IBM on Monday announced that it had launched a client innovation centre (CIC) in Mysuru, Karnataka. The CIC initiative aims at supporting the rapid, high-tech driven economic growth in tier 2 and 3 regions while providing comprehensive hybrid cloud and AI technology consulting capabilities. “The CIC specialises in design, software engineering and analytics,” the company said in a press release.

The Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM) said, it had facilitated the launch as part of its ‘spoke-shore strategy’ to attract companies to set up operations in cities ‘Beyond Bengaluru’.

Dr Ashwath Narayana, Minister for Higher Education; IT & BT, Science & Technology; Skill Development, Entrepreneurship & Livelihood, government of Karnataka said, “I applaud KDEM for making the spoke-shore strategy a reality in India and wholeheartedly welcome IBM’s CIC to Mysuru. It is encouraging to see that the industry is recognising places such as Mysuru, thereby echoing our vision of Beyond Bengaluru. We are confident that this partnership will propel Karnataka to become a frontrunner for digital services and technologies the world over.”

Speaking at the launch of the CIC in Mysuru, Dr E.V. Ramana Reddy, Additional Chief Secretary – Department of Electronics, IT & BT, Science & Technology, government of Karnataka, said, “KDEM has paved way for a new wave of digital transformation in Karnataka, especially in tier 2 and 3 centres. Initiatives such as CIC prove that a government-industry synergy can build a robust digital infrastructure, thereby significantly contributing to the nation’s economy and progress.”

‘Play a key role’

Amit Sharma, Managing Partner, Worldwide Global Delivery, IBM said, “The IBM CIC will play a key role in the digital transformation of the IT-ecosystem throughout the city and create new employment opportunities to foster the next wave of technology innovation. IBM CIC is looking to hire over 10,000 staff this quarter globally. This builds on double-digit hiring growth in its global delivery centres already this year. This continued investment in talent will expand the company’s skill sets in areas such as AI, intelligent workflows, application modernisation and management and hybrid cloud.”

As an entrepreneurial start-up within IBM Consulting, the CIC will support clients in the transformation of their business by utilising delivery capabilities throughout the entire system development life cycle, from design to architecture to creation.

“New skills will serve to open up new business streams and strengthen the IT industry ecosystem in the region through close collaboration with clients and partners including cloud solution and service providers,” it added.

KDEM said that its ‘Beyond Bengaluru’ programme, in particular, is spearheading the objective of proliferating the growth of the digital economy in clusters beyond Bangalore. This is done for selecting identified clusters in the State by developing and facilitating a product-based ecosystem. “Building a community of key industry players, entrepreneurs, start-up owners, academia, accelerators, and student community, the Beyond Bengaluru programme of KDEM is steering towards getting investments and generating employment in the State,” it said.

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