Accounting software company LeaseQuery opened an office in Birmingham last month, joining many tech companies choosing the region as a place to headquarter or expand operations. The Birmingham team, which currently employs nine, is looking to grow.
When Mike VanSickle graduated from Birmingham-Southern College in 2015, he wanted to stay in Birmingham and work. But four years ago, Birmingham didn't have the type of job he wanted.
Originally from New Jersey, VanSickle opted to stay in the Southeast and landed in Atlanta, working for accounting software company LeaseQuery at its headquarters there. When the fast-growing tech company decided to open a second domestic office in Birmingham this year – after a search that included other contenders like Salt Lake City, Charlotte and Nashville – VanSickle jumped at the opportunity to return to the city.
“I love this city,” said VanSickle, now a sales development manager for the company and in charge of LeaseQuery’s Birmingham team. “I left, but I always had the draw to come back. When I graduated, there was a lot of great talent being missed, and I felt forced out because there were no jobs I wanted. But the tech scene in Birmingham has grown a lot, and now I have the opportunity to bring something back to Birmingham, which isn’t my home, but it felt like coming home.”
Thanks to a recent innovation boom in Birmingham – where tech startups like Shipt and, more specifically, software companies like Daxko and McLeod Software are thriving – the landscape has changed in the region since VanSickle’s job search began four years ago.
The emergence of Birmingham as an affordable place to innovate continues to capture the attention of companies like LeaseQuery, which said it chose Birmingham because of its workforce, Southern hospitality culture and widespread support from the community, including the Birmingham Bound tech initiative, the Overton Project, Alabama Power Co., the Birmingham Business Alliance and others.
“Choosing Birmingham [for a second domestic office] gives us an opportunity to hire great people in a different market,” said Christopher Ramsey, chief revenue officer for the company. “So far, it’s been a fantastic experience. The Birmingham community was very welcoming and helpful, and everyone we spoke to seemed really eager to help make us successful.”
LeaseQuery began its Birmingham operations on October 7 and currently employs nine with plans to hire upwards of three or four more employees this month, Ramsey said. The team, all of whom are in sales roles for the company, work in The John Hand Building – home to Shipt’s headquarters – as the hunt continues for what will become the Birmingham team’s permanent office space.
VanSickle said now that he’s back in Birmingham, he has no plans to leave again. LeaseQuery’s Birmingham office has experienced immediate success since opening one month ago, he said, and he credits that to the immense amount of diversity and talent in the region.
“I don’t know what it is about Birmingham, but you have the ability to make an impact quickly here,” VanSickle said. "It's fun to see people have a passion for the city, one that you don't see in larger cities. It's a very exciting time, and Birmingham is growing fast. I'm excited to see where the team goes.”