3 Ways MandT Bank's Technology Hub Could Pay Dividends For Downtown

3 ways M&T Bankʼs technology hub could pay dividends for downtown – The Buffalo News 4/21/19, 3)44 PM
M&T already has a significant downtown presence. (Derek Gee/News file photo)
3 ways M&T Bank's technology

hub could pay dividends for
downtown
By Matt Glynn (https://buffalonews.com/author/matt_glynn/) | Published April 20,
2019 | Updated April 20, 2019
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M&T Bank Corp.'s planned hiring wave of 1,000

new workers
(https://buffalonews.com/2019/04/16/mts-
new-tech-hub-could-bring-1000-new-jobs-
here/) over the next five years should cause a
ripple effect downtown beyond the bank's
walls, in different ways.
• More people will be working downtown, as

M&T centralizes where its technology
employees are based.
• It will give a further boost for downtown real

estate, wherever M&T decides to open its new
technology hub.
• And it will give a shot in the arm to the

region's undersized tech sector.
M&T chairman and CEO Rene Jones last week

disclosed plans to add more than 1,000 jobs
downtown, to help the bank develop and
deploy technology more quickly. The bank
intends to fill the first 250 of those jobs by the
end of this year.
"Just think about 1,000 more jobs in

downtown," said Michael T. Schmand,
executive director of Buffalo Place, a nonprofit
that represents downtown business and

property owners.
The influx of workers should generate more

business for downtown restaurants, bars and
entertainment venues, Schmand said, and
downtown apartments will benefit if some of
the hires decide to live close to where they
work.
M&T already has a significant impact

downtown through its investments and
sponsorships, including the Thursday at the
Square concert series that originated at
Lafayette Square and later moved to Canalside,
Schmand said. The planned new jobs fit well
with redevelopment projects that developers
have undertaken downtown, he said.
"I think it all bodes very well," Schmand said.
Even before M&T unveiled plans to hire 1,000

more workers in Buffalo, the bank had outlined
a strategy to bring together its technology
workers in the region in a single location. The
bank has about 2,500 tech workers, spread
among six locations in the region. M&T says
bringing them together will promote
collaboration.
A big question remains unanswered: Where

will all these new M&T employees work?
M&T already has a significant footprint

downtown, most notably at One M&T Plaza
and M&T Center. M&T also has workers at 285
Delaware Ave., and just outside the downtown
core in the Larkin Center of Commerce.
Last December, M&T issued a request for

proposals to landlords and developers, for
office space to house its technology
operations. M&T said it received more
responses than it anticipated, but hasn't yet
announced a location. Jones at the annual
meeting said he wasn't sure how soon a
decision would come.
Wherever the technology hub goes is bound to

provide a boost. If none of the existing office
space suits its needs, new space could be the
solution.
One possibility that has attracted attention:

the One Seneca Tower complex. The vacant
tower is just down the street from M&T's
headquarters, on the Metro Rail, with ample
parking spaces. Doug Jemal's Douglas
Development Corp. has proposed adding
commercial space at the tower plaza that
could suit M&T's needs.
(https://s3.amazonaws.com/bncore/wp-
content/uploads/2019/04/jemal.jpg)
Doug Jemal's One Seneca Tower plaza is viewed as one

possibility for M&T's tech hub. (Derek Gee/News file
photo)
The region's tech sector, which has lagged

other parts of the country, also should get a
boost from M&T's downtown commitment.
"We want M&T to be a compelling destination

for talented, innovative, tech-savvy people,"
said Michael Wisler, who joined M&T last year
as its chief information officer.
That would be a big change for the Buffalo

Niagara region, which has struggled to attract
the technology jobs that are widely viewed as a
hot growth sector – and a source of high-
paying jobs – for many years to come.
Part of the bank's strategy centers on the

workplace itself. M&T has renovated its
workspaces into "more engaging, open and
collaborative environments," Wisler said. Along
with technology tools, M&T is giving workers

more options about where and how they
choose to work.
The bank is also doing more to support local

colleges and universities, as well as the startup
community, "which help make our
communities destinations for people seeking
opportunity," Wisler said.
Adding 1,000 M&T jobs could prove to be the

kind of jump-start the region's tech sector has
been lacking.
Jones talked about creating an M&T tech hub

that would attract other companies, along
with different tech and entrepreneurial
organizations, to co-locate in and around the
hub. The objective, he said, is to "advance a
culture and a community of innovation, where
creative collisions happen, where new talent
and new ideas come together to grow our
businesses and grow our community."
(https://s3.amazonaws.com/bncore/wp-
content/uploads/2019/04/1012665412-MT-Bank-
annua9.jpg)
M&T chairman and CEO Rene Jones sees a spinoff

effect from a tech hub. (Sharon Cantillon/News file
photo)
Alan Rosenhoch, director of business

development for Invest Buffalo Niagara, said
M&T's plan to add 1,000 jobs here enhances
the region's reputation outside the area, too.
"When an industry leader like M&T comes out

publicly at their annual meeting and says,
'We're placing our bet on Buffalo in the tech
sector,' that's a really strong signal to others in
the industry, that they believe they can find
strong success here and others could, as well,"
Rosenhoch said.
The region's lower cost of living and collection

of colleges and universities are other selling
points to companies, as is the chance for a
company to be a "big fish in a smaller pond," he
said.
"The extreme levels of competition for talent

in some of these larger markets are exhausting
employers," Rosenhoch said. "The loyalty factor
here, the lower turnover rates, can be really
attractive, as well."
In their analysis of economic data from 2018,

Canisius College professors George Palumbo
and Mark Zaporowski found that jobs in the
information and financial activities sector,
which include some tech jobs, paid a lot less in

the Buffalo metro area than the U.S. metro
average.
The average pay for information jobs in the

Buffalo Niagara region was $65,489, only 57
percent of the U.S. metro average of $115,164.
The Buffalo Niagara figure was below the
average for Rochester and Syracuse, as well.
Meanwhile, the average pay for financial
activities jobs in the Buffalo area was $68,895,
just 67 percent of the U.S. metro average.
The figures underscore the competitive

advantage companies can find by performing
that work here, compared to some other parts
of the country. But the same statistics show
that the averages for information and financial
activities jobs were well above the region's
average of $49,465 for all industries, meaning
those jobs pay well by this region's income
standards.
That cost advantage isn't translating into more

hiring for tech workers. A recent analysis of
federal job data by software management firm
AgileCraft found that companies in Seattle hire
software developers at a pace that is 10 times
faster than it is in Buffalo. For computer
network architects, the hiring rate is 10 times
faster in Miami, Atlanta, Tampa, Orlando and
Minneapolis.
But Rosenhoch said the tech sector here has

its success stories, including the rapidly
expanding ACV Auctions. There is also AML
RightSource, which just expanded into
Larkinville, and Torch Labs, which is based in
California and has a Buffalo office, and recently
raised $10 million.
"I see huge opportunity for growth,"

Rosenhoch said of tech jobs. "The region is
really well positioned to be attractive to this
type of worker and for businesses to contain
costs, while achieving their goals from a
technology innovation perspective."
M&T's push
into tech
brings big
payoff for
Buffalo: 1,000 new jobs
Story topics: banking

(https://buffalonews.com/topic/banking/)/
Local Business
(https://buffalonews.com/topic/local-
business/)/ Local News
(https://buffalonews.com/topic/local-
news/)/ M&T Bank
(https://buffalonews.com/topic/mt-bank/)/
Matt Glynn
(https://buffalonews.com/topic/matt-glynn/)
(https://buffalonews.com/author/matt_glynn/)
Matt Glynn – Matt Glynn has been a business
reporter with The Buffalo News since 2000. He is a
native of Youngstown and lives in Buffalo.
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3 Ways MandT Bank's Technology Hub Could Pay Dividends For Downtown

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3 ways M&T Bankʼs technology hub could pay dividends for downtown – The Buffalo News 4/21/19, 3)44 PM

3 ways M&T Bank's technology

M&T Bank Corp.'s planned hiring wave of 1,000

• More people will be working downtown, as

• It will give a further boost for downtown real

• And it will give a shot in the arm to the

M&T chairman and CEO Rene Jones last week

"Just think about 1,000 more jobs in

that represents downtown business and

The influx of workers should generate more

M&T already has a significant impact

"I think it all bodes very well," Schmand said.

Even before M&T unveiled plans to hire 1,000

A big question remains unanswered: Where

M&T already has a significant footprint

Last December, M&T issued a request for

Wherever the technology hub goes is bound to

One possibility that has attracted attention:

Doug Jemal's One Seneca Tower plaza is viewed as one

The region's tech sector, which has lagged

"We want M&T to be a compelling destination

That would be a big change for the Buffalo

Part of the bank's strategy centers on the

with technology tools, M&T is giving workers

The bank is also doing more to support local

Adding 1,000 M&T jobs could prove to be the

Jones talked about creating an M&T tech hub

M&T chairman and CEO Rene Jones sees a spinoff

Alan Rosenhoch, director of business

"When an industry leader like M&T comes out

The region's lower cost of living and collection

"The extreme levels of competition for talent

In their analysis of economic data from 2018,

which include some tech jobs, paid a lot less in

The average pay for information jobs in the

The figures underscore the competitive

That cost advantage isn't translating into more

But Rosenhoch said the tech sector here has

"I see huge opportunity for growth,"

Story topics: banking

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