While competitors like Indeed and ZipRecruiter are busy adding space, CareerBuilder is movin’ on out. Crain’s Chicago Business is citing sources close to negotiations that the Chicago-based job board is leaving its long-time downtown home and going west.
According to Crain’s, CareerBuilder is in the process of finalizing a deal to lease more than 100,000 square feet on two floors on the West Loop of the city. It’s currently an anchor tenant at 200 N. LaSalle St., which lies right next to Chicago River and is just a few blocks from Michigan Ave.
The current lease is for about 162,000 square feet and expires next year. CareerBuilder is the largest tenant at the 30-story, 643,000-square-foot tower, according to CoStar, a real estate information company.
The move represents about a 38 percent decrease in space, just in case you’re keeping score at home.
The move is in contrast to 2014 when CareerBuilder increased the office space it had on LaSalle St., as it consolidated its Chicago offices. Back then, CareerBuilder added 47,466 square feet to its headquarters, replacing 40,686 square feet it closed from another office on LaSalle St.
CareerBuilder isn’t confirming the move, however, telling Crain’s that the company “has been evaluating our real estate space” and is “considering staying where we are and exploring other options,” but has not made a decision yet.
Nevertheless, the move makes perfect sense. After being acquired by private-equity firm Apollo Global Management and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board last summer, cost-cutting has been in focus. Crains reports 120 CareerBuilder employees have been cut since the new owners took over, including 30 in Chicago.
