Move to Calgary?

[xst1]

Hey guys, I currently work in Toronto and may have the opportunity to transfer to Calgary but I will not be able to go-up in the same company but I was wondering....if this may be a smart move anyway...if there are a lot of tech jobs in Calgary?
Also is the cost of living a bit more? I know its a bit harder to get apts there now...
would you choose calgary over toronto now?

thc

[volan]

It depends on what you mean by "tech jobs". Remember, no matter what anyone says, Calgary is an oil town, so the most predomenant jobs are those that support the oil industry.

So, if you're an IT kind of person, then yes there is a need for people like you, but if you're into telecom, or other high-tech type stuff then your options are more limited.

The major advantage Calgary has over Toronto in that the taxes are lower. There is no PST in Calgary!!! So right away you save 6% (or whatever it is) on everything you purchase.

Calgary is also smaller than GTA so driving distances are less. For example, it takes me 30-40 minutes to drive to work, and my colleagues think I'm nuts for living so far from the office. Most people have less than 30minute ride into work.

But right now there is a major shortage of housing. If I were you I'd get your company to help you find a place, or come out here ahead of time and get a place to live before you move.

[TotallyKiller]

I moved from TO to Calgary a couple of years ago and agree with everything that he said. There are very few telecom jobs here, and many tech jobs are also difficult to get, depending on what your specialization is.

At this time, moving here without a job and a plan for housing/apartments may not be wise.

[alysomji]

Depends on what you define as tech, but generally speaking the tech market in Calgary is not doing particularly well - unlike many other markets and industries (such as oil, trades, etc.).

[StarvinStudent]

It depends on what field you're into. IT is very broad. If you're an ETL developer for instance with some experience, if you call up a headhunter, you'll have multiple offers within a few days. If you're telecom it might be a little more difficult. It just depends.

Definately, don't move here until you have a job and a place lined up though.

[rc51]

I would agree, althougth it seems difficult to do, try to line up a position BEFORE coming here..especially for anything IT related.

We moved here due to the wife taking a promotion..and lucky us, that she got a good move up in pay level as I was job hunting for just over 4 months..with all the stories about the 'hot' IT market out here, it was quite frustrating.

I have just over 10 years experience in IT, (Novell, MS, VAX/VMS, Alpha, networking, electronics tech), and about 9 years in electronics, aviation electrical/computer systems, very well rounded but couldn't land anything.

Most of the times I was passed over as people thought I'd just leave for more money..which I haven't figured out if it's true here (high turnover out here) or just a line they use.

Even head hunters (agencies) seem to be clueless, I had one meeting with an "IT recruiter" and she didn't even know what Netware was??!?! Go figure!!

IMO, Calgary seems to be a pure MS town..if you are a developer you'll have better luck than if you're doing networking/infrastructure, and unlike Wpg..where you may be in a smaller shop and be a jack of all trades, it seems that the IT shops in Calgary are bigger, and you specialize either on the desktop side or server side..I've found very little cross over where people do both. I wish I had my old job back... about 150 users, jack of all trades, I did desktops, procurement, instruments, servers, networking, phones, wireless etc etc. All I do here is local IT, and then EVERYTHING gets a damn TICKET. You spend more time creating TICKETS than actually doing IT work :D I guess that's the way BIGGER companies work...which is very new to me. I come from a world where problems were just talked about and resloved..rather than a ticket going from queue to queue.

[Metablob]

While the jobs may be plentiful in Calgary, the girls are not. From my last trip there, the effects of young men migrating to Calgary chasing jobs, mean that you will have a lot of competition looking for girls in the 20-30 range. I saw a lot of good looking guys hooked up with fat chicks. My wife had a friend who lived in Ontario who couldn't get a date in Ottawa, moved to Calary - engaged in 6 months. And my wife couldn't believe how good looking the guy was.

Now Vancouver was the exact opposite - with a significant gay population and competetion from slim petite asian girls - bachelor's delight!

[StarvinStudent]

While the jobs may be plentiful in Calgary, the girls are not. From my last trip there, the effects of young men migrating to Calgary chasing jobs, mean that you will have a lot of competition looking for girls in the 20-30 range. I saw a lot of good looking guys hooked up with fat chicks. My wife had a friend who lived in Ontario who couldn't get a date in Ottawa, moved to Calary - engaged in 6 months. And my wife couldn't believe how good looking the guy was.

Now Vancouver was the exact opposite - with a significant gay population and competetion from slim petite asian girls - bachelor's delight!

lol, very good analysis!!! You know, if I had to relocate, I wouldn't have even thought about this lol.

[xst1]

Well...for me it would be transfer of the same job I do in TO but in Calgary - which is mostly desktop (end-user)/some server support. I would be looking developing any IT skill if I were in Calgary as my hours would be better.
So which area in IT is big in Calgary?
hmmm...tho must say the girl thing didnt sound good
I always though tho TO has a lot of jobs - there are way more ppl applying to each of them compared to Calgary? no?

[BadDrafter]

While the jobs may be plentiful in Calgary, the girls are not. From my last trip there, the effects of young men migrating to Calgary chasing jobs, mean that you will have a lot of competition looking for girls in the 20-30 range. I saw a lot of good looking guys hooked up with fat chicks. My wife had a friend who lived in Ontario who couldn't get a date in Ottawa, moved to Calary - engaged in 6 months. And my wife couldn't believe how good looking the guy was.


That's not completely true, plenty of eastern girls come here too. The last three girlfriends I had were from the east.

[rc51]

While the jobs may be plentiful in Calgary, the girls are not. From my last trip there, the effects of young men migrating to Calgary chasing jobs, mean that you will have a lot of competition looking for girls in the 20-30 range. I saw a lot of good looking guys hooked up with fat chicks. My wife had a friend who lived in Ontario who couldn't get a date in Ottawa, moved to Calary - engaged in 6 months. And my wife couldn't believe how good looking the guy was.


Lots of women at Banker Hall West where I am...very good looking women in their power suits you see every day..but then they're all going into Investment Banker type offices...so you better bring you very serious 6 figure salary if you're asking these ones out....I saw 2 of them today, each drive away in MB 55AMG's....

[rc51]

Well...for me it would be transfer of the same job I do in TO but in Calgary - which is mostly desktop (end-user)/some server support. I would be looking developing any IT skill if I were in Calgary as my hours would be better.
So which area in IT is big in Calgary?
hmmm...tho must say the girl thing didnt sound good
I always though tho TO has a lot of jobs - there are way more ppl applying to each of them compared to Calgary? no?

If you can transfer with your current company then you're ahead of the game... I would say there's probably just as many people applying here as in Toronto on a per capita basis...don't forget there is a ridiculous amount of people moving into Calgary EACH and EVERY day..I can't remember the exact number but I think it was something like 90 new people per day...or something like that.

[TotallyKiller]

I would agree, althougth it seems difficult to do, try to line up a position BEFORE coming here..especially for anything IT related.

We moved here due to the wife taking a promotion..and lucky us, that she got a good move up in pay level as I was job hunting for just over 4 months..with all the stories about the 'hot' IT market out here, it was quite frustrating.

I have just over 10 years experience in IT, (Novell, MS, VAX/VMS, Alpha, networking, electronics tech), and about 9 years in electronics, aviation electrical/computer systems, very well rounded but couldn't land anything.

Most of the times I was passed over as people thought I'd just leave for more money..which I haven't figured out if it's true here (high turnover out here) or just a line they use.

Even head hunters (agencies) seem to be clueless, I had one meeting with an "IT recruiter" and she didn't even know what Netware was??!?! Go figure!!

IMO, Calgary seems to be a pure MS town..if you are a developer you'll have better luck than if you're doing networking/infrastructure, and unlike Wpg..where you may be in a smaller shop and be a jack of all trades, it seems that the IT shops in Calgary are bigger, and you specialize either on the desktop side or server side..I've found very little cross over where people do both. I wish I had my old job back... about 150 users, jack of all trades, I did desktops, procurement, instruments, servers, networking, phones, wireless etc etc. All I do here is local IT, and then EVERYTHING gets a damn TICKET. You spend more time creating TICKETS than actually doing IT work :D I guess that's the way BIGGER companies work...which is very new to me. I come from a world where problems were just talked about and resloved..rather than a ticket going from queue to queue.


If you don't have tickets for everything, then people like me find out, it goes in an audit report, and then it hits the fan. Especially if you are a traded company. You can't certify if you don't have the internal documentation, and that means tickets for everything. All changes, all problems, all help desk calls, everything. It's a pain, but it's an even bigger problem without them.