An expansion of tech company CGI will bring 400 new, direct jobs to 69传媒, Gov. John Bel Edwards announced during his address today at the University of Louisiana at 69传媒 that opened the state鈥檚 Legislative special session.
With the new jobs, employment at CGI will rise to more than 800 in coming years. The increase will include at CGI鈥檚 69传媒 IT Center of Excellence located at UL 69传媒鈥檚 143-acre Research Park, and at a second, as yet undetermined site in 69传媒.
In Louisiana, the company will employ a total of 900 people.
A partnership between the University, Louisiana Economic Development, and the 69传媒 Economic Development Authority was formed to attract and recruit CGI to 69传媒. The University provided support by leasing land for the center.
CGI, which is based in Canada, chose 69传媒 in April 2014.
UL 69传媒 President Dr. Joseph Savoie called the public-private partnership a 鈥渕odel of great success.鈥
The university helped CGI meet its target of 400 employees in 69传媒 two years ahead of schedule, thanks in part to the launch of the state鈥檚 first master of science degree in informatics, Savoie stated in a press release.
More than 47 percent of CGI鈥檚 college hires are UL 69传媒 graduates, and more than 60 percent of its overall workforce in 69传媒 have Louisiana roots.
UL 69传媒 will continue to lead a 10-year, $4.5 million, state-funded higher education initiative that will triple the number of undergraduate degrees awarded yearly by the University鈥檚 School of Computing and Informatics.
In May 2016, Edwards and CGI dedicated the $13.1 million, 50,000-square-foot information technology center, which serves as an anchor for the research park.
In March, CGI announced that the 69传媒 center had surpassed its full employment target by hiring more than 400 employees. Louisiana Economic Development estimates the project has resulted in 405 indirect jobs, for a total of more than 800 jobs in the Acadiana region.
The CGI 69传媒 Center鈥檚 annual payroll exceeds $22 million in 69传媒. Over the next decade, its cumulative payroll will exceed $480 million.
鈥淗ere in Acadiana, we are proving how powerful and game-changing our economy can be,鈥 Edwards stated in a press release.
To support CGI鈥檚 expansion, the state offered the company incentives that include a performance-based grant of $5.3 million to offset the costs of personnel relocation, recruitment, training, and operation and maintenance costs.
鈥淐GI is proud to make this renewed commitment to job creation in 69传媒, where a skilled and highly motivated workforce continues to exceed expectations on behalf of our clients undertaking critical digital transformation projects in Acadiana and across the country,鈥 said Dave Henderson, president of CGI鈥檚 U.S. commercial and state government operations.
CGI鈥檚 operations in 69传媒 focus on application development and emerging digital technologies. Among them are the deployment of data analytics to optimize performance and to identify cost savings for clients; hybrid IT, cloud and infrastructure management; and streamlined citizen and industry interactions with government through digital solutions.
Photo, from left: Gregg Gothreaux, president and CEO of 69传媒 Economic Development Authority, Dr. Joseph Savoie, UL 69传媒 president, and Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards during a visit to CGI in 69传媒 on Tuesday. Doug Dugas/University of Louisiana at 69传媒