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Moving in New Directions --
Info Tech Leads the Way

Arkansas is also moving forward in developing a good foundation for knowledge-based industries. One of the state's first steps was to pass a 14-bill economic development package last year that basically expanded its business incentives to knowledge-based industries. Arkansas expanded its job tax credits and payroll rebates to information technology businesses and knowledge-based R&D, and the work-force training program was extended to information technology businesses as part of the package.

Arkansas has paid particular attention to the needs of the information technology industries. Most recently, public funds and private-sector concerns helped establish the Donaghey College of Information Science and Systems Engineering (DCISSE) at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock (UALR).

"There have been needs in central Arkansas for quite some time but without engineering here, specifically for the knowledge-based industries, it was difficult to meet those demands," says Dr. Keith Hudson, director of DCISSE. "But when Alltel moved part of its operations to Atlanta due to a lack of engineering grads here in Arkansas, that really watered the seeds, and it basically drove the formation of the college."

DCISSE includes tracks for applied science, computer science, engineering technology, construction management, systems engineering and Web Course Design and delivery. One key program that's especially useful for info-tech firms is the new 18-credit Information Technology minor. Currently offered only to UALR students, the new program will be made a certificate program this fall.

Such efforts have made IT firms take a second look at Arkansas. Last year, several IT firms announced major expansion plans in central Arkansas. "The largest announcements for Little Rock last year were Alltel, a telecommunications company, and Acxiom, a software company," says Kim Pruitt, director with the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce. "Alltel has completed a new tower, their corporate facility, in Riverdale. Acxiom opened their corporate headquarters in the same area of town, and they also opened a major office facility west [of Little Rock] with about 700 employees and another facility in downtown Little Rock, which will be a major gain for the downtown area."

In West Little Rock, Southwestern Bell Wireless is building a $26 million call center to replace four smaller call centers in Houston, St. Louis, Kansas City and west Texas. The 100,000-sq.-ft. (9,290-sq.-m.) center will open Nov. 1 and will employ 500 new workers.

Just northwest of Little Rock, Acxiom Corp. is taking advantage of the labor being pumped out of the city of Conway's three universities. The software developer recently added its seventh building to its campus and another 500 workers.

"And we're finding that smaller companies are coming here now because of Acxiom -- because they see that Acxiom was able to build its company and find a technical work force here," says Brad Lacy, director of economic development with the Conway Development Corp. "You're also starting to see companies spin off from Acxiom like Link State Technologies, which designs networks."