BENGALURU: Infosys Ltd is stepping up local hiring in most of its key geographies, including the US and Canada, as a strategy to have more visa-independent employees and add greater value to the regions where it operates.

India’s second largest IT services major said it would add 500 jobs to Calgary, Canada, over the next three years, doubling its workforce in that country to 4,000 employees by 2023.

“Calgary is a natural next step as part of our Canadian expansion and represents a significant and promising market for Infosys. The city is home to a thriving talent pool that the covid-related economic downturn has impacted. We will tap into this talent and offer skills and opportunities that will build on the city’s economic strengths,” Ravi Kumar, president, Infosys said in a statement.

In the last two years, Infosys has created 2,000 jobs across Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa and Montreal, with plans for further expansion across the country.

The Calgary expansion will enable Infosys to scale work with clients in Western Canada, Pacific North West, and the Central United States across various industries, including natural resources, energy, media, retail, and communications, Infosys said.

The company will hire tech talent from 14 educational institutions across the country, including the University of Calgary, University of Alberta, Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, University of British Columbia, University of Toronto, and Waterloo. Infosys plans to build a strong pipeline to expand the skills needed to accelerate digital transformation.

Over the last few years, Infosys has been stepping up hiring of local, visa-independent employees.

In September 2020, the company announced its commitment to hire an additional 12,000 American workers bringing its total hiring commitment in the US to 25,000 workers by 2022. Infosys is now about 63% visa-independent in the US.