Remarks – Yahoo! Customer Care Center Opening

August 2, 2005

 

     Thank you for the introduction. And thank you all for being here to welcome and celebrate Oregon’s newest partner in both economic – and community – development.

     I’ve been looking forward to this day since the announcement was official that Yahoo! had selected Hillsboro, Oregon for its newest Customer Care Center of Excellence.

     I want to recognize several people here today, including Mayor Tom Hughes, Larry Pederson with the City of Hillsboro, Amy Keiter with the Oregon Economic and Community Development Department and all of the Regional Partners who collectively made this vision a reality.

     I also want to officially welcome Yahoo! and Jerry Yang – Yahoo’s Founder – to Oregon.

Your company is exactly the kind of company we want to recruit – and retain.

     Your values are clearly aligned with Oregon’s values of community, family, and creating a state that is a great place to grow up, raise a family and do business. And you’ve demonstrated a commitment to developing a true partnership with the state and the City of Hillsboro to help accomplish our shared-goals of both economic and community success.

     It has already been mentioned what Yahoo! means for the City of Hillsboro and that with this new facility, at least 180 additional jobs will be created over the next two years with the potential of more in the future.

     We all know about Yahoo!’s excellent benefits and family-friendly business practices – in fact, when I heard the list (that goes on and on) of benefits, I seriously considered submitting an application for a job!

     But Yahoo! is more than a place to work. Yahoo! is also a place where employees have opportunities to grow professionally and give back to their community through the Yahoo! Employee Foundation.

     Plus, as you see, the Max line stops right in front of this new center – which is good for commuters and good for our environment.

     There are many people here today who know what it took – and all of the work behind the scenes that it took to make this relocation a reality. And I again, want to thank you for that work and dedication to bringing such a great corporate citizen to Oregon.

     But I think it is important to share with the greater public – who may not know all that went into this success – why this day is symbolic of how many more great opportunities are ahead for us in Oregon.

     Oregon – as I have said many times before – is a great place to do business. I think by now, it’s not a secret that Oregon was not the only state on Yahoo!’s list for this Customer Care Center, which is noteworthy because while we did offer some financial incentives to Yahoo! – I know that many other states offered more. But in the end, Oregon won.

     And Oregon won because it isn’t only about money. Oregon won because of what we have to offer that money and tax incentives can’t buy – which is a quality workforce, a commitment to community, and the values of partnership, collaboration and innovation. And most important – is what we all know – Oregon is a wonderful place to live.

     This customer care center is not a call center – it demands a skilled workforce that is internet-savvy and that has the knowledge and ability to continue learning and growing professionally as the technology industry grows and advances.

     And Oregon offers that workforce.

     We also offer conveniences such as tri-met as well as an international airport that is right on this max-line – delivering door to door service for those visiting or those departing.

     Lastly, today is symbolic of the endless opportunities that we as a state are pursuing. Who would have guessed at this time last year, we’d be here today, welcoming an internationally recognized company such as Yahoo! to Hillsboro?

     I actually did believe that we’d be the choice in the end, because I believe in Oregon and I knew that once Yahoo! tasted our great cuisine, saw our mountains, valleys, rivers and coastline – and then of course, met the citizens of this state and this community – that any other state in the nation had tough competition.

     So I want again to thank the teamwork that went into making this day happen.

     I want to thank Yahoo! for giving Oregon the opportunity to welcome a new partner and new member of the Hillsboro community.

     And I want the citizens of Oregon to know that this is the beginning of many more opportunities for our state.