DETROIT – A group of Detroit businesses are encouraging more than 2,000 recently laid off Yahoo employees to consider bringing their talents to the Motor City.
Quicken Loans, Detroit Venture Partners, Rockbridge Growth Equity and Fathead.com are among the downtown Detroit-based companies interested in hiring hundreds of technology and marketing professionals formerly employed by Yahoo.
The group has created a website, www.ValleytoDetroit.com, for these technology and Internet marketing pros to upload their resumes. The companies will immediately begin interviews and have committed to fly final candidates to Detroit to introduce them to the wide-range of established and start-up companies that have sprung up in the city over the past two years.
“Detroit is quickly emerging as one of the nation’s best kept secrets when it comes to technology, Internet and mobile-related jobs,” said Josh Linkner, CEO and Managing Partner of Detroit Venture Partners. “We know that there is a great deal of talent inside of Yahoo – especially in marketing and web development, and we’re encouraging those who have been impacted by job cuts to consider Detroit as the next stop in their career.
The offer comes on the heels of last week’s announcement that Twitter will be opening a Detroit office at the historic M@dison Building in downtown Detroit, a technology and business incubator that houses many of the region’s start-up companies.
“We are creating an exciting urban core for young, energetic and creative professionals who want to affect the outcome of an entire region,” said Bill Emerson, CEO of Quicken Loans. “Not only does Detroit make for a great place to start or grow a business, but it’s also a great option for those who want to be on the ground-floor of rebuilding and reinventing a great American city.”
The businesses involved in the initiative will match candidates with hundreds of open positions and immediately begin phone interviews. Face-to-face meetings will then be scheduled in Palo Alto during a recruiting event in May, and a smaller group of candidates will be flown to Detroit for interviews and a tour of downtown businesses and start-ups who are hiring.
