San Francisco and Silicon Valley continue to be the nucleus of the tech world, and despite some bumps in the road — Covid-19, the transition to remote work and the migration of talented workers to other cities — the Bay Area is bouncing back. In fact, the New York Times reported that many workers who left the city to work elsewhere during the pandemic have been lured back to San Francisco and its promise of innovation, connection and cultural vibrancy.
As the Bay Area bounces back, there are many unique companies that are hiring talented employees for a variety of positions. We took a look at three forward-thinking businesses in particular: Red Ventures, Grove Collaborative and Unity Technologies. From major acquisitions to stunning 3D video game engines, read on to find out why each of these companies might be the pathway to extending a tech career.
What they do: Red Ventures is a next-generation digital brand portfolio that spans five continents, employs more than 4,500 people and builds online journeys through homes, health, travel, finances, education and entertainment.
Big acquisitions: Red Ventures has made 11 acquisitions in the last year, including exciting companies like Lonely Planet, CNET, Healthline, ZDNet, TV Guide, Metacritic, GameSpot and Chowhound.
In the news: In early August, Red Ventures purchased provider search platform Healthgrades.com from Mercury Healthcare, further increasing their commitment to the healthtech industry that started with the acquisition of Healthline.
Cool tech: Proprietary technology brings personalized ads and experiences to millions of users who rely on the company’s sites.
What they do: Launched in 2012, Grove Collaborative creates innovative natural products and offers a curated selection of healthy home essentials like cleaning supplies and personal care products.
Certified B: Grove Collaborative is a Certified B Corporation, which means they “meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose.”
Plastic-free: Grove Collaborative is a plastic-neutral retailer and is committed to becoming one hundred percent plastic-free by 2025.
Volunteer work: Among other employee perks, Grove Collaborative offers opportunities to give back. For instance, they donated hand sanitizer and safe cleaning products to hundreds of schools around the country to assist in a safe fall reopening in 2020.
What they do: Unity Technologies is a leading platform for creating and operating real-time 3D (RT3D) content. Creators, ranging from game developers to artists, architects, automotive designers, filmmakers and others, use Unity to bring their imaginations to life.
Video game influence: The cross-platform Unity game engine now supports a variety of desktop, mobile, console and virtual reality platforms. Their technology has been used in Pokémon Go, Cuphead, Call of Duty: Mobile, the Elder Scrolls franchise, the Fallout franchise and more. It is also popular with indie game developers.
Work from anywhere: Unity Technologies will pay $320 million to acquire Parsec, a remote desktop and streaming company that allows game developers to work from anywhere.
Great for parents: Employees with children can find a lot of perks to love at Unity, including high-quality, low-cost replacement care and up to 12 weeks of parental leave.
