As a Chicagoan who worked in another closely related telecom company, the presence of Motorola was huge. Not so anymore, but its certainly a 'hallowed' name in

As a Chicagoan who worked in another closely related telecom company, the presence of Motorola was huge. Not so anymore, but its certainly a 'hallowed' name in the area. You definitely hear a lot of stories regarding the way bonuses used to work, and what it was like working for a company that was sort of "Google-ish" for its day. Its sad whats happened to Motorola, but that is the way the economy seems to work. Another great unmentioned Chicago Telecom name here is Bell Labs. Chicago Mag could certainly write an entire article about the storied rise and fall of that company too. It just seems like all the Chicago technology greatness has melted outwards to the coasts. Silicon Valley and NYC (as well as foreign businesses) tend to dominate the areas that Motorola, Bell Labs, etc used to rule.