MetLife doubles down on tech roles, plans to add 400 jobs at Cary campus

CARY, N.C. (WTVD) -- MetLife announced that the company's Global Technology and Operations (GTO) organization is hiring in the Research Triangle Park area of North Carolina.

MetLife opened its technology campus in Cary in 2015 and has a network of more than 2,600 employees. The company is hiring for 400 technology and customer service roles based in Cary by the end of 2022.

The roles they're hiring for will be a combination of some 100% virtual and some hybrid, however, all employees must reside in the Research Triangle area, according to the company.

MetLife has 2,600 employees in Cary and more than 2,700 across North Carolina. Cary is the global technology hub.

"They made a tremendous investment in our town and brought several thousand employees," Cary Chamber of Commerce president Mark Lawson said, adding more than 3,000 jobs were brought to Cary from existing companies expanding and new business recruitment.

"Xerox, we brought them here three years ago," Lawson said. "Cary has really planned well. The infrastructure is second to none. Wonderful roads, sidewalks, storm water, water sewer capabilities. Those are all things that developers think about and certainly corporations think about when they're looking to relocate or expand."

Lawson said more industries that are looking at Cary include technology firms, Clean Tech, Fintech, Life Science and Advanced Manufacturing and Health Care.

Governor Roy Cooper gave the following statement on Wednesday on MetLife's hiring:

"North Carolina is the best state for business, and we know that companies can find the talented workforce they need to thrive. I'm excited to see MetLife continue their commitment to our state and look forward to seeing them grow and succeed here."

Colton Lee, 21, who was born in Cary, is back in his hometown after living in Atlanta.

"There's definitely a lot of new opportunities popping up in the area, and it's been kind of cool to see it grow," Lee said.

Lee, who's working in Cary as a church youth minister, said he has a couple of friends in the tech industry that he's eager to see in North Carolina.

"I know that because of the job growth, there's going to be even more of my friends even coming down from college and moving to this area," Lee said.

Cary's growth comes as North Carolina is well positioned for the tech sector, according to NC TECH.

"A highly educated workforce, good pipeline of students, and existing workers who are seeking additional training and skills," president and CEO Brooks Raiford said. "And migration of talent from around the country that want to come here."

Raiford added those fundamentals don't go away quickly.

"One of the trends we see and the reporting that we do, is that not only have we had a strong recent past, we're positioned well for a strong, near-term future so that's encouraging," Raiford said.

For Lee, despite the increasing growth, he hopes it doesn't outpace itself.

"Where I grew up in Atlanta, it kind of was in a similar phase but it blew up too fast, so my hope is that it kind of maintains the charm that is has right now as it continues to grow," Lee said.

"The excitement and passion we're seeing from our employees in Cary is undoubtedly a reflection of the innovative work we're doing here at MetLife as we live our company purpose by putting the customer at the center of everything we do," Bill Pappas said, who leads the GTO organization.

MetLife will be hosting a variety of hiring events, such as tech meetups, hackathons, community partnerships and the annual Triangle Tech X conference.