US-based Cognizant, a multinational IT services and consulting company, has opened a new delivery centre in Leeds, UK, to meet growing demand from businesses in the public sector and health industry.
The company also plans to create more than 1,000 new jobs in the city by 2027. At least one-fifth of these roles will be entry-level graduate and apprenticeship positions. It forms part of a strategy to improve social mobility in the area through programmes that encourage science, technology, engineering and mathematics education in primary and secondary schools.
Cognizant first announced its plans for the new hires in September 2021. The company cited Leeds’s rich talent pool and proximity to local universities as the motivation behind its investment.
Managing director for the UK and Ireland Rohit Gupta commented: “Expanding our investment in the UK’s talent is another logical and necessary next step for Cognizant and is testament to the palpable energy and dynamism in the country’s tech sector and particularly the emerging workforce in the Leeds area.”