to work through all the regulations.” Community ties grow deep for founder
Design of the four-story,
72,000-square-foot facility was further
complicated by the relatively small
footprint of the lot. Despite all the site
concerns, JAMF saw a lot of benefits
in keeping its office in downtown Eau
Claire. E
“We definitely wanted to stay
downtown because of its proximity
to the university and the benefits
of our people to being downtown
– access to the bike trails, access to
the farmers market, the view of the
rivers,” Johnson said. “We want to be
part of the community. It’s a source of
company pride.” Meanwhile, Chip Pearson, an employee at a Seattle phone company,
noticed the same problem. The two met by chance; by 2002 JAMF
Software had been founded, designing and marketing software to allow
I T managers to set up and maintain Apple computer systems more
efficiently.
The company’s founder, Zach
Halmstad, credits his work at the
University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire
for his start in software design
and has committed support to the
revitalization of his hometown.
Halmstad wanted the Eau Claire JAMF
facility to enhance the City; Hoecherl
believes the building contributes
greatly to the neighborhood.
“The building is interesting in that it
makes such a statement. It’s modern;
it offers an industrial warehouse
au Claire native Zach Halmstad was a music major at the University
of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in the late 1990s when he took a part-time
job with the university’s IT department, servicing the school’s Apple
computers. After the part-time job evolved into a full-time position,
Halmstad realized that important tools available to manage Windows-
based computing systems were not available for Apple computers.
Since then, the company has grown to about 350 employees with
clientele around the globe, including universities and Fortune 100
companies. Pearson works out of headquarters in Minneapolis, and
Halmstad is deeply rooted in Eau Claire.
The firm’s downtown presence is a source of company pride. Roughly a
third of the employees are UW-Eau Claire graduates. Staff members tend
to patronize downtown businesses. Many walk or bike to work.
The approximately $12 million new facility represents just a part of
JAMF Software’s contribution to the revitalization of the core of the city
Halmstad calls home. JAMF Software has also pledged $500,000 toward
The Confluence Project, a proposed arts center and multiuse building in
downtown Eau Claire.
– Kay Kruse-Stanton
TRENDS
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