Blacksburg tech company plans expansion, adding 40 jobs

They’re Ozmonauts who learn by Ozmosis and they work for a company that declares its “founding purpose is to solve all technology issues.” Soon, there will be a lot more of them.

Ozmo, a call-center support tech company based in downtown Blacksburg, plans to add 40 jobs. Ozmo, which was spun out of the Blacksburg tech company Modea three years ago, started with 55 employees.

Ozmo is essentially the help desk’s help desk, serving more than 75,000 contact center agents who work for Verizon and other mobile networks.

“It is not about the number of jobs,” says Todd King, chairman of the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors. “What matters is that a local company is able to expand in our community and offer higher than median-income wages.”

Ozmo has not said publicly what the jobs will pay or how soon they will be created. Montgomery County’s per-capita income in 2018 was $28,277, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Reports on the employer-review website Glassdoor say Ozmo starts employees out at $12 an hour.

“One of Montgomery County’s goals is to grow capital investment and jobs in an effort to improve quality of life for our citizens and the businesses in our community,” King says. “The fact that Montgomery County is a place where companies can not only find their start, but also experience growth, shows that we are accomplishing that goal.”

Ozmo’s platform assists with more than 25 million interactions per year, according to a state government announcement of the company’s expansion. The company’s products include virtual devices that provide answers, tutorials and suggested actions for agents. The system also helps consumers to solve problems themselves through self-serve tools, as well as answers provided through email and text, reinforcing the agents’ support.

The company plans to invest more than $200,000 in its expansion, according to the state news release. The Virginia Economic Development Partnership plans to help Ozmo with employee training through its Virginia Jobs Investment Program.