Many people move to the DFW area because of a transfer within their company or because they secured a job with a new employer. However, a number of people relocate to the region when accompanying spouses or attending area universities.

Other individuals move to be close to family or friends, and some look to Dallas’ dynamic business community for better career opportunities. Whatever the reason for your move, the Greater Dallas area offers employment opportunities in numerous trades and professions.

One way to identify opportunities in specific fields is to check job listings in the personnel departments of the region’s largest employers. Lists of these employers are available from a variety of sources.

The Dallas Regional Chamber’s Economic Development Guide ($25) lists the top 200 employers in the region, targeted industries and international operations. This publication can be obtained by calling 214-746-6704.

Also, the Dallas Regional Chamber publishes useful business guides including directories that list businesses according to industry and product categories. For more information, go to www.dallaschamber.org.

Dallas newspapers are a great source of job openings. The Dallas Morning News, www.dallasnews.com or 214-977-8222, has a large daily section of classified employment advertising.

The weekly Dallas Business Journal, 214-696-5959, and several suburban newspapers also have job listings. Prior to your arrival to the area, you can check with your local library to see if they have copies of these publications, or you can contact the newspaper directly. (For more information, see “Media” in the “Information” section.)

Once you locate to the DFW area, meet your neighbors and attend meetings of professional or volunteer groups where potential job leads may surface.

The Texas Workforce Commission provides free employment services to anyone looking for work. The Dallas area’s 10 offices are open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. For more information, call 214-421-2460, or go to www.worksource.org.

Five Dallas-area employers ranked high on Fortune’s coveted “Best Companies to Work For” survey. In the January 2008 issue of Fortune, The Container Store, Shared Technologies, Alcon Laboratories, TDI Industries and Texas Instruments Inc. all merited in the top 100. Thirteen Texas-based companies made the list overall—five in Dallas, four in Houston, two in Austin and two in San Antonio.

To rate a mention in the “100 Best Companies to Work For” list, these firms had to appeal to their own employees as well as business analysts. Fortune surveys at least 400 randomly selected employees from each company to ask about such things as attitude toward management, job satisfaction and camaraderie. The Fortune editors evaluate the policies and culture of each company. About 1,500 companies were recruited to participate, but only 407 finished the exhaustive survey process. So these Dallas employers cleared some major hurdles to make the ultra-selective cut.