The Great Reshuffling to Florida and Texas

If there’s a giant sucking sound you hear coming from the Rust Belt in the northeast, it’s no coincidence. Key people are being drawn from this area if working remotely isn’t an option. As a result, many are exploring their options in a warmer climate to the south: Namely, Florida. 

In this scenario, it’s really not a question of remote, non-remote or hybrid. The policy is clear. It’s more “Which one of these locations are you going to live in?” For example, either Chicago or Florida. Or New York City or Florida. Or New Jersey/Connecticut or Florida. Being non-remote or close to it forces the individual to make a choice and, based on what we’re seeing at Roy Talman & Associates, Florida is one of the primary beneficiaries of this development.

If Florida is gradually sucking away talent from the northeast, Austin, Texas is doing the same to California. Elon Musk moved Tesla’s company headquarters and newest manufacturing facility to Austin. Oracle is in the process of moving its company headquarters from Silicon Valley to Austin. Beyond headquarters, major investments are coming to building a presence in Austin from Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Canva. Just to name a few.


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What we see in these transitions, whether a total move of headquarters or substantial addition to the company footprint, is an opportunity. We’ve talked a lot about the importance and significant influence of a company’s remote policy – full-time in the office, hybrid or completely remote – can have on hiring. But beyond crafting the right remote policy for its employees and plans going forward, companies are discovering that new locations are presenting them with opportunities for expansion, certain tax advantages and, yes, a potential benefit of choice to offer new hires and existing staff.

Think about it. If yours is a technical environment that requires people to be present in the office most or all of the week, offering remote work isn’t an option. But offering in-office work in another location is. That opens up conversations with potential hires interested in a cultural fit based not only on the work environment but also on the living environment. Such as if they are in California but have always been interested in a different lifestyle in Austin, Texas. Or they are in high tax Connecticut but can reap the rewards of tax light Florida. No problem – if the opportunity before them is also portable, it could position your company as one that provides the benefit of choice even as you have a remote policy that demands in-office work.

We have provided examples of gigantic brands making an enormous investment in new locations in Texas and Florida. Still, The Great Reshuffling does not necessarily mean that your presence in such areas must be extravagant and expensive. For example, you might find that certain shared office arrangements enable your team to maintain an office in the new location while being part of a community of many different companies. Or you simply may find that a more cost-efficient office near a downtown area or the beach but not in the heart of it all saves you from paying office rent that’s through the roof. Is the office 15 minutes to the beach or downtown? That’s still a lot closer than where your headquarters is, thousands of miles away, isn’t it?

Remote work is a nice concept for some companies and industries, but it’s just not realistically applicable for the nature of what they do. In such situations, considering expansion to a new market may be just what you need to provide your next candidate with a greater array of lifestyle choices.

Speaking of which, long before you move in or break new ground, Talk To Talman First. Roy Talman & Associates is well versed in identifying, recruiting and hiring top technical talent that can help you hit the ground running as you move forward. Having a conversation with our team now about the kind of people you’ll need to staff up quickly with a powerful presence may be one of the smartest things you can do to plan ahead.