A United States services company has become the latest global business to safeguard vital Scottish jobs. According the country’s economic development agency a total of 5,833 jobs were created or safeguarded during the first six months of this year.
The Scottish Enterprise figures were released this week by First Minister Alex Salmond (pictured) who claimed that nearly half of all the posts — 2,572 jobs — were down to investment by US companies.
So far this year financial services firm Ceridian UK, which has an international workforce of 7,000, announced it is creating a technology centre at its Renfrew site, generating 130 new jobs. The company currently employs 300 people in Scotland.
And the Chicago-based insurance brokerage, Arthur J Gallagher & Co, is to open a Glasgow finance hub hiring 67 new staff over the next two years and taking its Scottish workforce to 172.
“The US continues to be our largest inward investor,” explained Scottish Enterprises chief executive, Lena Wilson. “This is testament to the attractiveness of Scotland as a competitive business base.”
Within hours of the agency’s statement another North American-based company announced it had secured a £2.1m Regional Selective Assistance grant from Scottish Enterprise and expected to create up to 500 jobs at its new “global delivery centre” in Gourock.
American business support specialist Concentrix Corp plans to move into a vacant building at Faulds Park previously occupied by multinational electronics manufacturer Celestica. The Toronto-headquartered company abandoned its Gourock site last year with the loss of around 70 jobs.
Philip Cassidy is a senior vice-president at Concentrix. “As a leader in global business services, our ultimate goal is to differentiate our clients in their marketplace and help make them more competitive,” he explained. “To accomplish this requires a significant investment in people, training and technology.
“An integral part of our network of global delivery centres, this brand-new centre in Scotland will deliver end-to-end customer engagement services, technology innovation, analytics and process optimisation.” The Gourock expansion will be his company’s 10th European office.
A subsidiary of the SYNNEX Corporation, which operates in 25 countries, Concentrix provides business support services to government and large private sector organisations like Microsoft and Amazon. Its move into Scotland follows an announcement in April that it planned to create up to 1,000 new jobs in Belfast by early next year.
“Concentrix’s decision to invest in Scotland is testament to the attractiveness of Scotland as a location for international investors, thanks to the skills of our people, a competitive cost base, and a well-developed business infrastructure,” added Lena Wilson.
“This is a fantastic jobs boost for Inverclyde and we look forward to working with the rapidly expanding company as they continue to grow and prosper in Scotland.”
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