By Molly Ryan, Report, Houston Business Journal
The InSource Group, a Dallas-based information technology staffing agency, has decided to make Houston its next major market.
The $33.5 million firm has maintained a small Houston presence for about a year, but recently, it decided to invest in a 550-square-foot office space in CityCentre and up its staff to five full-time recruiters and account managers. Between now and 2017, the company intends to grow its local employee count to around 20.
“I had a choice of whether to invest additional money in Dallas, where we already have a sizeable presence, or a new market where we could achieve faster growth,” said James Thompson, The InSource Group’s CEO. “Dollar-for-dollar, I can achieve more in Houston.”
The InSource Group plans to target energy and retail companies looking for IT personnel. The company already has a strong retail customer base in Dallas, and Thompson said it has a growing energy presence.
Thompson said a “good year” for The InSource Group in Houston would be to have 100 contract placements and 25 to 30 full-time placements.
But as the Houston Business Journal has reported, Houston has a major lack of IT workers, so it is incredibly hard to find talent.
“The whole question of the shortage of skills is huge,” Thompson said. “With baby boomers retiring and the failure to graduate enough STEM students and the current immigration policy, we are going to be dealing with this problem for a long time.”
