Buffalo native moves home, bringing experience and hiring power with him

When Orchard Park native Brendan Nuessle moved to New York City a decade ago, he always hoped to come back to Western New York — but it was a matter of finding the right time.

His career took him from New York City to Miami, then back to New York. He worked in sales and leadership roles at companies like News Corp and Paycom.

Late last year, the timing lined up. He and his wife, a West Seneca native, wanted to move back home to start their family. They came to Buffalo, with Nuessle working as DataDome’s head of sales for North America.

“Having a deep, personal connection was important,” he said. “I loved growing up in Buffalo. I want the same for our daughter and our future family as well.”

In April of this year, he was recruited to join PrimePay, a Pennsylvania-based company that offers HR, payroll and benefit solutions to small to mid-sized businesses. By the time he left DataDome, he was overseeing a team of 16.

In his new role, he’s opening a Buffalo office and looking to hire.

“People like myself who have moved away, worked at other companies, had career opportunities earlier on that weren’t prevalent in Buffalo … it’s kind of up to us to bring more opportunities for these types of early stage career paths and growth at organizations where it doesn’t really matter where it’s headquartered,” he said.

Why it matters: A region on the rise but with a largely stagnant population, Buffalo Niagara needs more stories like Nuessle's: Those of locals moving back home and remote workers opting for our affordable area. If those expats happen to return to the Queen City with great professional expertise from larger metros and local hiring power, all the better.

Currently, Nuessle has Serendipity Labs co-working space at Seneca One Tower, but as he hires, his goal is to establish an office at the site. He expects to hire at least five by year-end.

Opening a Buffalo office made sense because he’s working here remotely. But the Queen City also presents an opportunity for PrimePay, which employs over 450 across the U.S., to enter and grow in a new market.

“We understand and recognize the value of these small- to mid-sized businesses, the value in the local economy,” he said. “We have an opportunity in a place like Buffalo to really post up and make a name for ourselves and make a serious impact to help the local businesses that we can service.”

As Western New York continues toward unlocking its full potential, Nuessle sees the differences and opportunities compared to a decade ago when he was starting his career. That, coupled with the workforce trends of hybrid and remote work puts areas like Buffalo in a position for success.

“Sales, development roles, engineering, technology in general, those are the kinds of things that weren’t prevalent 10 years ago but now the way the workforce is set up, they absolutely can be,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity for companies to take advantage of the local talent pool here and build it up.”

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