Dun & Bradstreet moving HQ, 500 jobs to Jacksonville

[Ken_FSU]

Really, really great acquisition for Jax, and a great sign that a legit big player in the data & analytics space sees Jax as having the talent pool necessary to make this move work.

I wonder where they end up at? Stein Mart building is on the market.

Dun & Bradstreet to relocate corporate headquarters to Jacksonville

Dun & Bradstreet announced plans May 20 to relocate its corporate headquarters to Jacksonville, a move that will bring 500 jobs to the city and a $75 million investment in the next five years.

The company provides business data and analytics.

Dun & Bradstreet was acquired in 2019 by an investor group including Jacksonville-based Black Knight Inc., which remains a significant investor in the firm after its July 2020 initial public offering.

It will move to Jacksonville in the fall and is considering an office location. It is headquartered in Short Hills, New Jersey.

The average salary of the 500 new jobs will be about $77,000.

Anthony Jabbour, who serves as Black Knight CEO, also leads Dun & Bradstreet.

"I'm proud of our city and I'm proud to share it with our colleagues at Dun & Bradstreet," Jabbour said at a news conference at JAX Chamber.

Jabbour said in a news release the choice to move to Jacksonville was a strategic investment to grow the company.

"Jacksonville is an attractive market to recruit and retain future, diverse talent and we look forward to building our presence in the market and creating greater opportunities for advancement for the local community," Jabbour said.

Dun & Bradstreet will receive $4 million in state incentives through its High-Impact Performance Initiative.

Legislation will be introduced to City Council in the next two weeks for an additional $21 million in incentives.

Full story: https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/article/dun-and-bradstreet-to-relocate-corporate-headquarters-to-jacksonville

[marcuscnelson]

I wonder if this is the company that the U2C team said wants a stop inside their building somehow. Although that would mean an office somewhere along Bay Street. I can still hear their little "can't do that with a streetcar" quip.

That aside, definitely cool to have a big business coming to town. Looking at their website, a little unclear on what exactly they do, but hey, jobs!

[Steve]

That aside, definitely cool to have a big business coming to town. Looking at their website, a little unclear on what exactly they do, but hey, jobs!

The simplest explanation for them I can come up with is, "Experian but for companies". Think about all of the data Experian (and their subsidiaries) have on individuals and imagine that data for companies.

[jaxlongtimer]

A few notes to add:

Florida Blue recently put over 300,000 square feet in their Riverside tower on the market.  As Black Knight is the reason D & B is moving to Jax, it would make a lot of sense for D & B to lease this space as it is across the street from Black Knight.

The most famous employee to ever work for D & B was Abraham Lincoln.  Three other presidents also worked for them:

The credit reporter — a new profession (for future Presidents). Shortly after he joined the agency, Benjamin Douglass began establishing local offices and hiring full-time employees who became experienced, skilled reporters and interpreters of credit information. Working as a credit reporter was a respected position that provided strong training in sound business practices. Among the reporters who went on to establish names for themselves were four U.S. presidents: Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, Grover Cleveland and William McKinley.

https://www.dnb.com/about-us/company/history.html

[fieldafm]

Really, really great acquisition for Jax, and a great sign that a legit big player in the data & analytics space sees Jax as having the talent pool necessary to make this move work.

I wonder where they end up at? Stein Mart building is on the market.

My understanding is that they are either going to go into the Fidelity campus, or backfill one of the two off-campus FIS spaces (one is suburban and the other is on the Southbank) that will eventually migrate back to the Fidelity campus.   

The former Stein Mart building is going to auction next month. 

[fieldafm]

That aside, definitely cool to have a big business coming to town. Looking at their website, a little unclear on what exactly they do, but hey, jobs!

The simplest explanation for them I can come up with is, "Experian but for companies". Think about all of the data Experian (and their subsidiaries) have on individuals and imagine that data for companies.

That's probably the most apt comparison.

D&B reports are used heavily in all kinds of commercial credit applications.

Although the headcount is only ~500 or so, the amount of corporate travel that this relocation will bring to Jacksonville will be fairly significant.  Further solidifies how the Fidelity relocation during the Delaney administration (driven by the Jaguars partners) was the single greatest economic development deal in Jacksonville's history.

[jaxlongtimer]

^ It also looks like they are moving in the direction of exploiting their massive data for other purposes such as targeted marketing, vendor vetting, etc.  One article noted they are even working with Google.  They recently bought an artificial intelligence company to advance their data mining capabilities.  I believe this was the real reason Black Knight and its partners acquired D & B.

[Steve]

Really, really great acquisition for Jax, and a great sign that a legit big player in the data & analytics space sees Jax as having the talent pool necessary to make this move work.

I wonder where they end up at? Stein Mart building is on the market.

My understanding is that they are either going to go into the Fidelity campus, or backfill one of the two off-campus FIS spaces (one is suburban and the other is on the Southbank) that will eventually migrate back to the Fidelity campus.   

The former Stein Mart building is going to auction next month. 

So the idea is once the FIS HQ is complete, FIS then vacates the Fidelity/Black Knight Campus West of Forest Street, then D&B moves to the Black Knight Campus?

[fieldafm]

Really, really great acquisition for Jax, and a great sign that a legit big player in the data & analytics space sees Jax as having the talent pool necessary to make this move work.

I wonder where they end up at? Stein Mart building is on the market.

My understanding is that they are either going to go into the Fidelity campus, or backfill one of the two off-campus FIS spaces (one is suburban and the other is on the Southbank) that will eventually migrate back to the Fidelity campus.   

The former Stein Mart building is going to auction next month. 

So the idea is once the FIS HQ is complete, FIS then vacates the Fidelity/Black Knight Campus West of Forest Street, then D&B moves to the Black Knight Campus?

FIS, Blacknight and FNF have office space outside of the current campus and Florida Blue building across the street (which they vacated last year).  Flagler out in Bartram Park, Prudential Building on the Southbank, etc all have a Fidelity presence, for example.   I don't know the exact 100% plans, but its been rumored that a Fidelity-related company will be moving to Jax for a couple of months now, and the scuttlebutt has revolved around a likely backfilling of existing Fidelity-related space. 

[Ken_FSU]

^Interesting, thanks for sharing!

If they're moving into existing space, I wonder how they justify asking for $21 million in incentives from the City. FIS's $30ish million came mostly in the form of a REV grant. Would it just be a tax abatement on the existing property?

Hope to see them downtown rather than in the burbs.

[Ken_FSU]

^ It also looks like they are moving in the direction of exploiting their massive data for other purposes such as targeted marketing, vendor vetting, etc.  One article noted they are even working with Google.  They recently bought an artificial intelligence company to advance their data mining capabilities.  I believe this was the real reason Black Knight and its partners acquired D & B.

I work with them in this capacity. In addition to the credit stuff, they have some of the deepest business profiles in the world. For B2B marketing, they're pretty great if you're trying to reach a very specific type of target with minimal waste.

[fieldafm]

^Interesting, thanks for sharing!

If they're moving into existing space, I wonder how they justify asking for $21 million in incentives from the City. FIS's $30ish million came mostly in the form of a REV grant. Would it just be a tax abatement on the existing property?

Hope to see them downtown rather than in the burbs.

Just relaying what I heard.  My importance in the world is relatively low... and certain things I'm told are wrong. Guess we'll have a better idea once the legislation is filed.

[Tacachale]

Really, really great acquisition for Jax, and a great sign that a legit big player in the data & analytics space sees Jax as having the talent pool necessary to make this move work.

I wonder where they end up at? Stein Mart building is on the market.

My understanding is that they are either going to go into the Fidelity campus, or backfill one of the two off-campus FIS spaces (one is suburban and the other is on the Southbank) that will eventually migrate back to the Fidelity campus.   

The former Stein Mart building is going to auction next month. 

So the idea is once the FIS HQ is complete, FIS then vacates the Fidelity/Black Knight Campus West of Forest Street, then D&B moves to the Black Knight Campus?

FIS, Blacknight and FNF have office space outside of the current campus and Florida Blue building across the street (which they vacated last year).  Flagler out in Bartram Park, Prudential Building on the Southbank, etc all have a Fidelity presence, for example.   I don't know the exact 100% plans, but its been rumored that a Fidelity-related company will be moving to Jax for a couple of months now, and the scuttlebutt has revolved around a likely backfilling of existing Fidelity-related space.

That's great news if it pans out.

[landfall]

Really, really great acquisition for Jax, and a great sign that a legit big player in the data & analytics space sees Jax as having the talent pool necessary to make this move work.

I wonder where they end up at? Stein Mart building is on the market.

My understanding is that they are either going to go into the Fidelity campus, or backfill one of the two off-campus FIS spaces (one is suburban and the other is on the Southbank) that will eventually migrate back to the Fidelity campus.   

The former Stein Mart building is going to auction next month. 

So the idea is once the FIS HQ is complete, FIS then vacates the Fidelity/Black Knight Campus West of Forest Street, then D&B moves to the Black Knight Campus?

FIS, Blacknight and FNF have office space outside of the current campus and Florida Blue building across the street (which they vacated last year).  Flagler out in Bartram Park, Prudential Building on the Southbank, etc all have a Fidelity presence, for example.   I don't know the exact 100% plans, but its been rumored that a Fidelity-related company will be moving to Jax for a couple of months now, and the scuttlebutt has revolved around a likely backfilling of existing Fidelity-related space. 

Was doing a bit of digging on google. Is there a fidelity presence in an office building in Deerwood also?

[Steve]

Really, really great acquisition for Jax, and a great sign that a legit big player in the data & analytics space sees Jax as having the talent pool necessary to make this move work.

I wonder where they end up at? Stein Mart building is on the market.

My understanding is that they are either going to go into the Fidelity campus, or backfill one of the two off-campus FIS spaces (one is suburban and the other is on the Southbank) that will eventually migrate back to the Fidelity campus.   

The former Stein Mart building is going to auction next month. 

So the idea is once the FIS HQ is complete, FIS then vacates the Fidelity/Black Knight Campus West of Forest Street, then D&B moves to the Black Knight Campus?

FIS, Blacknight and FNF have office space outside of the current campus and Florida Blue building across the street (which they vacated last year).  Flagler out in Bartram Park, Prudential Building on the Southbank, etc all have a Fidelity presence, for example.   I don't know the exact 100% plans, but its been rumored that a Fidelity-related company will be moving to Jax for a couple of months now, and the scuttlebutt has revolved around a likely backfilling of existing Fidelity-related space. 

Was doing a bit of digging on google. Is there a fidelity presence in an office building in Deerwood also?

I know Fidelity Investments does. Completely separate company that shares nothing aside from the name