As more corporations change their address to Texas, they bring change with them
HOUSTON - When Chevron announced in June that it was moving out of its California headquarters and potentially bringing 2,000 employees to Houston, it was the latest in a growing list of corporate moves to Texas.
An industry analysis finds in 2021, 62 corporations relocated their headquarters to Texas from 17 states and three countries. Most went to Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth, but each made a move with the idea they were better off here.
Chevron says the plan to shift most of its corporate efforts to the Bayou City, adding to the 8,000 employees already here, will 'right-size' its office needs.
Analysts say it just makes sense logistically to be closer to the heart of the energy industry and may be part of a larger momentum that leads to Texas.
Ed Curtis, CEO of Austin-based YTexas, consults with companies considering a move to the Lone Star state and there are a lot of them.
"There are Fortune 500 companies that are moving here; there are vendors and suppliers who are moving here, to get closer to them," says Curtis. "You have to have a presence in Texas."
In April, Hewlett Packard Enterprise opened its new corporate headquarters in Spring to take advantage of a growing technology presence, business-friendly climate, lower cost of living, and centralized location.
"The world is changing, (and) Texas is leading in a lot of this innovation," says Curtis. "That's why a lot of these companies are moving here, and why I think that's important to us."
With those companies, come new residents. In some communities, out-of-state home buyers vastly outnumber established residents, and add to the diversity for which Houston is known.
While some may chafe at the changes, in May, Rice University sociologist Dr. Stephen Klineberg, who has tracked Houston's evolution for 40 years, told FOX 26 that those new faces are vital to the city's future.
"If Houston's going to make it in the 21st century, it has to become a destination of choice; a place where the best and brightest people in America say, 'I want to live in Houston, Texas'," says Klineberg.
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Chevron is offering to pay relocation expenses for 2,000 employees to move to Houston. For those who don't come, one of the conversations that employers have is whether there's local-talent to replace those people.
And, while the cost-of-living in Texas can be better than elsewhere, Ed Curtis says those numbers have been creeping up, and companies are noticing. In the end, however, he believes there remains a lot of interest for more companies to make the move.