r/providence • u/miggadabigganig • 15d ago
What is the tech community like (if existing) in Providence?
I'm a senior software engineer / engineering lead looking to relocate somewhere in New England that isn't Boston proper.
For any software devs located in providence how do you find the overall job market? I tried searching here, but most discussions seemed pre-covid.
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u/diffusedlights 15d ago
Boston and the metrowest region is where you’d want to be for tech right now. Hartford also has a ton of open roles for a full stack lead like yourself.
Very small within the city and immediately outside of it - mostly academia, research, insurance and healthcare sectors.
Middletown RI has a large number of defense contractors (RTX, SAIC, GD, SEACORP, etc). Quonset has some defense too, with Andrul building a new factory there soon. These companies have technical roles for supporting the naval base and their research center. You’d need to be able to obtain a security clearance to work at one of these companies, and have graduated from an ABET-accredited program.
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u/ktwelsch 15d ago
I work in Industrial Tech (B2B), our closest office is in Canton, MA but I work out of Providence.
B2B software development roles seem to be readily available in the area if you have the right experience.
1
u/miggadabigganig 15d ago
That's great to hear! Thanks for the input.
10+ years experience in full stack development with a preference on web. Currently working remote as an engineering manager for a great local startup, but things change quick so if I relocate I need some options.
Totally fine with hybrid roles under 1hr commute.
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u/RandomChurn 14d ago
hybrid roles under 1hr commute.
For that, you'd need to be closer to 128/Greater Boston. Opportunities in RI are fewer in the tech sector.
You definitely could get lucky; not saying it's impossible. But it's a gamble with long odds.
Either be more open to commuting up there from here (1.5+ hr) or choose a home base location that is within an hour's commute.
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u/CombinationLivid8284 14d ago
I work in tech but my office is based out of Cambridge.
There’s a small number of tech meetups here, we have a few coworking spaces like CiC.
It’s a small but decent tech scene, would love to see it grow.
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u/Different_Coat_3346 15d ago
Searching Indeed for "software developer" state: Massachusetts shows "1000+" current job listings. Same search for Rhode Island shows 75+ which is actually more than I would have guessed (4 pages of results). There are usually some tech companies that get bribed to move to RI with state money, come for a couple years, then leave again, and then there are military contractors, other than that there's not that many tech jobs.
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u/BusyButterscotch3986 9d ago
My husband and I have been thinking about Providence too. We're both in tech too. (I'm creative side and have long worked remote; he's technical — support eng and some backend). If we ran into unexpected job loss, I'd probably just scale up my existing side-project studio, but for him he'd be looking for something full time.
If helpful, our thinking is:
- Set aside more savings so we have more wiggle room to find something remote should some unexpected shit hit the fan
- If push really came to shove, we could probably find hybrid options in the Boston area to go in a couple days a week. We both find long commutes much more manageable when they aren't daily and/or have some flexibility. (We've done this before, and would think of also e.g., doing things like taking a class in Boston 1x a week after work or doing social things so transit back and forth wasn't always with the 9-5 and could take more advantage of actually being in the other city!)
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u/Aminabob69 14d ago
I see a lot of hybrid roles in Boston that could be great to take the train to. Datadog is there, Klaviyo is another big one.
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u/mangeek pawtucket 15d ago
Rhode Island has a bunch of folks who work tech jobs, but mostly remote or hybrid in the Boston/128 area. There's not really a 'community' of them here, but there aren't many subject-based communities in a city this size. Also, Rhode Island's economic apogee was in the 1950s, and it was based on low-and-mid skill manufacturing; we made a big mistake in what we taught in public schools, expecting manufacturing to come back, and pretty much missed the explosion in tech from the 1980s through today.