The forecast is cloudy with the chance of a downpour of high-value tech jobs across Dublin and Ireland.
Amazon is to create 1,000 jobs in Ireland and has opened a new 170,000 sq ft building in Dublin 4.
Creating 1,000 new jobs doubles the growth target committed to by Amazon in 2016, when the company pledged to hire 500 people in two years – and did so nine months ahead of schedule.
‘Today, we have more than 2,500 Amazon employees in Ireland supporting customers from Ireland and around the world’
– MIKE BEARY
The new roles currently include software development engineers, network development engineers, data centre engineers, support engineers, solutions architects, systems engineers, optical deployment engineers, security specialists, big-data specialists, DevOps engineers and a range of technical management positions for both Amazon and Amazon Web Services (AWS).
“Today, we have more than 2,500 Amazon employees in Ireland supporting customers from Ireland and around the world,” said Mike Beary, AWS Ireland country manager.
“There is an abundance of talent in Ireland which helped us to exceed our talent growth targets ahead of schedule. Ireland is a great place to do business; the country’s creative culture and diverse pool of technical skills make it an ideal location for our rapidly expanding business.”
Skills and diversity
After first opening an office in Ireland in September 2004, Amazon extended its commitment and investment in the country, and in April 2006 opened a customer service centre in Cork. This centre now spans more than 47,500 sq ft and employs more than 1,000 people in a variety of roles, from instructional designers and support engineers, to operations managers and capacity planners.
In November 2007, AWS opened its first EU region in Ireland.
Since then, AWS has grown the number of staff and the diversity of their roles. AWS now has highly skilled staff and teams of account managers, data centre engineers, logistics managers, mechanical technicians, professional services, security specialists, solutions architects, support engineers, technical account managers and trainers based in Dublin. These teams are working with customers in every industry, across almost every imaginable use case.
In addition to creating new jobs, Amazon has collaborated with the Institute of Technology Tallaght to fund a bursary programme for 20 students to study to become data centre technicians. During the programme, students will have the opportunity to apply for paid internships at AWS data centres in Ireland. The academic credits earned will form part of IT Tallaght’s BSc in IT management, allowing the students to progress to full professional-level qualification through the institute’s full-time or lifelong-learning programmes.
AWS is also working with a number of Irish colleges and universities as part of its AWS Educate and AWS Academy programmes.
AWS Educate supports tertiary institutes such as the Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT), Dublin City University and the University of Limerick to provide students and educators with technology and training resources, at no charge.
AWS Academy serves post-secondary institutions exclusively and offers an end-to-end curriculum, developed and maintained by AWS. It is designed to be delivered over a semester by AWS Academy accredited instructors. IT Tallaght, DIT, Cork Institute of Technology, Limerick Institute of Technology and Waterford Institute of Technology are all members of AWS Academy.
“This is excellent news for Dublin,” said An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, TD.
“Amazon’s decision to bring another 1,000 jobs to Ireland underpins our mission to make this country an innovative, digital economy and a global leader for the tech sector. These are well-paid, high-quality jobs, in four locations across Dublin, meaning this announcement will bring tangible benefits right across the city.
“The creation of these new jobs and the company’s commitment to investing in research and innovation here is fundamental to maintaining Ireland’s reputation as a tech hub for Europe. It is also testament to Ireland’s reputation as a location for top talent, and I would like to congratulate and pay tribute to the existing staff and management at Amazon in Ireland who have allowed the company to go from strength to strength here over the last 14 years,” Varadkar said.
