Job market for corporate finance professional

[robertobaggio]

Originally Posted by SanJac

This is not a good time to be looking for a finance job anywhere. Most companies have put a pause on external hiring. Go where both you and your wife can find jobs. Some hospitals, by the way, are also laying off staff.

Not the time for a Houston vs. Dallas comparison. These are extraordinary times. Good luck!

That's what I wanted to hear since we already have my spouse job secured in Houston. Essentially looking to change plans to go to Dallas or other cities thinking it will be MATERIALLY better for me may not be worth the hassle (?).

[WRM20]

Originally Posted by Dal123

To Jd433

I most certainly can say Dallas is a much better and nicer place to live than Houston. I grew up in Houston. I wen to college in NTX. I’ve lived in both cities. So am definitely qualified to say so. But it’s sad the O&G companies have made a steady exodus from Dallas due to consolidating, sold to companies outside of Dallas, etc. the few big O&G employers left there are in their last legs., ie Denbury, etc.

You can say that, but saying doesn't make it so. Every place has it's pluses and minuses. I would also question whether you are talking about the City of Dallas, or one of the 350,000 generic suburb cities that surround it.

[jd433]

Houston will always attract people even without blowing a trumpet to the whole world like Dallas does.
Dallas esteems itself more and tries harder than Houston. They like to make noise and brag about everything they do. Meanwhile Houston does just a great or even better but does not make so much noise about it.
If Rice University or the Texas Medical Center or Port of Houston or Montrose or Hermann Park or The Menil and Rothko or Memorial City or River Oaks or the Heights, Caydon Midtown, the new MFAH etc. Etc. Etc.. if they had The Woodlands on one end and the Palm lined(Florida like) streets of the Bay area on the other. If they had the Fred Hartman bridge and the new $1 billion Port of Houston bridge or The Ion. if any of these areas were located in DALLAS!!!! You would NEVER, EVER hear the end of it. They would brag and blow a trumpet and go on and on about what legendary places they are and that we are the best. Bla, bla, bla.

[mkwensky]

Originally Posted by kwr

That’s like saying on the surface for someone unfamiliar with NYC and Chicago that the cities are basically the same and offer an immaterial difference in lifestyle.

The international component you highlighted is a huge difference and should not be underestimated. It shapes the unique culture in Houston that makes the city quite different from the rest of TX. This is grossly missing in Austin (along with many other things that Houston offers and Dallas to some extent). If we’re being honest all TX large cities (e.g., Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Ft Worth, Austin and El Paso) have different vibes when the onion is peeled back; though, on the surface, Houston and Dallas appear to the casual observer to be the most similar.

On the topic of finance, there are plenty of FP&A roles in Houston, if that’s an area of interest in corporate finance for you. All mid to large companies regardless of industry have these roles. As a finance professional, I can tell you that most companies across the US at least in the short term probably won’t increase finance staff (because it is a cost center, not profit center). Right now, similar to the 2008 financial crisis, cash is king and CFOs are trying to hoard it.

Still outside of things like jobs and family the lifestyles are pretty similar. Houston is a little more international but Dallas is very diverse too. Neither are great for outdoor activities in general, but ok for water sports. Both are good food and shopping cities, and both have fine but not great amenities like museums and parks. The chance that someone without local ties would be happy in one but miserable in the other is low.

[Mr. Clutch]

Originally Posted by Dal123

Houston has so many ****hole streets. I live here in River Oaks. Can’t believe how bad the streets are. In Dallas, the infrastructure, streets are so much better, when mentioning Dallas, its the Park Cities, Preston Hollow and North Dallas areas. Not Plano, Not Frisco, etc.

Yep, the street infrastructure is better there - its much harder to keep those up when they are continously flooded like they are here.

But the weather, the people, and the culture is so much better here. Dallas is too corporate and sterile for me, though its certainly "nice" if you're into the prairie look. I'll take what we have over that personally any day though.