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The Curse of Competing with Apple

While Silicon Valley start-ups race to outdo each other with increasingly generous and creative perks, more established companies in less popular locales are finding it tough to attract tech talent. High salaries and increased bonuses aren't enough. The pressure is on to compete on fringe benefits.

"Hiring developers is the bane of my existence; it's a tight market," says Christa Foley, recruiting manager for Henderson, Nev.-based Zappos.com. "Vegas just doesn't compete." When recruiting, Ms. Foley's team plays up the monthly computer programming events, themed mini-parades at product launches, an on-site free life coach and lack of dress code.

No longer a start-up—the shoe retailer was founded 10 years ago and employs 1,300 people—Zappos feels threatened by the latest tech hiring wave in the Bay Area and Seattle. "We've started targeting more Midwest [and] East Coast to try to attract folks just because there is so much opportunity" on the West Coast, says Ms. Foley.

The company has about 100 open technical positions ranging from IT to project management to mobile development and three full-time "technical recruiters," Ms. Foley says. Last year it took up to six months to fill a technical opening whereas now it takes up to eight months, she says.

While unemployment remains high in the U.S. and most companies remain reluctant to hire, it's a different world for tech professionals, including software developers, engineers and telecommunications specialists. According to a recent report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics "demand for these workers will increase as organizations continue to upgrade their information technology capacity and incorporate the newest technologies." Employers competing for these in-demand workers must figure out ways to stay appealing.

In Cary, N.C., SAS Institute Inc. offers a full roster of perks: racquetball courts, car detailing, even a subsidized summer camp for employees' children. "The bottom line is we have under 4% turnover in an industry that's seen closer to 20%," says Jenn Man, vice president of human resources at the 35-year-old software maker. The company is less interested in offering employees the kinds of "cool" extras making headlines at a lot of start-ups and banking more on making its pitch as a family-friendly place to work.

A June survey at IT job site Dice.com found that 65% of nearly 900 hiring managers and recruiters anticipate hiring more technology professionals in the second half of 2011 than in the preceding six months. And according to a July study by human resources consulting firm Mercer LLC, 82% of IT companies increased spot cash bonuses, up from 77% in 2010 and 42% offered "aggressive" pay increases, up from 39%.

Video: Police in Oklahoma Bust Self-Storage Theft Ring

Police in Tulsa, Okla., busted a self-storage theft ring in which suspects became tenants to rob other units. Police obtained search warrants to enter self-storage units across the city, and discovered an abundance of stolen property.

The burglary ring is  linked to at least 100 thefts. The ring depended on the suspects becoming self-storage tenants, gaining access to the facility, and then breaking into other units on the properties. They then stored the stolen property in their rented units.

Sgt. Brandon Watkins of the Tulsa Police Department told the source police have obtained rental agreements signed by suspects at dozens of facilities between Tulsa and Oklahoma City. He believes the suspects also hit facilities in Owasso, Broken Arrow and Oklahoma City. The investigation continues, as police are confident they'll discover more thefts. The source does not reveal which specific facilities were searched.

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