BMO Harris moving 450 employees from Buffalo Grove to Naperville

Citing an expiring building lease, BMO Harris Bank is moving a customer contact center from its longtime Buffalo Grove location to combine with a similar operation in Naperville.

About 450 employees are shifting to Naperville from BMO's Buffalo Grove operation that opened in 1985, company spokesman Patrick O'Herlihy said. He stressed that job cuts are not part of the move.

While most of the Buffalo Grove jobs involve customer service, other bank functions have been based there as well.

"Our final BMO employee will walk out the (Buffalo Grove) door in early or late May," O'Herlihy said.

BMO Harris officials declined to renew the expiring lease for the space at 700 E. Lake-Cook Road. The location was staffed 24 hours a day.

"We made a decision to move the vast majority of the functions to our Naperville facility, which we actually own," O'Herlihy said. "It lets us have our employees be in a more modern, open work space. Better collaboration among teams. They're all working under one roof. There's some positives there."

BMO has a sprawling building on Warrenville Road in Naperville. Nearly all Buffalo Grove workers are making the move to Naperville, according to BMO.

O'Herlihy said workers numbering in the "single digits" not shifting to Naperville are expected to work in different jobs at other BMO offices. He said the company also has work-from-home options.

Company officials and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot gathered on Dec. 20 for a groundbreaking ceremony that hailed the 50-story BMO Tower, projected to open in 2022. At least 3,000 BMO employees are expected to work at the Canal Street structure across the street from Union Station.