Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1170674
18 | DOING BUSINESS IN CONNECTICUT | 2019 Infosys has hired hundreds of people in Hartford, which serves as a strategic-planning hub. we offer 12 weeks of [onsite] training for undergrads. But as we progressed on that journey, we realized that our clients need an agile workspace which is immersed with technologies, and we wanted to then create these tech innovation hubs where our talent is hired from schools and trained by the universities in-house, and our large clients can co-create along with them." The state-of-the-art products and services being developed by Infosys are both accessible and demonstrably effective. In Hartford, visitors can visit living labs that showcase new-age solutions for business – from a system that offers ongoing analysis and "predictive maintenance" for manufacturing equipment to a solution that digitizes the life cycle of insurance. Kumar said most of the work that Infosys does for its large clients is focused on emerging technologies. "The large enterprises locally, like insurance companies, are building digital systems of the future so they can service their customers better. Healthcare companies are building a massive digital infrastructure to support their customers. Manufacturers are digitizing their shop floors, installing machine-learning infrastructure so that they're automated enough for high productivity. So digital technologies are being embraced by every industry – every industry is significantly paranoid about new-age companies which are coming in and disrupting their space." About 90% of the company's clients also have global operations, "so a lot of times, what we build here is applied across the world." He said retail and banking are way ahead of the curve in terms of digitization, but some other industries have lagged behind, in large part because of an acute shortage of talent in their particular fields. But rather than focusing on "finding" the needed talent, Kumar said, Infosys is helping to create it. While new technologies are making obsolete some jobs of the past, they are creating jobs of the future – albeit jobs that require new skill sets, abilities, and approaches. That has led to a skills gap, one that has been growing by the day, he said. "But we have this opportunity to bridge the gap and build the skills which are needed for these enterprises." To do so, Infosys has been thinking outside of the box – not only recruiting technology graduates but joining forces with liberal arts institutions like Hartford's Trinity College to identify and hire arts students who can bring strong creative thinking skills to the table. He said most new-age companies have one thing in common: they are skilled at addressing the "experience" gaps left by traditional companies, with virtual reality applications being just one example. To tap into that, Infosys chose the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) as its partner in that state, "and we now have at least six batches of physical designers who design experiences, who have actually gone through this program and become part of Infosys." The company has also been sourcing talent from community colleges. Explained Kumar, "We think the future of digital will blur Infosys President Ravi Kumar. INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY: INFOSYS