Facebook is growing its Chicago office, hiring for 30 new roles in 2017 with plans to grow the team in years to come.
The new roles fall under the Partner Management (PM) team, which helps small and medium-sized businesses use Facebook’s services, such as Pages and advertising, to grow their business. Open roles include Partner Manager, Team Lead and Manager and the company will be hiring through 2017. Facebook’s PM team is usually located in Austin, Texas, but Facebook said Chicago’s “talent pipeline and attractiveness to new candidates” is the reason they’re expanding here.
"We made the decision to expand to Chicago because it gives us another really strong market that has a rich talent pipeline, rich community, and a very broad agency and client ecosystem," said Katherine Shappley, Facebook's SMB (small and medium business) regional director for North America to Chicago Inno. "This expansion is really going to compliment the work that my team does across the country, and with the team in Austin. We believe that in making this investment in a new market, we can increase the support for both our agency and advertising partners."
The PM team helps small and medium sized businesses connect with solutions on Facebook that can boost their business. Working directly with businesses and through agency partners, they provide support on Facebook tools, as well as publish material and resources on how small and medium businesses can leverage Facebook's tools (such as pages, offers, and targeted advertising) to increase sales and improve customer loyalty. For example, Chicago Lashes, a Roscoe Village eyelash and hair extension salon, used Facebook Offers to increase overall sales by 50 percent in 7 months and double daily appointment bookings.
We made the decision to expand to Chicago because it gives us another really strong market
Facebook has had a Chicago presence since 2007, and moved into a 15,000-square-foot office at 191 N. Wacker last April. They currently employ 70 people in Chicago across global business marketing, marketing science, recruiting, and creative. Facebook employed approximately 17,000 people worldwide as of December 31, 2016, according to company information.
That said, Shappley said she anticipates growth across the Chicago office in coming years. "We're here to stay," she said.
