

Ask HN: Interesting software jobs in Chicago? - chicagoan

(posting under a different account, as my coworkers read HN)<p>Chicago is a great place, but industry-wise, it seems heavily skewed towards the boring and corporate. I've been browsing all of the usual places (37 Signals, Crunchboard, Craigslist, Stack Overflow...) and I'm just not seeing the sort of position I'm looking for. I'd really like a position where the work is varied and I have the opportunity to learn and grow. I'd also like to find a company where the mission is something other than "Make money". Tall order, I know.<p>I'm a senior developer with a diverse background and a graduate degree. And a mortgage. So that also colors what I'm looking for. Over the past two years, I've grown to respect the opinions of this community, so I'm taking a chance and reaching out to see if the community is aware of opportunities that I'm not. Any Chicago area hackers (or hackers with knowledge of Chicago) have any suggestions?
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spanktheuser
>> I'd also like to find a company where the mission is something other than
"Make money".

You're going to have a real problem with this particular criteria. I don't
think this is problem limited to Chicago, however.

I'd recommend getting to know Chicago's start-up and consulting scene, as
these are probably the places with varied work and that treat people like more
than cogs in a machine. Chicago has a very strong Ruby on Rails community, so
it will probably help if you work in that language/platform. Places I'd
recommend checking out: Among local startups, Groupon has a really talented
staff and is absolutely taking off. Obtiva and Pathfinder are webapp
development companies focusing on agile, rails, and RIA. Threadless is in
Chicago and has a pretty large national reputation. I know people at all of
the above and think any would fit your criteria. That said, Groupon seems to
be in a rough stretch where developers work long hours as a result of their
rapid growth; Pathfinder and Obtiva might not be hiring due to the economy and
Threadless recently lost one of its founders (Jeffrey Kalmikiff) to Digg,
which makes me wonder what's going on that would cause him to leave.

~~~
kevintaylor
Obtiva is hiring. Feel free to go to our website and email us if you are
interest.

\--Kevin

