Buffalo Wild Wings GO is now open at 3231 Spartan Rd in Olney. The scaled-down Buffalo Wild Wings concept focuses primarily on takeout and delivery.
Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown announced the conviction and sentencing of a registered nurse accused of diverting morphine while caring for a 10-year-old patient recovering from open heart surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center’s Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. (more…)
Talent is one of the most important factors influencing where companies choose to invest, expand, and grow. As competition for skilled workers intensifies, employers are embracing a broader talent strategy: one that leverages partnerships. Last week, almost 120 business leaders, elected officials, and members of Montgomery County’s business community attended the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation’s (MCEDC) panel, “The Talent Advantage: A Growth Strategy for Companies in Montgomery County, Maryland,” to hear how local businesses are capitalizing on the County’s world-class academic institutions, innovation ecosystem, quality of life, and economic development resources to attract and retain top talent.
Moderated by Dr. Anne Khademian, Executive Director at The Universities at Shady Grove (USG), the panel included executives from businesses and institutions across industries, including Lockheed Martin, TrilliumBIO, Thales Defense & Security, Johns Hopkins, Montgomery College, and AstraZeneca, who discussed their companies’ strategies for developing their workforce.
Talent as a Business Strategy
For companies competing in highly specialized industries like the defense industry, access to talent directly influences where they choose to locate and grow. For Lockheed Martin, which employs nearly 1,000 people in Montgomery County, talent is one of the primary reasons the company chose to be headquartered here.
“Talent is in the top one or two reasons why we are in the County,” said Todd Cohen, Senior Lead of Strategic Workforce Development, Lockheed Martin.
According to Cohen, Lockheed Martin begins working with partners to develop their talent pipeline well before students enter the workforce, including partnering with Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) on programs such as coding challenges. Lockheed Martin also maintains close relationships with local higher education institutions, including the Universities at Shady Grove (USG).
That local talent pipeline is also an important factor for AstraZeneca, which employs more than 5,000 employees and contractors in Montgomery County. According to Tiffany Lukis, Director of STEM and Community Engagement at AstraZeneca, the company often taps into its alumni base from Montgomery College (ranked #26 nationally among community colleges) and USG (which offers nine different public universities onto one campus), and other local institutions to fill highly technical roles.
Local Companies Are Developing Talent and Not Just Finding It
According to the panelists, investing in existing employees is just as important as recruiting new ones.
At Suburban Hospital, workforce development is closely tied to talent retention. The hospital partners with local educational institutions to provide employees with opportunities to gain new skills and advance their careers. Programs include a Certified Nursing Assistant program through Montgomery College and English as a Second Language classes.
“A huge part of our talent strategy is to prioritize holding on to our top tier talent,” said Corey Lewson, MSW, Program Manager, Workforce Development, John Hopkins Medicine.
For smaller companies, developing talent internally can be especially valuable. Lane Edwards, Vice President of Operations, TrilliumBIO, a biomarker discovery company with fewer than 20 employees based in Rockville, described the challenge of balancing the need for highly specialized expertise with the realities of building a team at an early-stage company.
“When it comes to hiring, we have to be very strategic,” Lane said. “Do we have someone who has the expertise or someone that we can build on?”
Montgomery County Councilmembers Andrew Friedson and Natali Fani-González have introduced legislation that would change the County’s rules for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), with the stated goal of increasing housing supply. (more…)
Turmerica, a vegetarian Indian restaurant with a location in Sterling, Virginia, is coming soon to Montgomery Village Plaza in Gaithersburg. (more…)
We’ve Got the Ticket to Every Sunday Showdown! 🏈🔥
Catch every live out-of-market Sunday game with NFL Sunday Ticket this football season at Lucky Strike Rockville!
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BETHESDA, YOUR SATURDAY MORNING PLANS JUST GOT MORE CREATIVE.
Join Craft Cart at Coffee Republic on Saturday, September 26, from 11:00 AM–1:00 PM for a beginner-friendly faux stained glass experience filled with creativity, coffee and connection.
September is Peripheral Artery Disease Awareness Month, and a MedStar Montgomery Medical Center (Olney) vascular surgeon is encouraging people not to dismiss recurring leg pain or difficulty walking as simply a part of aging.
Construction is picking up at the upcoming Slurp Noodles at Twinbrook Quarter in Rockville. While an opening date has not yet been announced, progress at the space suggests the restaurant could open by the end of the year.
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La Mixteca 2 is now open at 13423 New Hampshire Ave. in Colesville, taking over the space that was previously home to Quench Craft Beer & Wine. Quench operated at the location for 15 years before closing in October 2025.
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Construction is picking up at the upcoming J.Crew Factory at Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg, as the former FineWine.com space has been cleared out and work is underway on the new clothing store.
Burlington will open a new store at Riverview Plaza in Frederick on Friday, September 25, relocating from its previous location on West Patrick Street. The new store will be located at 5557 Urbana Pike and will feature Burlington’s updated store design, including wider aisles, updated signage and a reorganized layout. The Frederick location will be Burlington’s 27th store in Maryland. (more…)
Greenbrier State Park, the popular Western Maryland destination sometimes referred to as “Maryland’s Secret Beach,” has been included in a national list of parks known for some of the longest entrance lines.