Thursday, 6/29/2017
The multinational
consultant Accenture inaugurated the new technology centre on the 9th
June 2017, in Braga. The School of Engineering of the University of Minho
(EEUM) was represented by the Vice-Dean, Paulo Sampaio.
Accenture is a leading global professional services company, which
offers a wide range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital,
technology and operations. Following the cooperation agreement signed on April
2017 between the University of Minho (UMinho) and the multinational – on the
proposal of the EEUM –, this collaboration aims to promote a close collaboration
between the academic and business agents, in order to contribute to development
and knowledge transfer. This agreement will also provide a framework for future
academic, technical and scientific cooperation activities.
After the inauguration and visit to the Braga centre of Excellence, the
ceremony counted with the presentation of the new centre, which was held by
Susana Mata, Accenture’s Administrator. This presentation was followed by the
interventions of Ricardo Rio, Mayor of Braga, José Gonçalves, President of the company,
and António Costa, Prime Minister. The ceremony brought together other
personalities and guests, including João Vasconcelos, Secretary of State of
Industry, and Carlos Oliveira, President of InvestBraga.
Speaking to the digital newspaper «Dinheiro Vivo», José Gonçalves
reinforced the added value of the installation of the technological centre in
Braga and the cooperation relationship with UMinho: “The University gives us a
lot of «raw material». We feel that there is more stability in human resources
here, which means that we will not lose as much investment as we do in training
people”.
“To the EEUM in particular, students have a unique opportunity to
connect with multinational realities, with organisational environments
completely different from traditional ones and cutting-edge technology
industries. These opportunities did not exist fifteen years ago, and I believe
it is a capital gain to the academic community and also to Accenture itself”,
Paulo Sampaio, Vice-Dean of the EEUM highlighted.
The
multinational consultant opened the second technology centre in Braga. The bet
in Braga was mainly due to this city being young, dynamic and close to the
airport of Oporto city. In addition, it is a technology centre with development
projects that grant an added value to large companies. Accenture employs
approximately 100 people since its official opening in January 2017, 70% of
which are hired without experience. The
consultancy company expects to double to 200 people in 2018. 55% of
these people currently participate in international projects, and the UMinho is
the main partner in recruitment and research.
+ info: https://www.accenture.com/pt-pt; https://www.dinheirovivo.pt/empresas/accenture-braga-delivery-center-exporta-55-em-servicos-de-tecnologia/ [in Portuguese]