Know of any good workplaces for software developers in the Twin Cities?
October 6, 2010 9:50 AM Subscribe
I'm a software developer who's thinking of changing jobs. Can you help me figure out which companies in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area I should be looking at, and which ones I should stay away from?
I've worked at my current employer for most of my career, and I've recently decided it's time for me to move on. Work/life balance is very important to me, and I know that you can't find that at many companies. I'm looking for a company/project where I can find challenging, satisfying work and where overtime is the exception and not the rule.
I'm looking for the perspective of the developers/software engineers in the trenches. If you're a manager, please forward my email onto a team member of yours.
I have about 5 years of experience, mostly with Java and its associated technologies, but I've had some exposure to C#, JavaScript, and Flex. Feel free to suggest shops that use none of these technologies!
What are some good companies/projects that I should take a look at? What technologies do they use? Are they hiring?
Which companies/projects should I stay away from (i.e. ones that have toxic, stressful, overtime-heavy environments). Any suggestions will be appreciated, but I'm currently in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area and I'm not looking to move right now.
Throwaway email: tcprogrammer1@gmail.com
I've worked at my current employer for most of my career, and I've recently decided it's time for me to move on. Work/life balance is very important to me, and I know that you can't find that at many companies. I'm looking for a company/project where I can find challenging, satisfying work and where overtime is the exception and not the rule.
I'm looking for the perspective of the developers/software engineers in the trenches. If you're a manager, please forward my email onto a team member of yours.
I have about 5 years of experience, mostly with Java and its associated technologies, but I've had some exposure to C#, JavaScript, and Flex. Feel free to suggest shops that use none of these technologies!
What are some good companies/projects that I should take a look at? What technologies do they use? Are they hiring?
Which companies/projects should I stay away from (i.e. ones that have toxic, stressful, overtime-heavy environments). Any suggestions will be appreciated, but I'm currently in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area and I'm not looking to move right now.
Throwaway email: tcprogrammer1@gmail.com
(On the link I just posted, the workplace is is under Sierra Bravo Corp in the medium-sized companies section.)
posted by Laura Macbeth at 10:15 AM on October 6, 2010
posted by Laura Macbeth at 10:15 AM on October 6, 2010
I'm in the same job market myself. I've found the Directory section on tech.mn to be very useful. Thomson-West might be good for you fit they're hiring -- they're huge (~2000 software engineers), they use almost all Java, and I've heard they have a nice 40 hour work week, good benefits and vacation, and a relatively relaxed atmosphere.
Beyond that: the big employers are colleges/universities, aerospace, finance, retail, medical devices, health insurers, etc. There are not very many software-specific companies, and they're pretty small so openings are hard to come by.
posted by miyabo at 12:33 PM on October 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
Beyond that: the big employers are colleges/universities, aerospace, finance, retail, medical devices, health insurers, etc. There are not very many software-specific companies, and they're pretty small so openings are hard to come by.
posted by miyabo at 12:33 PM on October 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
Oh, also Twin Cities Code Camp is this weekend. It's not specifically a networking event, but with about 500 attendees it's just about the only way to see a good cross-section of the local tech community. It's free, but you're supposed to register online before showing up.
posted by miyabo at 2:17 PM on October 6, 2010
posted by miyabo at 2:17 PM on October 6, 2010
Out of curiosity OP, where did you end up landing? How do you like it?
posted by godisdad at 12:01 PM on June 20, 2011
posted by godisdad at 12:01 PM on June 20, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2010/08/23/daily33.html?ana=e_du_pub
posted by Laura Macbeth at 10:14 AM on October 6, 2010 [2 favorites]