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News 30 june 2021

Softinsa / IBM already has more than 300 employees in Viseu

The Technological arrived in the county just over 4 years ago with the support of the Municipality of Viseu. Cluster of information technologies in the city of Viriato creates jobs.

“Viseu has been able to create new clusters in recent years, namely information technologies, capturing more investment and more jobs for our municipality” Conceição Azevedo, Mayor of Viseu, said today during the presentation of results of the Softinsa/ IBM Technological Innovation Center. In just over four years of activity in the region, the company has already surpassed three hundred employees.

Nuno Dionísio, of Softinsa/IBM reiterated that the growth verified would not have been achieved without the support of the Municipality of Viseu and the Polytechnic Institute of Viseu. “I leave a thank you in the way of honoring President António Almeida Henriques who has always believed in this project. Having more than 300 people in Viseu, a total of 1200 employees nationwide, is very significant”, says the responsible.

“At the time, when we agreed to the protocol, the prospect was to reach 120 jobs, a goal far exceeded. The municipality of Viseu immediately understood the relevance of the relevance of this investment to the city. We accompanied Softinsa from the first minute and were at the company´s side in its growth”, recalls João Paulo Gouveia, Vice President of the municipality.

In recent years, the growth of technology in Viseu- which earned 63 million euros in 2020- has been significant. In 2017, the company had 56 staff in the country, but that number more than doubled after just two years, reaching 186 jobs. Softinsa/IBM continued to grow even in the midst of the pandemic, ending 2020 with 280 employees in Viseu. This year, the trend continues, and the Center for Technological Innovation already employs more than 300 people. “The prospect is that we will continue to grow in the region. We have excellent paintings in Viseu and a very high level of service. Unlike other geographies, women already represent about 20% of our employees” adds Francisco Caeiro of Softinsa/IBM.

Job creation is a priority.

João Paulo Gouveia says that this “is a pointed path that only proves that, with the right strategy, the territories of the interior can overcome the asymmetries and be attractive. Viseu is doing it and has been doing it for eight years.” In fact, the cluster of information technologies is one of the most grown in the country, already counting almost 20 technological companies installed. “The focus on these areas, which practically did not exist in Viseu for 7 years, allows us today to have a diversified economic fabric. We didn’t put our eggs in the same basket, so we’re creating jobs and attracting investors and people.”

But it wasn’t just in this sector that Viseu has excelled. Areas such a Health or Energy are good examples of a strategy aimed at attracting investments, creating jobs and driving the economy. “The truth is that in 8 years we have captured more than a hundred business projects and investments in the amount of more than 250 million euros, in which 3500 jobs were created”, says vice-president viseense. He adds: “There are more than 800 engineers who have settled down, worked and live in our city. It is not by chance that, according to the INE between 2017 and 2018, our city recorded an increase of 435€ in declared gross income, rising from 8919€ to 9354€”. A result that puts Viseu above the national average (103.16%)

For Conceição Azevedo, “the quality model based on Education, Culture and Sport, what António Almeida Henriques designated as the virtuous triangle, is the dynamo that has potentiated Viseu as an attractive city for living, working and visiting”, so this is a work that “continues to be done should not be interrupted”. “Today we can say without any doubt that, regarding employment and the economy, Viseu is in fact a beacon in the interior of Portugal. It’s up to us all now… Executive, entrepreneurs and viseense so far, defend everything we have achieved and managed to achieve so far”, he concludes.

Source: Viseu City Council press release of May 24, 2021