head hunters in huntsville (Decatur, Florence: transplants, sales, apartment)

[pmbuchanan]

We are pulling up stakes (5 of us) and leaving the rat race behind. We have bought property in Rogersville and will arrive jobless in January. We have been told and have read that the job industry there is bustling but have had no luck through the on line classifieds etc.

Is that a true statement that the job industry is bustling? We need a good aggressive head hunter. Does anyone know of one. I have tried the staffing agencies and am not really satisfied with them. We are in the technology, sales, health, space engineering and food management industries respectfully. We would really appreciate leads in this area.

What exactly is BRAC. The military is moving people to the area we have heard and the housing industry should boom. Any info on this?

I read that Athens is just recently able to sell alcohol. What other areas are dry there?

I recently sold a restaurant and would like to open one there. Are there any great business areas that would bustle for lunch?

Would appreciate any input available.

[zenjenn]

So, to be clear, you are an employer who wants a staffing agency to help you acquire staff?

BRAC reconsolidates reduced army programs/bases in the region (country?) into Huntsville's Redstone Arsenal. (So instead of having many arsenals that are thinned out, you have one that is kept going strong with full resources.) Yes, there is a housing boom in terms of construction - new homes being erected in all directions. We ourselves are in the process of buying one. But, the influx of people hasn't really hit yet. There are more sellers on the market than buyers right now. The new homes sell quickly and well, but the older homes sit on the market for a while.

My husband isn't military, but an engineer who has worked in the defense industry his whole career. From that perspective, the job industry is bustling. He showed up to one job fair and made a couple cold calls and had job offers falling into his lap. But, he has some highly sought-after skills and experience in the defense and aerospace industry, so I am not at all sure if that would be consistent with anyone job-hunting.

He also contacted a head hunter who was all but useless. This was his experience from the management perspective as well, headhunters sending unqualified candidates and wasting their time.

A favorite story was a very simple requirement he put forth to the staffing agency; to qualify for the position, candidates needed to legally be U.S. citizens due to the nature of the work (security clearance rated government work.) They sent a non-citizen, who drove through 2 hrs of traffic to arrive at the job interview. First question - are you a citizen, NO. Wasted everyone's time.

A lot of these people just throw jobs at applicants and try to see what sticks. They are not educated enough in technical industries to have any understanding of what the employer needs and what the candidate has to offer, and try to randomly land a good fit so that they can get their payoff. My husband has years of experience in high-end digital signal processing for military applications, and they sent him a job listing for things like... an opening for an instructor to teach an HTML class over the internet to long-distance learners. Anyone who knows anything about the tech industry would realize how asinine that is. The last thing Huntsville needs town is an engineer who has experience with military applications taking a job teaching people how to make web sites.

It is frustrating to both employer and candidate. They can waste your time and energy. I'm sure there are some professional and competent staffers out there, but we didn't work with any. If you work with one (as either employer or candidate), ask them a lot of good questions about your specific industry. If they don't answer clearly and concisely run for the door... fast!

I highly recommend the job fair put on by the Huntsville times. They had a HUGE tech section that was well-staffed by actual engineers and managers from local companies - not just HR monkeys.

As for restaurants, being a stay-at-home mom I can't speak for the lunch rush, but the area where I am moving (Near Hampton Cove, southeast Huntsville), there are a TON of people in the new housing developments there who can't say enough about how much they want to see some new restaurants, stores, and recreation in the area. There are a few fast food joints but that's it. ONE new Italian restaurant is being built and it's the talk of the neighborhood.

[NicoleC]

Jenn's comments and headhunters are cracking me up. I guess there are reputable ones out there, but most are bottom feeding parasites and have such a huge turnover in the industry that few have more than a few months experience. They send out completely inappropriate candidates, help fake resumes and if you make the mistake of hiring one, they'll be calling that person the day after the guarantee runs out so they can place them again and cash another 25% salary paycheck.

The job market is booming here, but it's a high tech town. Most of the big high tech employers don't advertise except on their own web sites; a security clearance will help enormously.

Huntsville doesn't really have a central spot for nightlife or business that would be the obvious "spot." Madison seems well served by restaurants, but then again all of them are booming every time I see them with people waiting in line, and I hear lunch is a disaster. In the near future, something over the hill in NE Huntsville would be welcome; there's NO competition there yet but many houses going in. Decatur doesn't have any lack of places to go, but few are more than mediocre.

Huntsville has a dearth of quality, small restaurants. Chains and fast food everywhere and diners, cafes, burger and sandwich shops.

Liquor laws vary. In the area, most counties in Alabama are dry; most cities are wet. Some places allow Sunday sales, most do not. And serving laws are different than buying in a store. Huntsville, Athens, Decatur and Florence are wet. Morgan and Limestone counties are dry; Madison County is wet.

[pmbuchanan]

Thanks for your reply !

No I am not looking for staff as of yet. I will also enter the work force under someone elses tutlage for the time being. I will eventually after scouting the area open my own establishment but for now will let someone else have the head aches. LOL

My son has a physics engineering degree and is currently working for a space oriented company in N.M. He too is re-locating so I think he may fair better than the rest of us when it comes to jobs.

One daughter is in telecommunications sales and my husband is a data base administrator in dba 2 and sequel server.

The daughter has put out 60 resumes with almost no replys. The few she has gotten were people looking to have "her" pay to find her a job. She is getting frustrated. She has a great job here and is scared to death to have no prospects.

If anyone has any contacts in these areas please pass them on.

Also how is the fast pitch softball programs in the schools and colleges there? Have another daughter that is a high school coach here and she will be looking to re-locate in about 6 months after her season is over.

Thanks to all

[Keeper]

Not sure exactly what type of sales, inside or out, your daughter does but Verizon just opened up a hugh call center here.

Your husband should have no problem, but it may be contract work. There was a job in Guntersville for a database administrator just a week ago.

Once you get here and have a local address you will probably get more replies.

[dbkeel1]

A couple of Huntsville area technology and BRAC-related jobsites to check out are www.usajobs.com and www.asmartplace.com. Also visit the Chamber's website to see who the local employers in Cumming Research Park are, then visit each respective website: http://www.huntsvillealabamausa.com/...ical_list.html.

It'll be a commute from Rogersville, probably, but it's where most of the technology jobs are.

Good luck!

[12lala]

I'm planning to relocate to the area (again) from CA/CO to start a tech biz. I lived in Huntsville years ago to work for TVA and attended grad school at UAH.

To say things are "booming" is relative. Phoenix, Las Vegas, much of California, and Atlanta "boomed" over the past decades, but this area just sort of ebbs and flows with the defense industry and the occasional industrial uptick. People will claim there is a boom when one new plant opens bringing in 1,000 manufacturing jobs, or when defense contracting is up.

We're coming back for numerous reasons, the obvious being family and cost of living. We're considering starting a new tech (non-defense) company here because we expect it will just be a whole lot easier to do it here than in the bay area. We started one company in SF a few years back, but its just so expensive. We weighed all the pros and cons of living in silicon valley to start our biz, and these days, it doesn't matter so much where you are, so long as you can find good talent. I think we can find it in/around Huntsville.

I also think this area, and other small low cost cities will continue to grow while the rest of the country will be kind of stagnant for a while. The reason is, these days with internet access and inexpensive air travel, there is no need to relocate to a big city any more. Small companies can thrive here!

There are some things I hate about Alabama, but there is a whole lot I love about it. Most of all, I love that that the pressure is off me when I'm here. When I'm not so worried about how I can possibly afford a place in SF, I can relax and focus on doing a quality job. Since I'm not fighting traffic or on public transportation for 2 hours a day I can use that time to work or enjoy life. I also like shedding the incessant "keeping up with the jones'es" feeling that comes with living in a lot of more affluent cities.

One of the things I've had to adjust to is the food. Southern style food is awesome, a couple of times a year. But I can't eat it every day. So if you open a restaurant that serves primarily healthy, fresh, and well prepared food, I will be so grateful!

[zenjenn]

There are some things I hate about Alabama, but there is a whole lot I love about it. Most of all, I love that that the pressure is off me when I'm here. When I'm not so worried about how I can possibly afford a place in SF, I can relax and focus on doing a quality job. Since I'm not fighting traffic or on public transportation for 2 hours a day I can use that time to work or enjoy life. I also like shedding the incessant "keeping up with the jones'es" feeling that comes with living in a lot of more affluent cities.

Isn't this the truth? Maybe it is just the spirit of change, but ever since moving here - even when we were still in our 2 bedroom apartment (a family of 4) we just have been so much more relaxed and happy in Alabama than we were in California. A lot of this stems around my husband's job. He works hard and they are a professional company, but they treat employees with respect and like adults. The work culture is one of "family first". I could write a whole thread just about that but suffice to say; he is happier at his job, and we are happier as a result.

So if you open a restaurant that serves primarily healthy, fresh, and well prepared food, I will be so grateful!

Yes. I cannot emphasize how true this is. And not just because I am a fruity Californian. I have met many transplants from all over who are just itching for new places to go to eat good, healthy cuisine. I think a restaurant like California's fitness pizza or Baja Fresh would be a major hit here in any number of locations. Even though I have -zero- interest in the restaurant business part of me feels like it's a such a good opportunity for commercial business owners here. Maybe it is because Huntsville in many ways reminds me of Orange County when I was a kid. I don't think Huntsville will boom -quite- like Orange County, CA, but I think the environment is ripe for a success for people who want to open restaurants, stores, and other businesses.

[NicoleC]

I agree about the food choices. It's rather depressing. If you want to eat healthy you are condemned to either always making your own or getting a tasteless salad. There's nothing wrong with biscuits and gravy from time to time but there's a whole happy world out there of good food that's also good for you.

[zenjenn]

For some economical, healthier choices; Jason's Deli or Great Wraps next to Fresh Market have some good choices. I actually had a falafel at Great Wraps that wasn't half bad.

And probably my favorite restaurant around here so far is Surin's of Thailand on Airport Rd.

Not quite up to par with my favorite places in California, but they'll do.