Amid High Unemployment, Some Hopkins Companies Are Hiring

As of this morning, Cargill had more than 80 job openings in its Hopkins location alone. is hiring for a half dozen positions at its Hopkins location. Concord—a rapidly growing Hopkins consulting company that provides business and technical solutions—“is always looking for good people,” according to the company.

On the heels of Pres. Barack Obama’s rollout of the American Jobs Act last week, and amid an ongoing stalled hiring scene, some jobs are available right here in Hopkins.

Hopkins is helped because the Hennepin County jobs situation is a bit brighter than many other parts of the country. In June, compared to the national average of 9.3 percent, according to Department of Employment and Economic Development data.

Detailed figures aren't available for Hopkins, so pinning down the jobs situation within city limits is difficult. What is clear is that both large corporations and growing businesses have job openings.

Supervalu's sprawling distribution center along Excelsior Boulevard and Highway 169 has long been a major source of jobs in Hopkins, and it has continued to have openings even as the job postings elsewhere have disappeared.

“We routinely have openings that need to be filled at this facility," said Supervalu spokesman Mike Siemienas. "They get filled pretty quickly, however. The best advice for someone looking for a job at the center is to visit our website where all job openings are posted for the center as well as other locations.”

Wayzata-based Cargill, America's largest privately held company, brought 3,300 new jobs to Hopkins when it built its $130 million corporate campus on Excelsior Boulevard.

The grain and food product giant would not comment about its current job openings situation. 

Concord Inc., located on Second Avenue South in Hopkins, is a growing private consulting firm providing business and technical solutions to companies in the U.S. and Canada.

Chief Resource Officer Stuart Nutting, who founded the company in 2003, said his company of more than 200 people is “always looking for smart, bright people to work for us.”

“We never stop looking for the right people,” Nutting added. “We have an ongoing recruiting engine which is always seeking people who can help us continue to grow. We love to talk to those kind of folks and see if we can find a fit for both of us.”

But availability doesn't mean just anyone can walk in and take a job. The jobs usually require specialized training or education.

For example, Supervalu is hiring part-time warehouse workers who need only a year of warehouse experience. But full-time jobs have much more specific requirements: Drivers must have a commercial drivers license, technical buyers need experience with wholesale buying and managing inventory and senior accountants need an accounting degree and experience with specific accounting programs.

At Cargill, the jobs center on the technology and analysis areas—with such openings as trade floor support technical analyst, strategic recruiting manager and software development supervisor.