Governor Rick Scott today announced that Next Horizon will be expanding to a new corporate headquarters in Seminole County and will be creating more than 20 new jobs. The company will also invest $1.9 million in the local community. Next Horizon is a Sanford-based technology company specializing in IT managed services, application development and digital marketing solutions that currently employs more than 26 Floridians.
Governor Scott said, “I am proud to announce that Next Horizon will be expanding in Sanford and creating more than 20 new jobs in Seminole County. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and have led to the creation of nearly 1.5 million jobs since 2011. Our focus remains on growing our economy by creating an environment where companies like Next Horizon can grow and hire more Floridians.”
The more than 20 new jobs will include positions for full time application developers, quality assurance professionals, and project managers, and will pay an average of 84 percent more than Seminole County’s annual average wage. Next Horizon will build the new facility adjacent to its current location in Sanford. Construction is scheduled to start December 2018 with completion slated for fourth quarter in 2019.
Next Horizon President and CIO Harry Ellis, III, said, “As our company grew, we had to consider all our options and decide how best to expand. The city of Sanford and Seminole County came together to meet our needs and create a business-friendly means for expansion. We have a wealth of resources here – educated professionals, creative designers, and a vibrant and engaged business community. We foresee an exciting and successful future right here in Sanford and this partnership has fueled our path to growth.”
The project was made possible through strong partnerships between Enterprise Florida, The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, the Orlando Economic Partnership, Seminole County Government and the city of Sanford. The Partnership assisted Next Horizon by validating the region’s labor market and business value proposition as well as providing connections to talent recruitment resources.
Peter Antonacci, CEO of Enterprise Florida, said, “Next Horizon’s expansion will bring new high wage jobs to Florida families. This represents a big win for Seminole County.”
Cissy Proctor, Executive Director of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, said, “Congratulations to Next Horizon on the expansion of its corporate headquarters, another sign that Florida’s business friendly policies are having significant impacts on our economy. These high wage jobs in Seminole County will provide opportunities for hardworking Floridians in the technology industry.”
Seminole County Commission Chairman John Horan said, “Our Commission is pleased to support one of our existing businesses as they can continue to thrive in Seminole County. The high-tech sector is one of the fastest growing in our area, and the growth of Next Horizon demonstrates why it is important that government remain involved and supportive of economic development.”
Sanford Mayor Jeff Triplett said, “Next Horizon has been a tremendous corporate citizen in the city of Sanford for many years. The company provides high wage, high value employment for the citizens of our community. We are very excited that during this time of growth, they have decided to expand operations in Sanford.”
Orlando Economic Partnership President and CEO Tim Giuliani said, “As Orlando’s economy continues to grow, we are seeing more companies choosing to stay in our market. In addition, our region is rich in tech talent and in Seminole County alone, there’s been a 23 percent growth rate in the number of software developers over the past four years. The key to Next Horizon’s growth has been the company’s ability to successfully find and attract highly skilled workers.”
Next Horizon Networking & Technology has been serving the Central Florida area for more than 25 years, Next Horizon makes sense of technology, digital marketing, custom development, and IT Managed Solutions. Next Horizon helps customers by focusing on reducing client costs, increasing productivity and decreasing downtime. Next Horizon’s staff of certified IT technicians, staff programmers, web design developers and graphic designers offer complete technology solutions to businesses, from supporting client IT departments, developing custom software, to driving conversions from Internet visitors through strategic, creative and measurable internet marketing campaigns. Next Horizon is led by President, Harry Ellis III, who in 2017 was named one of Orlando Business Journal’s CEOs of the Year.
Enterprise Florida, Inc. (EFI) is a partnership between Florida’s businesses and government leaders and is the principal economic development organization for Florida. EFI facilitates job growth through recruitment and retention, international trade and exporting, promotion of sporting events, and capital funding programs to assist small and minority businesses. EFI launched “Florida – The Future is Here” to promote the state as the nation’s premier business destination.
The Orlando Economic Partnership (the Partnership) works to provide the Orlando region with quality jobs, economic growth, broad-based prosperity and a sustainable quality of life. It is a not-for-profit, public/private partnership representing Central Florida’s seven counties – Brevard, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Polk, Seminole and Volusia – as well as the City of Orlando. The Partnership was formed from the merger of the Central Florida Partnership and the Orlando Economic Development Commission. For more information, visit Orlando.org.
