Software Technology Industry Success Story in Fairfax

Software company cracks the code to success from Fairfax County

When opportunity knocks, global tech leader Appian answers from the place where it all started, Fairfax County.

“Since Appian’s beginning in my apartment in McLean in 1999, all of our headquarters, all our code and all our funding have been in or come from Northern Virginia,” said Appian CEO and Founder Matt Calkins. “We’ve found all the resources we’ve needed to build a winning technology company right here.”

From its offices across Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, Appian enables the world’s largest organizations to build new applications and workflows quickly, using a low-code automation platform. Low-code is a new way to build apps that replaces complex coding with simple drawings, like flowcharts. Low-code’s popularity increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, when companies needed a way to adapt quickly to change. Bayer, S&P Global, Volkswagen, T-Mobile and Ryder are some of the global brands using the Appian platform.

All this traction equals continued growth for Appian, one of 8,800 Fairfax County tech companies. In 2018, the company invested $28.4 million to expand its headquarters and create 600 new jobs over five years. True to form, Appian’s site search stayed within the county, with Appian moving from Reston to its 785,000 square-foot campus in Tysons.

People and location are two Fairfax County perks. The regional workforce includes 152,000 software engineers, cybersecurity specialists and an influx of entry level tech talent. Appian’s 100+ Federal customers are just a short train ride away, with all D.C. agencies easily within reach.

“Tysons could be the best place in Northern Virginia for talent. We have the Beltway – from Maryland to Alexandria – from which to recruit and retain a high-caliber workforce,” said Calkins. “The access is superlative, and that’s a major advantage.”