Technology job openings surged by 8.2% in June, according to job-search site SimplyHired, but some places remain better than others if you’re looking for a tech job. The site’s top and bottom five contain a few surprises.
Best U.S. Places To Find A Tech Job
SimplyHired bases its ranking on the number of tech job openings compared to the number of people who are working in the region. The numbers below are based on metropolitan areas as defined by the U.S. census bureau.
1. Baltimore, Maryland (46,150 people employed, 14,093 tech job openings): Hunter Sherman, the chief engineer at Sparks, Maryland-based BizBrag, Inc., said the company is struggling to find qualified people to fill its jobs. As a result, BizBrag is planning to move. “A big part of our issue is that we’re just north of the city, and a majority of the engineers are located to the south, closer to the D.C. area,” Sherman said. “This is one of the major reasons that we plan on moving our business into the city in the coming months.”
2. Detroit, Michigan (15,930 people employed, 3,387 tech job openings): State government efforts to remake the region’s traditional vehicle-manufacturing economy are paying off, according to Todd Albery, CEO of Quizzle, a consumer-credit Website based in Detroit. Several tech companies have formed an umbrella organization called Rock Ventures to address the shortage of tech talent in Detroit. In addition to actively recruiting laid-off Silicon Valley workers from Yahoo and other companies, Rock Ventures helped place 500 summer interns and brought them to the region.
3. Charlotte, North Carolina (24,900 people employed, 5,228 tech job openings): Several small tech companies have joined Red Ventures, Lowes Hardware, Ally, American City Business Journals, and Bank of America in North Carolina. They’re all constantly on the lookout for tech talent. Local governments have formed business incubators and networking groups. Despite efforts to attract outside talent, the area remains a job-seeker’s market.
4. Portland, Oregon (28, 630 people employed, 5,934 tech job openings): Investor Michael Pachos put his money into an undisclosed, 90-employee company in Vancouver, Wash., which is part of the Portland metro area. “There is a strong semiconductor base around the area due to Intel, plus the lower cost of living attracts many people from Los Angeles and San Francisco,” Pachos said. “Once people are locked into a cheaper lifestyle and lower salary, it’s difficult for them to move back to an expensive city. The variety of outdoor activities also draws a lot of people.”
5. Seattle, Washington (93,620 people employed, 18,011 tech job openings): Concur is the latest company to proclaim its faith in Seattle’s perennial tech hotbed. Next spring, the company will move its 600-employee headquarters to Bellevue, which Concur President and COO Raj Singh called a “place with a great innovation economy and some of the best engineers and high-tech talent in the world.” He chose Bellevue also for its central role the greater Seattle area, solid transportation options and other nearby amenities.
Worst U.S. Places To Find A Tech Job
SimplyHired rated the areas below as the worst places to look for a tech job. Not surprisingly, fewer people in these places were willing to speak to a reporter.
- Newark, New Jersey (26,930 people employed, three tech job openings)
- Birmingham, Alabama (20,140 people employed, 843 tech job openings)
- Riverside, California (23,400 people employed, 1,034 tech job openings)
- Little Rock, Arkansas (16,460 people empl0yed, 800 tech job openings)
- Honolulu, Hawaii (15,360 people employed, 780 tech job openings)
