Narayan AmmachchiCognizant is going to establish a non-profit foundation with an initial grant of US$100 million to support its STEM (science, technology, engineering and math), digital education, and skills training initiatives in the United States.
“We hired 6,000 US workers in 2017,” said the firm based in Teaneck, New Jersey, adding that it is aiming to add another 25,000 to its American workforce over the next 5 years.
Cognizant is not blaming the pressure to hire American workers; instead it is attributing the expansion to the recent cut in corporate tax in the country.
While the primary aim of the non-profit is to fund STEM education for high school graduates, it will also finance digital skills training for college students, military veterans, and others in the workforce.
The IT services firm, founded by Indian business tycoon Francisco D’Souza, says the US software industry may run short of 1.4 million software professionals by 2020.
“As the digital economy expands rapidly and changes the way businesses, organizations, and governments operate, we believe it should create opportunities for all Americans,” said D’Souza in a press release.
“Unfortunately, because of a very real skills gap, there are far more open jobs for technical work than there are trained workers to fill them.”
A recent study by Cognizant has identified artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and big data as the new tools of the trade.
Cognizant is already running training and re-skilling programs in several US cities, including the Bronx, New York; Des Moines, Iowa; and Tampa, Florida. Soon, it will launch new training centers in Phoenix, Arizona; Dallas, Texas; and Charlotte, North Carolina.
The Indian firm has employed thousands of Americans across 60 facilities across the United States.
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