HOOVER – City, Shelby County and Alabama officials gathered on Tuesday, April 23, to celebrate the grand opening of a business that has been recognized as the largest employer of software developers in the Birmingham-Hoover Metro Area.

McLeod Software’s relocation to the Meadow Brook Corporate Park represents a $21 million investment. The company employs 388 people, and that number is expected to grow to about 700 employees by 2022.

“We’re proud to be in Hoover, we’re proud to be in Shelby County, we’re proud to be in the state of Alabama,” said Tom McLeod, president and CEO, and 1972 graduate of W.A. Berry High School.

McLeod thanked God, his wife and the McLeod staff, among others, for the company’s success.

“We’ve been blessed through our customers; they’ve kept us pointed in the right direction,” he said and noted that McLeod Software started in 1985 and grew to 35 employees by 1995, and 140 in 2010. “I don’t have a growth goal, some number that we want to hit. What we want to do is meet the opportunity that is there for us.”
McLeod is an industry leader in software for trucking dispatch operations management, freight brokerage management, fleet management, document imaging, work flow, EDI and business process automation solutions for trucking, freight brokerage, third party logistics and shipper companies.

With an established base of more than 950 active customers throughout North America, McLeod Software operates regional offices with training facilities in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Chicago, Illinois.

Hoover will serve as the company’s headquartering location.

Hoover City Administrator Allan Rice welcomed those in attendance at the grand opening event before Tom McLeod’s wife, Annette, sang the national anthem.

After Tom McLeod’s remarks, Alabama Secretary of Commerce Greg Canfield said McLeod Software is an example of the growth in the state of tech companies.

“The world is moving faster than it ever has before,” Canfield said. “The world is more connected than ever.”

Hoover Mayor Frank V. Brocato said economic development is critical to the future of the city.

“To come back and bring your business into the city of Hoover says a lot about you and says a lot about what you think about the city of Hoover,” Brocato said.

Shelby County Manager Alex Dudchock said the county’s focus is on relationships.

“We realize our most important asset is our people, our talent,” Dudchock said.

Mark Hughes, vice president and general counsel for McLeod Software, said moving into the 143,000-square-foot facility required what is called “agile development,” meaning strategies had to be adjusted along the way depending on realities discovered in the process.

“We’re proud of what’s been accomplished here at 100 Meadow Brook Parkway,” Hughes said.

McLeod occupies about two-thirds of the building, with six tenants filling the rest of the space, Hughes said.