One of the world's leading business process outsourcing companies yesterday opened a new centre in Derry that will create 600 jobs over the next two years.
Firstsource, formerly known as ICICI OneSource, was founded in Mumbai in 2002. Its initial workforce of 750 has grown to over 9,000, with centres in India, the US, Britain, the Philippines and Argentina. Firstsource is planning an initial public offering.
The Derry centre, a three-storey 30,000sq ft (9,144sq m) office block is the company's first greenfield development outside India. Just over 300 people already work there and that figure is expected to double by the end of 2008. The company also employs 400 staff in its Belfast centre. Firstsource, whose clients include FTSE 100 and Fortune 500 companies, provides customised solutions for clients in the financial services, telecoms and media, travel and transportation and healthcare industries.
"Derry was one of four sites shortlisted in the UK by us for this development," said Firstsource's chief executive Ananda Mukerji.
"We did not look at any locations in the Republic of Ireland. What attracted us here was the availability of a highly qualified workforce and good colleges and universities. This new facility in the heart of Derry has been fully embraced by the local community and I am confident that it will strengthen our position as a global business process optimisation leader. Our investment is expected to deliver £14 million [ €20.6 million] in wages and salaries annually into the local economy," he said.
