- Credibility:
WEST LOOP — Google plans to add “hundreds” of new jobs this year by expanding its financial team in the West Loop.
The tech giant which employs more than 1,000 in its Chicago headquarters will more than double the size of its staff by the end of 2019, according to a statement by the company.
The announcement comes after Google CEO Sundar Pichai vowed to invest $13 billion in office spaces and data centers across the U.S.
In a statement, Karen Sauder, Google Vice President of Sales and site lead for Chicago, called Chicago a “perfect fit” for the expansion, citing the city’s “culture, diversity and a strong emphasis on community.”
Google spokesman Peter Schottenfels did not specify which positions would be added, but said there would be “room to grow” within the company.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel said Google has played a large role in the growth of Chicago’s tech scene.
“The company continues to add new jobs and spur economic growth all while being a strong corporate partner for our residents,” Emanuel said. “I look forward to seeing the company continue to grow in Chicago for years to come.”
In 2000, the tech giant began with sales offices around the city and expanded to engineers and product management, which the company said accounts for 25 percent of its Chicago employees.
Related: Google Adding More Office Space In Fulton Market To Accommodate 1,000 Employees
Last fall, Google announced it would be expanding its office space in the West Loop by leasing six floors in Sterling Bay’s new 12-story building at 210 N. Carpenter St. — a building once pitched as a “vendor village” for companies that work with McDonald’s.
The new office space will be located a block south from Google’s Midwest headquarters at 1000 W. Fulton St.
Credit: Sterling Bay; Mauricio Peña/ Block Club ChicagoGoogle said it would use the new office space to “accommodate additional short-term and long-term growth of our Chicago office,” Sauder previously said.
When it opened in December 2015, 650 employees were slated to work out of Google’s Midwest headquarters on Fulton.
In August, the Tribune reported that Google was close to finalizing a lease on a 14,000-square-foot-retail store between 845 and 853 W. Randolph St. A Google spokesperson would not confirm plans for a store.
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