The company Sage has carried out the official inauguration of its new global hub located in the 22@ innovation district of Barcelona. This event represents an important milestone in the company’s strategic commitment to the Spanish market, thus reinforcing its commitment to innovation and technological development from the Catalan capital.
During the opening day, attendees visited the new facilities, which occupy 3,600 square meters in the 22@ innovation district of Barcelona. The new hub has more than 650 employees of more than 40 nationalities. A notable part of these workers are highly qualified, specialists in the fields of Data Science, AI Engineering and Development, and Cybersecurity, which highlights the capacity of the new hub to act as a pole of attraction for international talent.
Challenges and opportunities of AI
The inauguration of this new hub was attended by senior executives from Sage, such as Derk Bleeker, Chief Commercial Officer; Aaron Harris, Chief Technology Officer; and José Luis Martín Zabala, Managing Director of Sage Iberia, together with institutional representatives including the Government delegate in Catalonia, Carlos Prieto, the Minister of Business and Labor of the Generalitat, Miquel Sàmper, and the fourth deputy mayor of Economy of the Barcelona City Council, Jordi Valls.
In addition, the opening ceremony was attended by nearly 70 personalities, representatives of public administrations, the world of associations, the technology industry and the academic field. The event included two round tables on the challenges and opportunities of AI and how this AI is evolving and redefining the value of talent.
During his speech at the inauguration, Minister Miquel Sàmper highlighted that “today we celebrate Sage’s confidence in the talent, innovative capacity and business ecosystem of our country, a commitment that reinforces the positioning of Barcelona and Catalonia as the European capital of technology at the service of companies.”
For his part, Jordi Valls has assured that “the inauguration of the Sage hub in 22@ is the result of Barcelona’s sustained strategic commitment to innovation and the knowledge economy. Projects like this reinforce Barcelona as a European technological capital, generate qualified employment, promote the digital transformation of SMEs and guarantee the right to develop an international career without having to leave the city.”
The emergence of AI has opened new possibilities for companies and allows boosting the advantages that Sage offers its clients
Derk Bleeker from Sage highlighted that “this project represents much more than the inauguration of a technology center. “It symbolizes a strategic commitment, a deep involvement with Spain and Catalonia, and a shared vision of the future of innovation.” In turn, the managing director of Sage Iberia, José Luis Martín Zabala, has valued the company’s successful experience in Catalonia, a region in which the company has been present for 40 years “and now with this new milestone we take a very important step in this trajectory, convinced that we are going to continue adding thanks to the innovation ecosystem that Barcelona has, and that will allow us to continue advancing and collaborating with the best universities and attracting the best international talent.”
Sage’s third global hub
This will be Sage’s third global hub, alongside the centers in Newcastle (United Kingdom, where the company is based) and Atlanta (USA). The promotion of this new innovation space will be especially focused on the development of new technologies and services linked to AI worldwide, thus consolidating the city as a nerve center of innovation and technological excellence for Sage globally.
The emergence of AI has opened up new possibilities for companies and allows us to boost the advantages that Sage offers its clients through its management solutions. The goal is to help these customers make smarter decisions and be more productive. The global hub in Barcelona will also be a key piece for the growth of the company’s business both in the Iberia market and in the company’s global market. Sage plans to increase the workforce of this new innovation space by around 10% annually in a sustained manner in the medium term, thus promoting its role as a hub for attracting talent.
