Commitment Of Creating 10,000 US Jobs Given By Indian Outsourcing Firm Infosys


05/02/2017



Four new technology and innovation hubs across the U.S. that will train American workers in areas like cloud, artificial intelligence and big data is being opened up by Infosys, India's iconic outsourcing firm. Creating about 2,000 U.S. jobs by 2021 alone the first hub will launch in August 2017 in Indiana.
 
"Learning and education, along with cultivating top local and global talent, have always been the core of what Infosys brings to clients; it is what makes us a leader in times of great change. In helping our clients improve their businesses and pursue new kinds of opportunities, we are really excited to bring innovation and education in a fundamental and massive way to American workers," Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka said in the announcement.
 
"It's so good to welcome Infosys to Indiana, and to expand our growing tech ecosystem with the addition of their estimated 2,000 Hoosier jobs," Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said in the release.
 
U.S. President Donald Trump called for the H-1B visa program to be reviewed after he passed the "Buy American, Hire American" executive order, and the announcement by Infosys follows that announcement by Trump. Infosys has benefited from the specialized worker non-immigrant visa and hence any changes to the H1-B program could hurt the company. India's outsourcing sector, which relies on business from the U.S., would be badly hurt by any changes or restrictions to the H1-B program, Wall Street analysts have already warned.
 
In fact, Lockheed Martin, U.S. Army, U.S. Navy and IBM are just some of the clients it has served and more than half of Infosys's sales comes from the U.S.
 
Earlier, the company’s primary growth strategy has been centered around offering outsourcing and consulting services to U.S. clients at a lower rate by leveraging Indian talent and Infosys's plan to bring jobs to America marks a turn in the company's that strategy.
 
Questions as to whether jobs will be cut in India are sure to be raised by Infosys's expansion in the U.S. Rising wages in India which have made it more challenging to keep costs down and broader commoditization of some of its services and in recent times, the company has been under pressure to accelerate earnings growth as it faces fierce competition from its Indian peers.
 
An encouraging backdrop for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming trip to Washington D.C. is likely to be set nonetheless by the news about its ambitious plan in the U.S.  Sources close to the Indian government have said that Modi's upcoming trip to may happen sometime this summer. The leaders of the two largest democracies in the world have yet to meet in person even though Trump and Modi have spoken on the phone.
  
"It's important for Modi to be seen as part of a small grouping of foreign leaders that have been early visitors of Trump. It shows that India is part of an important cluster of countries," said Shailesh Kumar, a senior analyst at consultancy Eurasia Group and a former India economist at the U.S. Department of Treasury
 
(Source:www.cnbc.com)