Dallas is the third-largest city within the State of Texas and part of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. With a population of 5.6 million, it ranks as the fifth largest United States metropolitan area. The City of Dallas’ home page offers information on elected officials, city departments and online services for residents and visitors (http://www.dallascityhall.com).

The metropolitan area hosts the largest concentration of corporate headquarters in the country, and is also served by the third busiest airport in the world. Dallas’ highly diversified economy is led by high-tech manufacturing, education, healthcare and the service industry. Distribution and transportation are also leading industries.

Tenent Healthcare is one of the largest employers in the Dallas area, as is electronics giants, Texas Instruments and Comp USA. Retail chain 7-Eleven, Inc., and Southwest Airlines are two other large area employers.

Strong economic activity is being reported in Dallas, with many local companies reporting improving business conditions. Education and health services lead the pack in hiring. Also gaining are construction, trade, transportation and utilities. However, amidst this growth, defense contractors are seeing cuts.

More than one third of the Metroplex’s population is Hispanic or Latino. There are even sites specifically for placing Hispanic and Latino employees (http://dallas.ihispano.com/). It is no surprise, as Texas is deeply rooted in the Hispanic culture as the Spanish founded the state. Dallas also has a large African-American community and was named one of the best places for African-Americans to do business by Black Enterprise Magazine.