Tom O’Connor, Version 1. Image: Justin Farrelly
The Dublin-headquartered company will create 500 jobs in Birmingham as part of its UK expansion.
IT and digital transformation provider Version 1 has today (18 October) announced plans for a new technology hub in Birmingham city centre.
The Irish company has already had significant growth in the UK over the last two years. In 2022, it announced similar plans to open a new tech hub in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Since then it has also made a number of UK-based acquisitions, including London-based service design specialist Evoco, data and business intelligence specialist Instinctive BI, cloud adoption company Automation Logic and business analytics provider Qubix.
The Birmingham expansion is set to create 500 new jobs in the region and will include tech roles such as software engineering, product design and delivery and service management.
While the roles will be remote in the wider region, they will be centred around the new hub in Birmingham city centre which is due to open officially next year.
Tom O’Connor, chief executive officer at Version 1, said the expansion will allow the company to service the needs of both its current and future customers.
“The technology talent in this region is impressive and has been a key factor in our decision, along with the support provided by the West Midlands Growth Company, who provided dedicated account management and made valuable introductions to the WMCA [West Midlands Combined Authority] to support our expansion.”
Founded in Dublin in 1996, Version 1 provides IT services ranging from consultancy to software development. The company still has a strong presence in Ireland and, earlier this year, took the crown as the best large place to work in Ireland.
Version 1 changed ownership last year after Swiss private equity firm Partners Group agreed to acquire a majority interest in the company. At the time, Version 1’s value was estimated to be up to €800m. The transaction was completed in August 2022.
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