It was the same headline, different country this week for Midtown’s burgeoning technology cluster.
Fresh off an announcement that U.K.-based Sage Group would create 400 jobs at a headquarters and innovation campus near the Georgia Institute of Technology’s Tech Square, Brazil’s Stefanini, an IT giant, said it would expand at Atlantic Station, upping its headcount by the same number.
Gov. Nathan Deal met with leaders from the Sao Paulo-based firm this week during a trade mission to Brazil, where he was accompanied by some 30 business and economic development leaders from Georgia.
“We are thrilled to expand operations in Georgia. We have experienced companywide success, benefiting from a strong network of talent and customers. We look forward to growing our business globally with this newest expansion,” Stefanini President and CEO Marco Stefanini said in a statement after meeting with Mr. Deal.
Stefanini, which handles IT outsourcing for large companies, serves more than 300 multinational clients and employs more than 17,000 people in with offices in more than 30 countries. Its U.S. headquarters is in Detroit.
Mr. Stefanini was honored as one of Ernst & Young’s entrepreneurs of the year in 2013 for the company’s expansion into the U.S. He recently spoke on innovation at the Summit of the Americas in Panama.
Home to 16,000 tech companies, Georgia is positioning itself as a technology hub, focusing heavily on mobility, cyber security and healthcare information technology. According to the Technology Association of Georgia, that state has seen the announcement of 4,400 new jobs in the last year, upping its total in the sector by 15 percent over last year.
Mr. Deal told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Stefanini’s announcement exemplifies “exactly the type of high-paying jobs” the state aims to attract.
Georgia is celebrating 20 years operating a trade and investment office in Brazil.
The AJC is covering the governor’s Brazil mission to Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo this week. More on the Stefanini investment here and on Brazil’s innovation labs here (paywall on both).
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