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KC Tech Council: Kansas City region posts strong tech job growth; cybersecurity and AI among fastest-growing areas
Summary
Cara Lehi of the KC Tech Council presented annual tech-economy data showing rapid tech job growth in the Kansas City region (16% since the pandemic), high concentration of tech employment (about 18% above the national average in the metro), rapid cybersecurity expansion and growing demand for data and software roles; presenters warned of a talent
Cara Lehi, president and CEO of the KC Tech Council, told the committee that the Kansas City metro is the state’s most concentrated tech employment center and has posted substantial tech growth since the pandemic.
Key points presented: tech jobs in the Kansas City MSA have grown about 16% since the pandemic; the region’s tech share of the labor market is roughly 18% higher than the national average; cybersecurity headcount in the region has nearly doubled (presenter cited an 85% increase); AI and machine-learning investments make up a growing share of tech investment nationally and an outsized share locally; and the region has a notable advanced-manufacturing cluster that supports hardware as well as software roles.
Lehi said Kansas added the 22nd most tech jobs nationally in 2023 and, on a per-capita basis, ranked 12th in percent growth. She reported about 20,000 tech job postings in Kansas in 2023 and said Kansas City accounted for a large share of those openings (presenter estimated roughly 7,000+ of Kansas’s postings were in the Kansas City area, but noted exact distribution varies). The council flagged a talent pipeline gap: combining computer‑science graduates across Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa yields a pool the presenter cited as roughly 88,100 graduates per year (presenter framed this number as an aggregate and the committee noted recruiting and retention remain challenges). Lehi stressed tech wages outpace statewide averages — an estimated ~89% higher pay for tech workers in Kansas compared with the statewide average across all sectors — and urged continued investment in K–12, postsecondary pipelines, retention and upskilling.
Committee members asked about relative strengths in hardware versus software, Kansas City’s competitive advantages, and whether the data were statewide or metro-specific. Lehi said the region benefits from diversified subsectors, spun‑off firms from larger legacy employers (examples named in Q&A included Garmin and Cerner alumni firms), and that the region remains competitive on cost of living and wages compared with many larger tech hubs. She recommended retaining investment in local talent programs and collaborating across state lines with organizations such as Flagship Kansas in Wichita.
