CINDE announces: SYKES to Expand Operations Outside the Greater Metropolitan Area in Costa Rica

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica, Sept. 4, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The SYKES company recently announced that it will open its new headquarters in Solarium Park, Liberia, and will begin hiring the first 100 permanent positions during November and December. The company estimates it will hire a total of 600 people within 18 months, to work at their new site.

The announcement of this important investment outside the Greater Metro Area (GMA) was made this morning at the Presidential House, in the company of the President of the Republic, Carlos Alvarado; the First Lady, Claudia Dobles; the Acting Minister of Foreign Trade, Duayner Salas; the Minister of Labor and Social Security (MTSS), Geannina Dinarte; the Managing Director of CINDE, Jorge Sequeira; and the General Manager of SYKES, Alejandro Arciniegas.

"We are pleased to announce this new investment, which will generate jobs that benefit families in the Guanacaste area. Sykes, an ally of Costa Rica for many years, has an important characteristic: when they arrive in an area, others follow because they are a talent-generating company. We are looking for these jobs to multiply, not only because of the growth of Sykes but also because of other companies that see the potential of Guanacaste and other regions of the country, the potential of our human talent," said President Alvarado.

He added that the Costa Rican government has extended its support to the Alliance for Bilingualism, whose goal by 2040 is for everyone who graduates the Costa Rican educational system – public or private – to be bilingual.

"We are pleased to announce the opening of our first offices outside the Greater Metropolitan Area. There, we will stay true to our vocation – to developing talent and generating hundreds of jobs in the region, thus indirectly benefitting many families and contributing to growth in the country's exports. This marks the establishment of the first in what we believe will be the beginning of a new development pole in high-tech corporate services," mentioned Arciniegas.

During the Presidential House event, the General Manager of SYKES noted that, since the beginning of this year, the company has worked to develop potential candidates' skills, including improving their English levels and basic technical knowledge in SYKES's varied areas of business. This training is possible, thanks to an alliance between Invenio University and the Ministry of Labor, under the national strategy known as the Alliance for Bilingualism and the SYKES Academy of English, which have allowed the company to develop skills for potential candidates considered in the recruitment process.

Duayner Salas, the Acting Minister of Foreign Trade, commented that in 2019, employment opportunities generated by foreign direct investment (FDI) outside the GAM, accounted for 547 new jobs, some of them working virtually. In addition, the minister added, "We appreciate the trust that SYKES has placed in Costa Rica over the last 20 years and we celebrate this announcement, which will generate 600 new job opportunities in the Guanacaste region. Costa Rica is a stable business partner and this new investment, in the area of knowledge-intensive services, is one more example of that."

Jorge Sequeira Picado, Managing Director of CINDE, continued, "Five years ago, our organization developed programs in 20 communities outside the GAM, designed to help residents improve their area's competitiveness and thus generate new jobs through FDI. Today, we congratulate SYKES for choosing Liberia to expand its operations, which includes the hiring of 600 people. This motivates us to redouble our efforts so that more communities can attract projects of this type and thus benefit their residents. During this time, CINDE works to support SYKES in the continuing development of talent, including on topics of bilingualism, technical, and strategic skills essential for attracting FDI. In the last four years alone, employment outside the GAM, as generated by multinational companies, has grown on average by 10%, reaching a total of 3,195 jobs by the end of 2019."

About SYKES
SYKES is a leader in outsourcing high technology services. In Costa Rica, the company has more than 20 years of experience, employing more than 5,000 people at their operations in Heredia, Moravia, Hatillo Centro, and San Pedro. SYKES is proud to offer an ideal working environment and to promote continuous learning and professional development.

SOURCE Costa Rican Investment Promotion Agency

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