Galway is set to become the ‘innovation heartbeat’ of the international unified communications company.
Communications software and hardware provider Poly will establish a new R&D centre in Galway, creating more than 200 jobs.
The exact location is yet to be revealed but Poly’s new Galway centre of excellence will be its first office in Ireland, among more than 60 around the world.
The Galway site will be designed to be the “innovation heartbeat” of the company, according to a statement, and will be Poly’s primary R&D facility in the EMEA region.
As a company, Poly was formed when Plantronics acquired Polycom for $2bn in 2018. The new name for the combined companies emerged in 2019, with Poly providing unified communications equipment, software and managed services.
Poly now has a global workforce of more than 8,000 people. Recruitment is already underway for the hundreds of jobs being created in Ireland, which is expected to take up to five years to complete.
These have been described as high-skilled jobs across engineering, sales, HR, customer support, legal and finance.
The Irish team will support growing demand for Poly’s audio and video products amid the shift to distributed and hybrid workforces.
“Poly always has been a trailblazer and opening up an office in Galway is part of our transformation journey,” said Gloria Loredo, Poly’s chief transformation officer.
“We believe that this strategic move will enable us to maximise our business performance to better serve customers, leverage the existing technology talent pool in Ireland to fill critical roles, and support our company’s growth.”
Paul Dunne, a senior director with Poly based in Dublin, previously led sales and marketing for Plantronics UK & Ireland and is now responsible for building and executing Poly’s channel strategy across EMEA.
“Ireland is known for its top tech talent,” said Dunne. “We believe that opening an office here will help us stay ahead of the transformative shifts that are happening in enterprise communications.”
Poly’s move into Ireland is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland.
Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise Leo Varadkar, TD, said the announcement came as a “great boost to growing technology sector”.
“Covid-19 has transformed the world of work and I know companies like Poly are crucial in helping workers to adapt,” he said. “I’m sure the team will feel at home in Galway, where there is a rich talent pool to choose from.”
IDA Ireland CEO Martin Shanahan added that this addition to “the west region’s vibrant tech cluster” will be a “considerable boost” to the regional economy.
Poly’s Galway office is scheduled to open in November 2021. More information on jobs available can be found on the company website.
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