Infosys opens innovation hub at Hartford in US

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BENGALURU – Global software major Infosys on Thursday said it had opened a technology-cum-innovation hub at Hartford in Connecticut state in the US to work for its clients in the region.

“The Hartford hub will help us to work closely with our clients in the region and serve as the global hub for our InsurTech and HealthTech efforts,” said the city-based IT firm in a statement here.

InsurTechAis, a portmanteau (combination) of insurance and technology, derived from fintech, a hybrid term for financial technology where IT is used to deliver financial services.

Similarly, HealthTech is the use of technology like databases, applications, mobiles and wearables to improve delivery, payment and consumption.

As part of its May 2, 2017 strategic decision to hire 10,000 Americans by 2023 to bridge the IT skills gap in the US, the $11 billion firm has recruited about 7,000 of them during the last 18 months across the country.

The hiring of Americans is seen as a fallout of US President Donald Trump’s executive order on H1-B visas in April 2017 as clients in North America contribute about 60 per cent of the company’s software export revenue annually.

The hub will have Living Labs for the future of insurance, healthcare and manufacturing. It will also help organizations learn through making and bring expertise in technologies like blockchain, extended reality and cognitive capabilities with design thinking, agile and DevOps.

As a systems development methodology to combine software coding with IT operations, DevOps shortens the development lifecycle while delivering features, fixes and updates in alignment with business objectives.

“The Hartford technology and innovation hub is an important milestone in our efforts to help American enterprises revitalise their core businesses,” said Infosys Chief Operating Officer U.B. Pravin Rao on the occasion.

The new hub, along with the company’s five other hubs across the US, will help to collaborate with its clients for developing cross-functional digital solutions to their business needs.

Creating potential for about 1,000 jobs at Hartford, the software behemoth has become a corporate partner to the city and the state (Connecticut).

“Joined by our partners in the government, academia and business, the hub will enable our clients in the region to go for rapid digitization in diverse sectors such as insurance, healthcare and manufacturing,” said Infosys President Ravi Kumar in the statement.

The company’s other five hubs are at Indianapolis in Indiana, Raleigh in North Carolina, Richardson in Texas, Phonex in Arizona and Providence in Rhode island.

“As we have a world-class workforce and education system, employers have started to take notice. The capital region (Hartford) has seen several employers make their presence in the past year, while incubators have popped up to support our technology industry,” said Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy.

By collaborating with clients and developing academic partnerships to foster talent, Infosys is addressing business challenges while transforming Hartford into a tech hub and a destination for the techies of the future.

“From InsurTech to advanced manufacturing to digital health, as Hartford is building momentum, Infosys will be a part of the innovation system to partner with local academia for training our students and create jobs for them,” said Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin.

The company is also setting up its US Education Centre at Indianapolis in mid-west Indiana state to prepare its American employees for the tech jobs.

The first phase of the centre is expected to be completed by 2020.