Montana’s high-tech and manufacturing sectors are some of the fastest-growing industries in the state, according to a recent study. 

The University of Montana Bureau of Business and Economic Research released the study this week that emphasized the importance of high-tech industries such as software, manufacturing, consulting, and advertising and marketing. 

The 78 firms who were members of the Montana High Tech Business Alliance at the time the study was completed said they anticipated growing at least 25 percent, more than eight times faster than the Montana economy as a whole.

“These firms are seeds scattered across the state, and they’re only going to grow,” Greg Gianforte, chairman of the alliance and founder of RightNow Technologies, said during a visit to the Daily Inter Lake on Wednesday. 

This is the first year the bureau has completed a study of this caliber on these industries, and the Montana High Tech Business Alliance hopes to complete the study annually to keep a benchmark of high-tech and manufacturing growth in the state. 

The alliance now has over 143 member firms that pay their employees more than $50,000 a year and combined for more than $632 million in revenue and sales during 2014. 

The alliance’s mission is to “shine a light” on these sectors and understand obstacles these companies face while trying to grow or become more profitable. 

The largest impediment for high-tech manufacturing companies was reported to be a lack of access to high-quality talent, according to the survey. 

“We’ve been exporting our kids for decades,” Gianforte said. “Now it’s time to bring them home to Montana.” 

In response, the alliance brainstormed several ways to bolster employment for these industries. 

The alliance developed an online job portal where members can post their high-tech jobs for free. 

“Our focus is to connect, promote and accelerate growth for these industries,” Gianforte said. “Now it’s time to bring all those jobs we exported back home.” 

The portal can be found at www.mthightech.org. 

The alliance understands that people are more likely to move to Montana for jobs if they have connections to the area— if their spouses are from the state or if they attended school here, for example. The website is advertised in both the University of Montana and Montana State University alumni magazines in the hope that graduates who have left the state and want to come back will now have additional incentives. 

The study found Montana’s quality of life is the biggest advantage for these companies. 

Gianforte said he hopes towns across the state will begin promoting telecommuting as viable options for those looking to relocate here. While Gianforte said he believes tourism is a great industry, the jobs it creates are generally low-wage, seasonal positions, which do little to bolster the overall economy. 

“Wouldn’t you rather have 50 people move to Kalispell who are making $100,000 each year?” he said. “Think of the huge impact something like that would make.” 

According to the study, alliance members plan to add nearly 400 new jobs during the next year, providing ample job opportunities for technology students graduating from Montana colleges. 

Gianforte encouraged cities to look at what kinds of skills are needed to compete in the market and help teach those to Montana students. If a city is in need of certain areas of talent or knowledge, high schools and colleges should look at how to prepare their students to enter that market. 

In addition to looking how to overcome obstacles, the alliance will host four networking sessions for its members each year, which will allow different firms to share ideas and overcome problems that may only exist in their individual sectors. 

As an example, Gianforte said that RightNow Technologies would offer employees a $2,000 bonus if they recommended someone the company ended up hiring. This benefited the company because people like to work with peers that they respect and produces high-quality work, so the referrals generally turned out to be some of the most talented employees who may not have found the company on their own. 

The company also provided scholarships to promising college students as incentives to continue their higher education. These students would potentially go on to work for the company, proving the scholarship to be a positive investment. 

One networking session in 2015 will take place in the Flathead Valley during the third quarter of the year. A specific date has not been announced. 

To view the full report, go to www.mthightech.org. 

Reporter Brianna Loper may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at bloper@dailyinterlake.com.