The City of Scottsdale has been named by WalletHub as the best city in the U.S. to find a job. The 2019 study cites 30 key indicators in ranking cities across the country where job seekers will have the greatest success in securing employment.
“Earning a top ranking out of 182 other outstanding communities demonstrates the strong commitment the City of Scottsdale continues to make in growing a diverse and robust business community,” says Acting Economic Development Director Rob Millar.
Other Valley cities fared well, too. Chandler (No. 10), Tempe (No. 14), Gilbert (No. 39), Peoria (No. 41), Phoenix (No. 53), Mesa (No. 65) and Glendale (No. 68) all scored well.
Some of the key indicators utilized in the 2019 WalletHub study attributed Scottsdale’s success to growing job opportunities, employment growth and median annual income. According to Scottsdale’s five-year economic development plan, the city’s 2019 vision is to rank among the nation’s leading, best-of-class organizations. “We have very targeted goals and performance metrics. Since the adoption of the plan in 2015, there has been a direct economic impact of $32.5 million, creation and retention of 4,411 jobs and over 415 local business outreach visits have been conducted,” Millar adds.
The economic strategic plan identifies targeted industries that include health care & bio-life sciences, advanced business services (finance & insurance), technology and hospitality. All of which have had significant growth and offer high quality jobs and wages to Scottsdale residents, exceeding the Maricopa County average median income. Scottsdale is home to nearly 20-percent of Arizona’s corporate headquarters, with more growth anticipated in global, national and regional headquarters.
Free wedding dresses, loaded kitchens, high wages, full health benefits, and lots of days off. These are just some of the unique benefits Scottsdale businesses reported to the City of Scottsdale’s Economic Development Department when asked about being the Best City in the U.S. for Jobs, according to a recent 2019 WalletHub study.
Sisense, a growing Business Intelligence company who is headquartered in New York with a location in Old Town Scottsdale, is turning the BI Marketplace on its ear with their radical innovation, instant impact and an obsession with their customers success. Their hardworking employees enjoy an office that is furnished with high-tech desks and computers, bean bag loungers, a giant-sized break room, couches and games. Talent Acquisition and People Specialist, Melissa Albert says, “Scottsdale has been a number location for me whenever I’ve been a job seeker because of what the city has to offer. Scottsdale has great restaurants, shopping and all my personal appointments, like my hairdresser. It provides me the opportunity to have a great work-life balance. I’ve never looked at jobs in any other city!”
Sisense shares some of their company benefits that include: Medical/dental/vision, a 401k with employer match, gym reimbursement, fully stocked kitchens, professional growth opportunities and generous PTO (paid time off) that includes a mandatory Friday off the beginning of each quarter for employees to recharge and be ready to “crush goals” after a long 3 day weekend. “Scottsdale was chosen as the only west coast location for Sisense, because of the talented pool of job seekers and ability to provide the growing Scottsdale market with an enterprise level software job without the Silicon Valley cost of living.”
A new tech / custom wedding dress company, Anomalie, is recruiting employees from all over the country to their new Scottsdale office. General Manager, John Hamby said, “Scottsdale is a place where fashion meets customer service excellence and was an easy choice for us to grow our business and plan for expansion for years to come. With the talent pools from the local universities plus talents across the country moving here every day, Scottsdale is truly the best place to work in the country.”
Anomalie is a fast-growing startup promising change and an exceptional work culture. They plan to end the pay gap for women and only hire problem-solvers who are extremely empathetic. Hamby says of their hiring system, “this makes for an extraordinary work environment that we hold near and dear and hope to add more great people to as we continue to grow.” He adds that while they are a start-up, benefits are important motivators and their ever-growing list includes: Competitive salary, company equity, health/dental/vision, 28+ days PTO, and a free wedding dress for the employee or a family member/friend. The company also prides itself on work hard-play hard culture with events such as Coffee Shop Mondays, Wine + Text Tuesdays, happy hours, and an annual company retreat.
Scottsdale Airpark is home for Systems Imagination (SII Ventures), a dynamic perpetual startup, where employees have the opportunity to be on the ground floor of some of the most innovative solutions in the healthcare life sciences space.
SII relocated to Scottsdale attributing the local support for innovation in the biosciences and access to high quality workers. Owner Chris Yoo says, “Our team is among the best trained, multidisciplinary knowledge workers in the world. Our people work with customers around the world and have come to us from places like California because rather than see most of their earnings disappear in high cost of living expenses, they can enjoy the benefits of Scottsdale’s active, healthy, and new generation lifestyle with a high-quality standard of living.”
Frank Recruitment Group, who opened a new Scottsdale location in January 2019, agrees with one of the key indicators from the WalletHub report. President of Americas at Frank Recruitment Group Sunny Ackerman says, “The city’s healthy economy is generating more and more jobs, and with good average starting salaries, one of the highest median annual incomes in the country, and friendly tax policies, the city is hugely attractive to those looking to build a career. Scottsdale businesses score highly when it comes to benefits, too; almost 90% of the area’s workers are covered by private health insurance.”
Frank Recruitment Group supports high wages and reports their new consultants will earn on average $60k – $70k in their first year of employment, rising to $100k+ in their second year. Other unique benefits include: Opportunities for international work and travel, five star all-expenses-paid trip and vacation incentives, fine dining experiences in top restaurants for high achievers, regular company social events, Xexec employee rewards program, medical, vision, and dental benefits, a death in service scheme, cash bonuses for exceptional performances, and 12 days’ vacation in the first year of employment, increasing to 22 days in the second year.
The City of Scottsdale Economic Development Department works diligently to make sure Scottsdale residents have exceptional job opportunities by recruiting top organizations all over the world to relocate to the city. Along with recruiting top companies, the city also looks for top talent relocation. “The department has been forward-thinking in offering free business services, such as our relocation guide for businesses and the ChooseScottsdale.com job board where Scottsdale-based businesses can add job opportunities at no cost,” says Acting Economic Development Director Rob Millar.
