Thinking of moving - who all is out there?
Currently working in marketing/program mgmt at MS in Seattle and about 4 years experience. Thinking either tech or consulting (Deloitte, pwc etc.) Over the culture in Seattle and missing seasons. Thoughts? Suggestions? Things to consider? Advice? Thanks!
Not sure on salary but I have a few friends who work at Slalom Consulting. There are a lot of finance companies, some national and some focusing on the Chicago Board of Trade and Chicago Mercantile Exchange. If you do move out here, don't dismiss the suburbs. You can get a nice house at a good price, and public transit is good. We have people commute from Indiana on the South Shore Line, around the city on the CTA, and from suburbs in all directions on the Metra.
Chicago's culture is awesome. I like to say it's a mixture of all of the good things from the different parts of the country, mixed into one city. Obviously the biggest perk is cost of living, of course, but not just that. The food scene is amazing, the tech scene is exploding, we have comedy, jazz, festivals galore. But it has that midwestern comfort that just makes you feel at home. There are moments I walk through the loop home from work or dinner and I feel an immense pride in where I love; it's just a magnificent place.
So well said. Chicago will always feel like home to me.. and I didn't even grow up here
Chicago has a pretty good tech scene, especially for someone with the background you list. I know Motorola Solutions is usually looking for software talent. GrubHub and Groupon have their HQ in Chicago. Google, Microsoft, and the usual suspects all have local offices, though the emphasis is more biz dev, I think. Zebra, in the northern suburbs, isn't a household name but is big in its market. You can also look into the startup scene: lots of local universities means no shortage of new tech.
Motorola Solutions and Zebra...uggh don't go there. Find something that pays better in the city.
Zebra is getting rid of all their local devs in favor of offshore. Culture is terrible.
Just moved from chi, will move back eventually. Great place to be if you are established in your career as housing is "affordable" compared to other tech hubs. They drink... a lot. Alcohol in chicago = rain in Seattle = sun in California
Don't you dare bring US Foods into this, it's a shitshow over there
Hi friend, I grew in Chicago (on the way there now incidentally) and live in Seattle. I strongly recommended against going to Chicago. The types of things you're rightfully complaining about are not substantially better in Chicago. It's certainly a good city like Seattle but with significant issues and the only major city in the US that's losing l population. Culturally, Seattle and Chicago are very midwestern and not particularly cosmopolitan if that's what you seek. The winters are super brutal especially near the lake and the region is without access to outdoors like we have in the PNW. Try the northeast/NYC. Hard to get everything as I go through the same thoughts!
Interesting that you say Seattle has a Midwest feel. I grew up in the Midwest and find Seattle people to be cold and incredibly passive/boring. Can you elaborate on issues of the city? I'm not necessarily looking for cosmopolitan just somewhere a little more 'alive' than Seattle. The rain puts a real damper on the place like 10 months of the year and it affects everything.
That's true. I guess I meant many people here are Minnesotan/Michigan/Wisconsin transplants and the culture in Seattle is somewhat generic and granola imo. Just my opinion. Agree that the rain is a legit issue. I guess that's why everyone seems to be into board games in a serious way. Chicago winters are too. October to March can be really rough. Also where it is in the time zone awkwardly makes winter days 7:45a-4:45p of light in January. If you want more alive perhaps Austin may be better. Chicago has serious crime issues and it's not just south side. It's affected even nicer suburbs too in the north and west somehow. Not as bad as southside, but still a legitimate issue. The tax issues and pension plans provided by city have made it so that there's a real budget issue. Racism is an issue too when I lived there, but that's seemingly everywhere. Seattle seems better in this regard. On the upside Chicago food is awesome. Music is really good. Summers are phenomenal, but they're humid and less than 3 months. If you're into sports he scene is great too. Theater like comedy is good. I'm not trying to say it's all bad. Certainly a good city, but one that's on the downward trend unfortunately. The census issues are legitimate, but unclear to me. Some say it's poor people leaving, but I haven't looked carefully. The youth coming to city are predominantly regional. That's not a bad thing, but if you want to be exposed to more I found it to be a bit insular. The best situation would be to work remotely and spend time in a place like ATL/Mia/Austin/North Carolina and a place like Chicago/Seattle. I've met many people who've found a way to do that! If you're into finance the city has a lot to offer professionally so a good way to test. Lastly, O'Hare is abysmal as a transit point if you enjoy traveling. Last month hundreds of people got randomly stranded overnight because of a one hour storm and mismanagement.
generally O'hare is ok and it's offset by the benefit of having non-stop flights to nearly everywhere including international destinations reachable from a select few US airports.
I would say greatest chance at a high paid place in Chicago is finance.
Finance as in Goldman or Morgan Stanley?
Chicago finance isn't traditional investment banking. A lot of the derivatives and futures markets are based here. Decent finance opps for some up and coming PE and VC. Mid-tier real estate is all over the fringe of the city.