The Georgia Department of Economic Development is proud to be the lead agency for attracting new business investment to our beautiful state. As an organization, we encourage the expansion of existing industries, align workforce education and training with in-demand jobs, locate new markets for Georgia products and much more. Today, Georgia is home to a thriving business community that includes 18 Fortune 500 companies and 33 Fortune 1000 companies. As the number one state for business, Georgia sustains its pro-business environment by listening to and delivering on the needs of the countless industries that call the state home. And, without a doubt, one of the key draws is the area’s highly impressive talent pool.
Businesses of all sizes need access to a highly skilled and educated workforce, and state leaders see this connection as a key to creating opportunities while supporting Georgians’ livelihoods. With a population of over 10 million, Georgia is the eighth largest state in the U.S., with a labor force of more than five million people. Each year, Georgia’s 85 accredited public and private universities award more than 132,000 degrees and certificates to its graduates. The state is renowned for the strong and diverse talent it produces, as it is home to two of the nation’s top public universities (Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia) and to two of the nation’s top five Historically Black Colleges and Universities (Spelman College and Morehouse College), both of which are located in the heart of Downtown Atlanta. Additionally, Georgia State University, also located in Atlanta, ranks in the top 10 U.S. colleges and universities for both racial diversity and for advancing social mobility.
This year, the Harvard Business Review described Georgia as a target state for tech companies to establish recruitment strategies for workforce diversification, describing Atlanta as a “hotbed of talent from traditionally underrepresented communities.” Further, CBRE recently reported that Atlanta has the most diversity of the top 10 tech markets, with the highest growth rate of the top 50 tech hubs between 2015 and 2019. High-demand industries are a priority too, so Georgia’s HOPE Grant waives tuition at 22 state technical colleges for residents working to develop skills in welding, nursing, cybersecurity and others.
Georgia offers the complete package when it comes to the local talent pool. For additional information on the state’s workforce education programs, visit georgia.org/competitive-advantages/workforce-education. And for more details about The Georgia Department of Economic Development’s efforts, visit georgia.org.
