Microsoft recruiting includes Reno

Microsoft Corp.

is hiring.

The Seattle-based software giant has launched a national recruiting and advertising campaign with the expectation of hiring about 5,000 new employees in 2003.

That includes immediate openings for 18 people in the company's Renobased licensing division, according to Microsoft spokesperson Nicole Miller.

The positions here cover a range of jobs, including finance and IT, said Miller.

The company's various divisions determine how and where their recruitment budget is spent.

The licensing division, for example, is advertising on billboards near the Reno- Tahoe International Airport, among other venues.