“As Atlanta Business Chronicle reported in February, the company wanted to open several software development centers in the United States, including one in Georgia…”
Mumbai — Wipro Technologies, the global IT services business of Bangalore, India-based Wipro Ltd., lately announced it will open a new global software development center in metro Atlanta and will form a partnership with the University System of Georgia to train and educate close to 500 local employees, the company said.
Wipro said its metro Atlanta center will help it hire skilled workers and domain experts who will be critical to Wipro’s business growth plans in the United States.
Wipro will initially employ 200 people and anticipates about 500 positions within three years, mostly graduates from state universities, the company said in a statement.
“The centre is part of Wipro’s strategy to build global delivery capabilities “localized and closer-to-customer service” for its expanding technology services business in the Americas, and will significantly increase the company’s presence and base of local hires in the United States,” added the statement.
“Western companies routinely shift information technology jobs to countries such as India, where wages are low and skilled workers are plentiful.”
The practice has benefited Indian software companies, some of which are now setting up centers outside India to compete with IBM Corp., Accenture and other global computer services companies.
Wipro will also set up a training center in Atlanta to provide both technical and soft-skills training to its employees in Georgia, and plans to sponsor their higher education degrees for up to 40 percent of its employees for training and development.
“The work we are doing requires more and more knowledge of the customers’ businesses, and you want local people to do that,” said P.R. Chandrasekar, President, Wipro Technologies Ltd. “The Atlanta center is an investment that will help Wipro’s existing customers as well as help address new business opportunities.”
“Wipro told us what they needed, and the University System of Georgia responded with a comprehensive workforce development program,” said Erroll B. Davis Jr., chancellor. “Through ICAPP (Georgia’s Intellectual Capital Partnership Program), we tapped into the resources of Georgia’s 35 public colleges and universities to find the best solution for this company.”
Also, Kennesaw State University and Southern Polytechnic State University are collaborating with Wipro to create an innovative curriculum development and delivery system, he said.
“We are proud that Georgia can offer the top-notch technology workforce and other business assets Wipro is looking for to grow its presence in the United States,” Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue was quoted as saying in the release.
The company also said its Atlanta center will bolster its global delivery capabilities, which include development centers in Brazil, Eastern and Western Europe, China, Mexico and Canada. The company said it chose Atlanta because of its proximity to key universities.
A senior Wipro official had told Reuters last week it planned to set up three software facilities in the United States, in Georgia, Texas and Virginia.
Earlier this month, Wipro Ltd. said it would buy Infocrossing Inc. for about $600 million. The New Jersey-based company provides outsourcing services to mid-sized companies in the United States.