People in rural areas of the US often feel left out of the tech circle as jobs in IT are more scarce in these ‘flyover’ zones. Many who are pursuing tech feel they have to switch careers or leave their communities for jobs.
“This is the kind of place where I want to raise my child, and with my wife finishing [school], it became more apparent that I needed to stay in Albuquerque. But there weren’t really that many options for tech work,” says Jackson Stakeman told Nationswell. He moved to Albuquerque from California 5 years ago to spend time with his parents. “I was getting pulled back to California, and it’s just not what I wanted.”
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— Rural Sourcing (@RuralSourcing) August 24, 2017
Rural Sourcing Inc. (RSI) aims to fix this problem. It’s their philosophy that people shouldn’t have to leave their hometowns or uproot their families just to have a chance in the tech industry. RSI provides IT resources in second and third-tier cities around the country. States they serve include Alabama, Arkansas and New Mexico.
They call this ‘rural outsourcing’ or ‘onshoring’. As in, workers in Indiana as opposed to India or Silicon Valley will be employed, lowering the flight of young tech communities and sparking the economy by keeping those dollars local.
Employers who turn to RSI for remote tech employees actually pay much less than a Silicon Valley-based equivalent because people in these tertiary cities have a lower cost of living than the Bay Area or New York. In turn, the coastal cities are relieved of the heavy impact large influxes of tech workers have had on soaring rents and gentrification.
We hope this trend grows. Everyone should have a chance to take part in this quickly shifting economy without having to relocate their life.
