Appirio Still Committed to Indy Growth
Appirio's presence in Indianapolis has grown to more than 150 since it relocated its headquarters. More than 400 new jobs are expected to be brought on within three years.
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowExecutives from Appirio say growth in Indianapolis will continue with the support of the technology company’s new Indian owners. The cloud services provider, which relocated its headquarters from San Francisco in 2015 and was acquired by Wipro in November for $500 million, currently employs more than 150 in Indianapolis and is targeting a headcount of up to 577 by 2020. In an interview with Inside INdiana Business, Senior Vice President of Finance James Meer says the new parent company brings financial backing and connections to customers that he believes will accelerate Appirio’s business.
Meer says the move to Indianapolis has paid off in many ways, including talent acquisition. "You have a number of colleges and universities in the area that are turning out great graduates in technical fields and that has helped us accelerate the office here in Indianapolis as far as headcount and bring a number of college grads into our organization. In addition, there’s great talent here around finance, human resources and IT that we’ve been able to pull into the organization, which has helped us out greatly," he said.
To attract and retain that talent, the company has launched a program called Ascend, which is designed to be the "ideal way to onboard new hires." Nearly $1 million has been invested in Ascend through its first three years. Though the effort is focused on Indiana college and university graduates, it has also attracted workers from outside the state — schools like the University of Illinois, Georgia Tech and Central Michigan — which led Meer to call it "a bit of an unusual program." Appirio also boasts about the program’s high retention rate, which officials say is uncommon in the tech community. All but one hire through Ascend is still with the company.
Appirio has also appreciated the financial benefits of being headquartered in Indianapolis. "From a cost perspective, compared to the coasts," Meer said, "Indianapolis just offers a great value. Whether it’s the cost of personnel to the cost of our floors, it’s just a great value and a great place to be in. It’s a very vibrant tech community right now, also."
Growth plans include the addition of up to 100 workers in Indianapolis this year. The company says there are openings for sales, developer, coder, engineer and HR positions. On average, Appirio says it pays wages more than 75 percent higher than the state average.
Appirio Senior Vice President of Finance James Meer says the move to Indianapolis has paid off in many ways, including talent acquisition.