Sirna maintained its laboratory on the northeastern edge of
Boulder, Colorado. Originally the corporate headquarters were also located in Boulder. Sirna, at one point, launched a search for a new headquarters complex. It originally considered multiple cities, including
Cambridge, Massachusetts and
San Diego, California. Sirna selected San Francisco due to its proximity to various scientific institutions, its workforce, and the payroll tax exemption for biotechnology companies. Sirna's move was a part of a trend of biotechnology companies moving to San Francisco, bolstered due to a campaign to attract biotechnology companies to San Francisco and tax breaks instituted by
Mayor of San Francisco Gavin Newsom. Business leaders of San Francisco who hoped that the city would have a major biotechnology presence had a positive reception to the Sirna decision. The mayor's office, the Chamber of Commerce, and the San Francisco Center for Economic Development contributed to bringing Sirna to San Francisco. Howard Robin, the president and chief executive officer of Sirna, said that the first wave of moves would be the ten highest ranking employees; he did not say how many employees would relocate to San Francisco. The company planned to maintain a facility in Boulder. ==References==