Topic: International

Hinduja Global Solutions Opens New Jacksonville Facility

Posted on January 25, 2019

 

Hinduja Global Solutions (HGS), a global leader in business process management, commemorated the grand opening of its new location in Jacksonville with a ribbon-cutting ceremony with key business, civic and community leaders.

The Jacksonville location is the company’s 25th site in North America and will create more than 400 new jobs to serve multiple clients in a variety of industries including banking, financial and insurance; consumer electronics and technology; healthcare, telecom and automotive.

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry stated, “The company’s entry into Florida brings hundreds of jobs to our city and bolsters our ongoing efforts to lead and drive economic development growth.”

Hinduja Global Solutions combines technology-powered services in automation, analytics and digital with domain expertise focusing on back office processing, contact centers and HRO solutions to deliver transformational impact to clients.

“We’re proud to partner with HGS as they ramp up their hiring. We knew that Jacksonville had the right pool of talent for HGS, and we’ve been very pleased by the response. We’re lending them space in our career center to conduct interviews, and we’ve had a constant flow of qualified applicants,” stated CareerSource Northeast Florida Vice President of Communications Candace Moody.

Part of the India-based, multi-billion dollar conglomerate Hinduja Group, HGS takes a true globally local approach with over 44,528 employees across 75 delivery centers in seven countries.

Jacksonville’s UK Delegation Anticipates Dividends in Job Creation

Posted on October 30, 2018

While the outcome of the Jacksonville Jaguars London game may not have ended on a positive note, Jacksonville city officials, business leaders and staff from JAXUSA Partnership and JAX Chamber are expecting positive business announcements in the coming year from the 6th annual economic development mission to the United Kingdom.

The delegation toured facilities and met with companies representing the areas of logistics, health and life sciences, advanced manufacturing, information technology and financial services. The delegation also toured the London location of Barclays successful fintech accelerator with plans in the works for a similar program for Jacksonville’s burgeoning fintech sector.

History shows the annual UK mission has been successful for the region. In addition to a heightened global brand recognition for the Jacksonville region, wins from previous missions include recruiting the North American headquarters of City Facilities Management FL, an office for professional services firm Resource Solutions, the early discussions resulting in Deutsche Bank’s Jacksonville presence and more.

Every year since 2013, the mission has coincided with an annual home game for the Jacksonville Jaguars at London’s Wembley Stadium. Jaguars owner Shad Khan and the City of Jacksonville are committed to the United Kingdom, both in terms of providing football entertainment and economic impact in advancing business opportunities in the two markets.

 Read more at The Florida Times-Union.

Hinduja Global Solutions Announces Up to 500 New Jobs for Jacksonville

Posted on September 25, 2018

International business process management company, Hinduja Global Solutions (HGS) announced that Jacksonville will be home to it’s first customer experience center to open in the state of Florida. HGS will hire for a total of 500 jobs locally over time, but initially begin with 350 openings in the first phase of expansion.

The new HGS center will be located on Jacksonville’s Southside and will officially open its doors in late November and will start recruiting inbound customer service associates for the new center this month. About 80 percent of the 350 positions will be in customer service, with the balance in human resources, training, frontline management and administrative leadership. These positions are ideal for applicants who enjoy problem-solving and helping people within a supportive learning environment.

With more than 44,000 employees at 75 centers across seven countries, HGS is aggressively growing onshore across industries; growing its North American employee base by more than 40% in the last 12 months. This rapid growth has resulted from both the acquisition of new clients and the expansion of contact volume and lines of business across HGS’s existing customer base – a direct result of HGS’s consistent operational excellence.

“Jacksonville is a vibrant, growing community with an educated and skilled workforce that can add value for our business and our clients,” said Tim Schuh, HGS President, North America. “We are excited to bring economic growth and job opportunities to the region and look forward to welcoming highly talented customer service people to the HGS team.”

Elevate Northeast Florida Report Released

Posted on September 18, 2018

JAXUSA Partnership hosted more than 100 government, business and community leaders at a luncheon today to present the results of the  research process for the economic development organization’s future five year strategy, Elevate Northeast Florida. Lead consultant, Amy Holloway of Avalanche Consulting, laid out the framework of the recommendations that should be implemented based on focus groups, one-on-one interviews, county visits and surveys conducted during the nine-month research and planning process.

According to the recommendations, over the next five years, the region should aim to reach the new proposed vision statement, “Our region is the top destination for opportunity and investments, making it the highest performing economy in the world.” To do this, four pillars or goals have been developed based on need and distinction opportunity. Those pillars are:

  • Empowering partnerships to advance education and workforce;
  • Amplifying our leadership as a preeminent smart region;
  • Emboldening our global brand; and
  • Deepening our industry clusters and intensifying support.

Each goal has a recommended lead champion and support partners to ensure completion. The report also recommends a list of priority projects that will need to be implemented over the course of a specific timeline to meet each goal. As this is truly a plan for the region, the community at large is invited to participate in the implementation by registering on the Elevate Northeast Florida website for one or more of the designated committees.

Since the last strategic plan, Innovate Northeast Florida, launched in 2012, the seven-county region has surpassed expectations, creating more than 100,000 jobs and ranking as the third highest job growth rate in the country in 2017.

For more insight, read the Jacksonville Business Journal article.

Jacksonville International Airport Continues to Make Headlines

Posted on May 8, 2018

Over the first five months of 2018, Jacksonville International Airport (JIA) has been in the news. Earlier this year, JIA announced its accolade of being ranked North America’s #1 airport for customer service according to customer surveys conducted by Airports Council International for the second year in a row; followed by news of two new nonstop flights on Allegiant to previously unrepresented cities of Louisville, Ky. and Norfolk, Va.; and the most recent announcement of six new destinations to be served by Frontier Airlines according to Jacksonville Business Journal five of which are new destinations for JIA.

Ultra-low-cost carriers (ULCCs) are not the only airlines expanding at JIA. Southwest recently invested in a new route to Fort Lauderdale and United service to Denver began in April. The airlift schedule for June represents a substantial increase in service over 2017 with a 17.3 percent YOY growth in flights and 15.8 percent in seats. This is good news for the JAX region, its residents and businesses.

Once today’s announced flights begin service in August, travel to 40 different airports in North America can be reached nonstop to/from Jacksonville. Those cities are:

  • Atlanta
  • Austin
  • Baltimore
  • Boston
  • Buffalo
  • Charlotte
  • Chicago (O’Hare and Midway)
  • Cincinnati
  • Cleveland
  • Columbus
  • Dallas (Dallas-Fort Worth and Dallas Love)
  • Denver
  • Detroit
  • Fort Lauderdale
  • Houston (George Bush Intercontinental and Houston Hobby)
  • Indianapolis
  • Kansas City
  • Las Vegas
  • Louisville
  • Marsh Harbour, Bahamas
  • Miami
  • Milwaukee
  • Minneapolis
  • Nashville
  • New York (JFK and LaGuardia)
  • Newark
  • Norfolk
  • Philadelphia
  • Pittsburgh
  • St. Louis (Lambert and Belleville)
  • Tampa
  • Toronto
  • Trenton
  • Washington, DC (Dulles and Reagan)

 

Jacksonville Continues Partnership with the Jaguars to Attract Foreign Direct Investment

Posted on July 25, 2017

The unique coordination between the Jacksonville Jaguars and JAXUSA Partnership, the regional economic development organization in Jacksonville, Florida, is helping support job growth in Northeast Florida. The annual game in London, which began in 2013, provides a prime opportunity to sell Jacksonville to the world. Jaguars owner Shad Khan has been instrumental in opening doors for local leaders to build and grow long-term relationships with international companies.

This year, the Jacksonville delegation is inviting U.K.-based companies looking to expand operations into the U.S. to sit down with the delegation to discuss future growth opportunities. The meetings will be held Wednesday, September 20 and Thursday, September 21 at the Dorchester Hotel in London. To schedule your meeting and for additional details, please click here.

Jacksonville is a competitive player in the global marketplace. With nearly 30 countries represented by a diverse group of companies, we are a growing hub for international business. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from the U.K. and other global locations is a vital part of the region’s overall development and sustainability strategy.

JAXUSA saw an opportunity to partner with the Jaguars to help us tell our story to a larger global audience. These missions help us connect with top company leaders and work toward bringing jobs and economic growth to the Jacksonville region. They also add a higher profile to our presence overseas and open doors to new investment opportunities.

Below are a few successes from past London missions:

  • Greencore, an Ireland-based food-preparation company, expanded its operations in Jacksonville, creating hundreds of jobs in our region. This was the first of several projects associated with the city’s economic development mission to London with the Jaguars.
  • City Facilities Management FL, a subsidiary of City Refrigeration Holdings based in Scotland, selected Jacksonville for its North American headquarters, creating 110 new Florida jobs. The company operates around the world with more than 12,000 employees and is the largest privately-held facilities management company in the United Kingdom and Australia.
  • Resource Solutions, an international recruiting services firm, opened a global service center in Jacksonville, adding 75 skilled jobs. The London-based company, which provides outsourcing solutions for many of the world’s leading brands, is seeking to grow its operations in the United States. And, as the company’s U.S. market share grows, so will its operations in Jacksonville.

Hans-Mill Corporation

Posted on May 18, 2017

Hans-Mill’s new 121,000 square foot facility anticipates creating more than 50 local jobs as part of Walmart’s 10-year commitment to buy an additional $250 billion in products supporting American jobs. The factory will use state-of-the-art automated assembly equipment and, in the beginning, produce stainless steel, pedal trash cans. This equipment, developed by a consortium of international equipment makers, is believed to be the first of its kind in this industry.

“Our economy continues to gain significant momentum with new jobs and opportunities coming to our city,” said Mayor Lenny Curry. “Jacksonville’s growing manufacturing industry is attracting international companies like Hans-Mill Corporation that are adding even more opportunities for families in our community. With the opening of this new facility, we are increasing Jacksonville’s growing reputation as a hub for international business.”

Based on data from Boston Consulting Group, it’s estimated that 1 million new U.S. jobs will be created through Walmart’s initiative, including direct manufacturing job growth of approximately 250,000, and indirect job growth of approximately 750,000 in the support and service sectors.

“Our customers have told us that second to price, where products are made influences their purchase decisions,” said Cindi Marsiglio, vice president, U.S. manufacturing, Walmart. “We are focused on buying great quality products that create jobs in communities across the U.S. It makes sense for our customers, our communities and our company.”

As part of the Jacksonville investment, HMC is also setting up a full injection molding operation to produce plastic bulk storage containers for consumer use. The items being produced at HMC’s factory are very large, so freight costs were a key factor in evaluating this investment.

“Walmart has made a significant impact on our company, our employees, and our community,” said James Han, President and CEO of Hans-Mill Corp. “We’re excited for today’s grand opening and the opportunity to bring new jobs and manufacturing to Jacksonville.”

Florida Plastics Recycling

Posted on March 1, 2017

After an extensive search in Florida, the company settled on a site in northwest Jacksonville, bringing 30 jobs to the region. Florida Plastic Recycling recently leased a 33,000-square-foot facility in the metro Jacksonville area, citing the accessibility of the port and the logistics infrastructure.

The PET plastic bottles Florida Plastics recycles will be used to create raw plastic flakes that will be used by other companies to make plastics products.

Economic Development Flourishes in Northeast Florida

Posted on January 23, 2017

Amazon, Mercedes-Benz USA and KLS Martin were among the 10 new company locations announced, joining the seven local businesses expansions, including Ernst & Young, Kraft Foods – Maxwell House and BMW of North America.

Amazon, the global Internet retailer, committed to bolstering its footprint in the area and selected Jacksonville as the ideal location for a fulfillment center to handle the company’s diverse array of products that will create 1,500 new jobs and $200 million in local investment.

The region’s direct access to a consumer market of 61+ million people, ease of doing business, thriving local economy and land availability at Alliance Florida at Cecil Commerce Center helped secure Amazon’s decision to invest in Jacksonville.

This company announcement – among others – contribute to the robust business environment in Northeast Florida, further supporting Forbes’ ranking of Jacksonville among the top 40 best places for businesses and careers and Realtor.com’s ranking of Jacksonville as the #2 hot spot where Americans are moving.

High-end retailers are also making the move to Jacksonville because of the city’s central location and direct access to a large consumer market. Swedish-based IKEA plans to open its first Jacksonville location this fall, across from where TopGolf recently opened in October 2016.

Continued revitalization of Downtown Jacksonville along the St. Johns River is occurring, with increased activity around EverBank Field. Companies are taking advantage of the area’s talented labor force, low operating costs and pro-business environment.

“The Jacksonville region is a competitive player in the global marketplace as international companies choose Northeast Florida as the location for business attainment and success,” said JAXUSA Partnership President Jerry Mallot. “The area’s access to talent, natural environment and unique personality continue to draw companies looking for a new market to grow operations.”

 

January 23, 2017

City Facilities Management

Posted on March 24, 2016

City Refrigeration (now dba City Facilities Management) will bring more than 100 jobs to the city, at an average wage of $67,000.

“We are excited to be here in Jacksonville,” said Gerry Phimister, chief executive officer for City Refrigeration. “The City worked hard, and was truly genuine in their desire to have us here. This is the right place for us to be, and people should be proud of their city leadership. We want to launch our operations in the U.S., utilizing the knowledge and skills of existing employees and local talent. In keeping with our company ethos, we will provide training and new opportunities to help develop our associates with greater skills for their personal development.”

City Holdings has over 25 years of experience in retail, residential and corporate markets, and a global presence with offices in Europe, Australia, Africa and North America.