Ask Slashdot: Why So Hard Landing Interviews In Seattle Versus SoCal?

An anonymous reader writes "I have been trying to make the move to the Seattle, WA area. I liked the weather, the nature, the scenery and the tech environment. However, for whatever reason it seems like interviews are hard to come by. As a MS Stack software developer in LA, I barely had to do anything and recruiters always come knocking, either via LinkedIn or from past connections. Not to mention in general I got phone interviews for easily .8 of the positions I applied for. I wanted to finally make the move and fulfill a live long dream to live in Seattle. So I have been applying for positions in the greater Seattle, WA (King County) area. So far the ratio of positions applied to phone interviews is a dismal .1. Which is terrible considering the economy was much worse when I was actively looking for job in LA. Something isn't right because I am still getting offers for interviews here in SoCal, but not much from where I really wanted to be. What could I be doing wrong? Why such a contrast? Is the IT market in Seattle in poor shape? Or may be I just lack the proper connections in a new area? Am I just being screened out immediately for not being local? Or is it the prevalence of bigger corporations vs. smaller startups? And frankly as nice as the city is I can't move unless there's a healthy IT market to thrive by. I hope someone can point me in the right direction."

Comments

I live in the Puget Sound area

[93 Escort Wagon]

You seriously like the weather up here? Have you been here anytime other than July - September?

I know a LOT of people that moved here after visiting in the summer... they don't realize what the weather is like most of the time.

Re:I live in the Puget Sound area

[painandgreed]

You seriously like the weather up here? Have you been here anytime other than July - September?

I know a LOT of people that moved here after visiting in the summer... they don't realize what the weather is like most of the time.

Maybe they're goth. Then the weather is perfect with just enough sun in the year to begin to bitch about it after your vitamin D level begin to build back up.

Market Saturation

[multimediavt]

MS Stack software developer

I am just taking a stab in the dark here as I don't really know, but maybe there are a lot of "MS Stack software" developers in the home of MS. If they got a ton of them already in town why import more?

Re:Market Saturation

[ampmouse]

I am just taking a stab in the dark here as I don't really know, but maybe there are a lot of "MS Stack software" developers in the home of MS. If they got a ton of them already in town why import more?

Absolutely correct. I work in Seattle on FreeBSD, and there are plenty of places looking for employees (Amazon, F5, Isilon, etc.) with a Linux/BSD background. If you want to work on the "MS Stack" you are more or less going to be looking for a job a Microsoft. The market here is completely saturated with Microsoft employees who are looking for a change of pace. They actually do have 6 years of experience developing on frameworks Microsoft released 5 years ago.

Re:Market Saturation

[mark_reh]

I believe the British would say that applying for a MS IT position in Seattle is like "carrying coals to Newcastle"...

Re:Market Saturation

[Anonymous Coward]

I can also confirm this to be true. Friends of mine that are highly specialized into Microsoft tend to work there and often have a hard time if they decide to leave. We have a major glut of people with Microsoft experience, given that the company is down the street, so you're competing directly with people who can say "I've done it at and for Microsoft". From what I hear from my friends that have worked there, it's also not uncommon to want to leave after you get a taste, which doesn't help you either.

The Linux/BSD folks up here can find a new job pretty much whenever they like.

Weather intolerance risk?

[ddt]

I'm hip-shooting, but it could be that as an LA resident, you're experiencing some prejudice. They go months in Seattle with nothing but gray skies and/or rain, and you have to remain productive. The lack of interest could be due to the perceived risk that you might not be able to hack the gloomy weather.

I'm in the same boat, btw. I live in Santa Monica, and I love the weather here. I would prefer to live amoungst Washingtonians if for no other reason than higher quality conversation, but I know I couldn't handle the Seattle weather for long.

Percentages

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm guessing using decimal notation is throwing them. Check your resume and make sure it doesn't say that you give an effort ratio of 1.2

No Homers

[FrogBlastTheVentCore]

We're all full-up on Californians. Stop applying here, stop moving here, and for the love of god, stop building Mexican-villa style buildings everywhere you go. It looks terrible next to an evergreen tree.

Re:No Homers

[Sponge Bath]

We're all full-up on Californians.

You need some more Texans. Here I come, YEEEEEHAAAAAW! [does Yosemite Sam dance]

Labor market supply inefficiencies

[daemonenwind]

There is, in the city of Seattle, a certain company with a legendary history in the world of computing. It has been known as... The Microsoft.

Considering the turnover rate for Microsoft employment, Windows stack developers are probably as common there as waitresses with SAG cards are in LA.

Your problem is that your skills are a rare commodity in LA but common as dirt in Seattle

Re:Get a local phone number

[reedrudy]

It's hard to imagine that a tech company would screen candidates based on area codes these days. I've been living in Seattle for over five years and still have a 415 (San Francisco) area code. I think people tend not to change their phone numbers when moving anymore.

That being said, I'm graduating soon with a PhD in bioinformatics, have an MS in computer science, and I'm not getting any interviews with large tech companies in the area. Maybe I do need a local phone number...

Re:Change your name to a foreign name

[Anonymous Coward]

This! The technical part of most of the companies I've worked for in Seattle were run by Indians that would only hire Indians if they are able to. My last name is Lee so it sounds like it could be Asian even though it is British. I changed my resume to just my initials to hide my common American first and middle name, and I got many more phone interviews. What really helps in the phone screen is to add in a few archaic phrases like maths, do the needful, passing out (graduating), discuss about (can we discuss about the job?), years back (that project was two years back rather than two years ago), or say "do one thing" then mention several things. That will land you an interview in the Seattle area.

But seriously, the five of the last seven start-ups I worked for in Seattle required sixty or more hours per week. Most of them refused to hire white employees because so many refused to work past 7pm or every weekend. That's why it's so hard to even get a phone interview in Seattle if you have an American name.

"where I live" vs. "where I'm applying"

[Todd Knarr]

I've found that same problem before: recruiters look at the place where you currently live, not where you've said you're interested in working. So if I say I live in Los Angeles and am interested in jobs in Seattle, I'd expect to get lots of calls for... Los Angeles. When I switch and use the address of a friend in the area I want jobs in as where I live, suddenly I get calls for the right area. I don't see any way around this as long as the recruiters are ignoring the information in the profile this way.

No one wants to move to SoCal; taxes too high

[Anonymous Coward]

Supply and demand: people refuse to move to California because the taxes and cost of living are sky-high, so there are more openings that go unfilled.

Re:Get a local phone number

[tgd]

It's hard to imagine that a tech company would screen candidates based on area codes these days. I've been living in Seattle for over five years and still have a 415 (San Francisco) area code. I think people tend not to change their phone numbers when moving anymore.

That being said, I'm graduating soon with a PhD in bioinformatics, have an MS in computer science, and I'm not getting any interviews with large tech companies in the area. Maybe I do need a local phone number...

I would bet anything but the real big companies always does. Local hires (and candidates when it comes time to interview) are a lot cheaper. If your cell phone doesn't match where you live, you should indicate where you live on your resume.

The GPs suggestion of pretending to live in Seattle is a bad idea. I've hired LOTS of people over the years, and if anyone ever pulled that, their resume would be round filed no matter how good they might be.

IMO, if he wants to live in Seattle, and wants to find a job there, his best bet is to just move.

Re:Get a local phone number

[Anonymous Coward]

If you are currently employed, you find a job before you move. Anything else just shows idiocy.

Demand for Microsoft Skills Declining?

[Nivag064]

Remember that the need for Microsoft developers will soon decline, if it has not already done so.

Most devices run Linux.

Mobile phones are dominated by Linux, as are most other mobile devices such as eBooks, and Linux is gaining ground in tables with Android & Chrome O/S. Linux dominates servers: note that essentially all Valve, Dig, and Google servers (I expect that they probably do run the odd Microsoft server, although I have no evidence of this) run Linux - not Microsoft. At least 95% of the top 500 supercomputers run Linux.

More and more companies and organisations are adopting Linux as their primary O/S on the desktop like the French Gendarmerie (http://www.zdnet.com/french-police-move-from-windows-to-ubuntu-linux-7000021479) and the local Government of a region in Spain (https://joinup.ec.europa.eu/community/osor/news/spains-extremadura-starts-switch-40000-government-pcs-open-source).

At home we have 2 Linux workstations (3, if you count my old development box I normally keep powered down), 2 Linux laptops, 2 Android phones, an Apple desktop, and an iPhone - for 2 adults and a teenager. Note no Microsoft boxen.

So for professional reasons, you should at least be investigating moving your skill base to Linux!

Re:Get a local phone number

[cusco]

I've lived in Seattle since 1996 (and 5 years in the '80s) and getting interviews as a techie here has ALWAYS sucked. At times I've had over 200 resumes out and gotten two or three interviews out of it. The OP's experience is not atypical.

Re:It's the global warming

[anagama]

That's how I like it. The sun just causes cancer and makes you wrinkle. That said,

Three guys are camping, one from Washington, one from Kentucky, and one from California. They're sitting around chatting when the guy from Kentucky pulls out a bottle of whiskey, takes a big swig, corks it, throws it in the air, whips out a pistol, and shoots the bottle before it hits the ground.

He then turns to his slightly shocked companions and says "no worries -- we got lots of good whiskey where I'm from."

The Californian then does the same thing with a bottle of wine -- takes a swig of wine, corks the bottle, tosses it, and shoots it before it hits the ground, remarking "no worries -- where I'm from, we've got lots of good wine."

The guy from Washington pulls out a bottle of Hales, pops the top, drinks it all, carefully sets the bottle down so it doesn't break, and shoots the Californian dead. The guy from Kentucky is shocked, but the Washingtonian says "no worries, where I'm from we have lots of Californians, but I really do need to recycle this bottle."

Re:It's the global warming

[JustNiz]

You should move here to Phoenix, AZ. Blue skies maybe 340 days of the year.

Before Global Warming/Climate Change...
F'ing hot but everywhere has good AC, cold beer and most houses have swimming pools.

Now/After Global Warming
F'ing hot but everywhere has good AC, cold beer and most houses have swimming pools.

Re:Get a local phone number

[KenFury]

Years ago I was in Seattle and had a greater Washington mailing address and Area code. I was getting no responses. After that I changed to a 206 cell and gave a friends mailing address off Cap Hill. It made a huge difference. Anecdotal evidence is anecdotal

Re: It's the global warming

[Durrik]

I just moved from Seattle to Phoenix, strangely enough it was because my job in Seattle ended and I couldn't get another job. The tech market for interviewees sucks in Seattle, I knew about the job closing for 6 months and still couldn't find a job there. So in a lark I applied to a job in Phoenix/Chandler. Had a phone call from them in 2 hours, an on-site scheduled 2 hours later. Call the day after the interview saying they're getting an offer together.

The job turned out to be about 2 levels above what I was applying for in Seattle. Love the weather here and don't regret leaving Seattle at all. They actually appreciate 15+ years of software engineering experience here. In Seattle all they seemed to care about was big O notation, not what you can actually do.