the next three years.
FatPipeABQ and NMTC are officially launching a local chapter of Girl Develop It, a nonprofit organization that exists to provide affordable and judgment-free opportunities for women interested in learning web and software development.

All this to say, we probably have a talent gap. And yes, we need more good jobs for talented people. But, we are talking about it and that’s a start. In July, NMTC, CNM and other partners launched a series of discussions with community leaders, employers and tech talent all trying to figure out why there is such a disconnect.
The next step is for us, as a community, is to identify one or more categories of issues we can actually address and solve.
Kobe Bryant, a pro basketball player with five NBA titles and one of the game’s greatest scorer once said “Everything negative – pressure, challenges – is all an opportunity for me to rise.”
The same is true for Albuquerque’s tech scene. The fact that we are facing these issues is a result of the opportunity we as the Albuquerque and New Mexico tech community have created. Let’s make the most of it and keep the tough conversations going.
We’d love to hear your thoughts on tech talent and jobs in New Mexico. Come see us at FatPipe or connect with us on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter.

Mia Petersen2015-10-10T12:00:37+00:00October 10th, 2015|

Senator Heinrich Seeks Input, Engagement with FCC; FCC Chairman to Visit

US Senator Martin Heinrich has sponsored “Net Neutraility” Legislation and is inviting the tech business community – and wider public – to provide our thoughts and feedback on these important issues. Read the press release below and contact him here: http://www.heinrich.senate.gov/contact/write-martin

In related news, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler will be in New Mexico this coming Monday for a roundtable discussion with State Senator Jacob Candelaria and local youth about “net neutrality, telehealth, prison phones, rural broadband access, improved internet in schools and libraries, Lifeline, and the recent telecommunications mergers.” Read more here and sign up for the event here: http://act.freepress.net/survey/internet_fcc_abq/

For Immediate Release
Date: June 23, 2014
Contact: Whitney Potter (202) 228-1578

Heinrich Cosponsors Net Neutrality Legislation; Urges FCC Chairman To Hold Hearings To Hear Directly From New Mexicans About Open Internet Rules

WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 23, 2014) – In an effort to ensure an open Internet, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) cosponsored S. 2476, the Online Competition and Consumer Choice Act, a bill that would direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to establish rules that prohibit preferential treatment or prioritization of Internet traffic. The legislation would ensure that start-ups and entrepreneurs have access to the marketplace and consumers can access all content on the Internet equally.

“New Mexicans have made it clear that they want to protect net neutrality,” said Sen. Heinrich. “The Internet must remain open and conducive to free expression, innovation, and competition, not a tiered system based on financial relationships with Internet service providers. It is important that the FCC prohibit providers from discriminating against small businesses in order to ensure that competition is preserved and consumer protections are strengthened.”

On May 15, 2014, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Proposal (NPRM) seeking public comments on how best to restore the Open Internet rules that were struck down by the D.C. Circuit earlier this year. One of the questions that the FCC poses in its NPRM is whether certain practices, such as paid prioritization, should be banned entirely.

Senator Heinrich, a strong proponent of net neutrality, sent a letter to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler urging the Commission to hold a series of field hearings in New Mexico and across the country on the new Open Internet rules.

The Online Competition and Consumer Choice Act, which was introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Congresswoman Doris Matsui (D-CA), member of the House Energy and Commerce Communications and Technology Subcommittee, would require the FCC to prohibit paid prioritization agreements between Internet Service Provider’s (ISP) and content providers on the last mile Internet connection, the connection between the ISP and the consumer. In addition, it would prohibit broadband providers from prioritizing or otherwise giving preferential treatment to its own last mile Internet traffic or the traffic of its affiliates over the traffic of others.

Related files:

###

Mia Petersen2014-06-26T09:23:30+00:00June 26th, 2014|