
Why do tech companies avoid the Midwest? - polock
https://us.teamblind.com/article/why-do-tech-companies-avoid-the-midwest-0M0kVEw8
======
lordCarbonFiber
From the worker's prospective low cost of living doesn't work out if you have
other debts. Your student loans are in raw dollars and saving 20% on 80k is
paying them off at a slower rate than saving 10% on 200k. Not to mention if
you're targeting raises at % year over year the lower your base salary the
worse your future comp is tied to.

This means companies can't get the critical mass of talent required to make
the investment worth it; so they don't bother.

~~~
guywaffle
Or if a person likes to travel. Just because the area a person works/lives is
relatively cheap doesn’t mean the hotel in Paris or the flight to Hawaii is
any cheaper.

~~~
lordCarbonFiber
That's an insidious trap; the low cost of living means you're less likely to
see the world and more likely to blindly accept your surroundings as good. I
think I understand more how so many people look at the coastal cities and
wonder why people want to live here.

------
chmaynard
Because the people who manage tech companies are sheep who do what everyone
else is doing. Their goals are to make money for their corporation and enrich
themselves, not to do what's right or sensible for their employees.

------
mikerg87
Never underestimate the role that climate plays. Looking at a weather map for
the United States today and it’s a hard sell to convince someone to move the
Midwest or stay in the Midwest.

------
bob_theslob646
They don't it's just really hard to attract talent towards the West because in
general, people don't want to live there.

I would have no problem.I love that BBQ and lower cost of living.

------
karmellad1
Much more opportunities in the West coast!

