Lloyd Adams, SAP North America’s Managing Director for the East Region, believes that Amazon’s HQ2 decision had to do with access to talent, writes Roberto Torres for Technical.ly Philly.

“With a vibrant college and university programs that feed into the employer market, we need to better retain and develop talent,” said Adams.

Wharton professor Robert Inman thinks that no amount of money would have made the difference in Philadelphia’s favor. Instead, the decision to split the HQ2 between Long Island City and Arlington, Va., was made based on access to highly specialized talent.

However, Adams is quick to point out the positive aspect of the city’s bid. By making the Top 20, the City of Brotherly Love put itself on the international stage and signaled its ongoing growth.

“It can only mean good things for the area in terms of future similar opportunities,” he said. “It was an inflection point in Philly, and there’s a lot to learn from this.”

Read more about Amazon’s decision at Technical.ly Philly by clicking here.

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