Guys my close friend is moving from Dallas to Toronto and he works in IT.
Last week he gave few interviews and has got job offer from BMO bank but is still waiting for RIM offer.
Though BMO guys are pushing him to decide in day or two.
According to RIM HR they will be giving the offer letter by this Friday.

So is it worth waiting for RIM offer and risking the offer at hand ?
Should he take BMO offer without even looking at RIM offer ?

Assuming Salaries in both companies will be same, which is better company to join:
1. Which has better benefits
2. Better work culture.
3. stability. (Financial industry VS Telecom industry)
4. Location : Waterloo VS Toronto Downtown

Thanks in advance for your responses.

Just some thoughts for consideration:
Waterloo is a pretty dull and drab area and I doubt if your friend will like this place coming from Dallas. Mississauga is 1 hr 15 mins drive from here. The salary is not at all competitive at the company mentioned in waterloo.
Schools are pretty good in Waterloo and since there is a lack of VM, it will be a decent place to raise up kids.
In terms of work culture, both will be the same as the IT dept. will be full of Desi's and the company themselves will be dominated by locals.
Also I would advise you to find if TCS guys exist in BMO. If not I would recommend BMMO as these TCS guys really mess up the atmosphere and bring us a bad name with the natives/locals.
PEace

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I am a Gents and not a Ladies.

As always thanks TK for your advise and fast response.
I also told him pretty much same thing about Waterloo area, though i didnt have much information about benefits/work culture these companies has to offer.
I don't know if TCS has presence in BMO but will try to find it out.

Please ignore TKs comments about TCS guys..

Chosing one company over the other should not be based on TCS guys being present in one place and not in another...

I would take BMO over RIM for the following reasons.
1> BMO will be far more organized than Rim in their IT processes
2> Work load will be far less than Rim
3> Rim is a company on a high growth path.. such companies tend to come down with a crash.. or if not then the people will be married to their jobs putting 60-80 hrs week. either case is not good.
4> Big 3 canadian banks have their IT backoffice in Toronto so lot of banking jobs here.
5> more secure job at BMO than at Rim


Cons to BMO are
1> if some one wants to work on cool technologies then RIM is the place to be
2> Cost of living will be more in Toronto than in waterloo


Contracting is better at Rim.. full time is better at BMO as they dont extend contracts at BMO for longer terms..

Thanks Dude, my friend will be accepting job offer from BMO.
He was also thinking on same lines, appreciate your input on this.

I think the point that I was trying to make about TCS guys was taken out of context. I was trying to state it in a very objective way.
Most of the TCS guys/ or from any insource firm are from private colleges (and not the higly trained, skilled immigrants who are from the creamy layer of Inda) and most donot know much about the job/ software. Besides they are here on work permit and they behave like people who want to save as much money as possible and leave. They bring their own packed lunch and talk in their own language and gobble at the freebies offered at the office. As an immigrant you are stuck in between. DO you want to be a Canadian and mingle with the higher up or do you want to stick to your roots and hang out with people of your nativity. If you act like a Canadian, then the TCS guys will say that you are neglecting people from your own country and if you mingle with the TCS guys, then the management will leave you out.
So better to be at a place where you donot have the workpermit guys (for your professional development)
Peace

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I am a Gents and not a Ladies.

Your friend should grab the bird in hand and even better use that as a negotiation tactic with RIM to get a better offer. If the RIM offer entails stock options then that may be a better offer.

When taking an offer one should always see the big picture. RIM is perceived as a cutting edge company with state of the art technology. Having RIM on your resume may help a person in the long term with better offers. BMO is also a brand name but it depends on the field in which your friend is and long term plans.

BTW TK who cares about what people think. You should hang out with people you like and respect, whether they are white or desi TCS guys. The stereotype you have painted can and does apply to many desis but there are exceptions.