Today's announcement that there was zero net job growth last month is troubling indeed. I am very interested, as is the rest of the country, in the President's planned jobs speech to Congress next Thursday.  One the areas I would expect him to highlight as having the most potential for job growth is the start-up community.  As the country as a whole struggles to avoid a double dip recession, venture-backed start-ups are pulling more than their weight in hiring Americans.   At StartUpHIre.com, an online jobs posting site for venture backed start-ups, there were more than 14,000 open jobs listed in the second quarter of 2011.  From August 1, 2010 to August 1 2011, more than 40,000 jobs were posted on the site.  And that is just a percentage of the total venture-backed universe. 

 

Indisputable fact:  Every time a company receives venture capital funding, jobs are created. And as these companies grow, so does employment, especially at those companies that go public.  While venture-backed companies do fail and go out of business, the net job creation is always positive. As we approach Labor Day and search for a bright light in these uncertain times, it is becoming more apparent how vital these emerging companies are to the US economy and our recovery.  Public policies that support these companies are so very important and, as Congress returns from its summer recess, we hope their priorities will be in the right place.