Indianapolisruns on a handful of strong industries. If you’re job-hunting or weighing a move, here’s where the opportunities (and the big-name employers) are.
Top industries & employers
Life sciences & pharmaceuticals
Eli Lilly and Company, Roche Diagnostics' North American headquarters, Corteva Agriscience, Elanco Animal Health, Indiana University School of Medicine
Lilly is headquartered here and is the anchor of the entire regional economy — its expansion in the incretin and diabetes space has driven a multi-billion-dollar manufacturing build-out across central Indiana. Roche's US diagnostics headquarters, Corteva and Elanco all put their global or North American head offices in the metro, and IU's medical school is one of the largest in the country by enrolment.
Logistics & distribution
FedEx Express (its second-largest global hub, at Indianapolis International Airport), Amazon, Walmart and Kroger distribution, a dense third-party logistics layer
Indianapolis calls itself the Crossroads of America because more interstates converge here than anywhere else in the country, and the airport is consistently among the busiest US airports by cargo volume. It is the sector with the most entry-level hiring in the metro, and the reason so much warehouse development sits on the west and south sides.
Advanced manufacturing & aerospace
Rolls-Royce North America, Allison Transmission, Cummins (Columbus, Indiana), Stellantis Kokomo, a large supplier base across central Indiana
Rolls-Royce's North American defence aero-engine business is headquartered in downtown Indianapolis and is one of the city's largest engineering employers. Allison Transmission has built heavy-duty automatic transmissions on the west side for a century. Much of this work is defence-adjacent, so citizenship or clearance requirements are common — worth checking early.
Sports business & events
NCAA national headquarters, USA Track & Field, USA Gymnastics, USA Diving, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the Colts, Pacers and Fever
The city deliberately built an amateur-sports economy from the 1970s onward and it worked: the NCAA moved its national office here, several national governing bodies followed, and the convention and stadium infrastructure downtown was sized for it. The Indianapolis 500 is the single largest single-day sporting event in the world by attendance, and Gen Con — the largest tabletop gaming convention in North America — fills the city every summer.
Insurance, finance & technology
Elevance Health, OneAmerica, Salesforce, Genesys, High Alpha, Infosys, KAR Global
Elevance Health — formerly Anthem — is a Fortune 500 insurer headquartered downtown. The tech scene is real but concentrated: Salesforce occupies the tallest building in the state and runs one of its largest offices here after acquiring ExactTarget, Genesys grew out of Interactive Intelligence, and High Alpha is a venture studio that has produced a steady stream of B2B software companies. This is the sector where remote and hybrid work is most normal.
Health systems, government & higher education
IU Health (Methodist, University and Riley hospitals), Ascension St. Vincent, Community Health Network, the State of Indiana, IU Indianapolis and Purdue University in Indianapolis
Indianapolis is a state capital and the seat of Marion County, so government is a large and stable employer. Riley Hospital for Children is the state's only comprehensive children's hospital. The former IUPUI campus was formally split on 1 July 2024 into IU Indianapolis and Purdue University in Indianapolis — a change recent enough that older guidance still refers to an institution that no longer exists under that name.
Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.