Technology giant IBM says it will create more than 10,000 new jobs in key skill areas going into 2004 citing signs that the US economy has stablised. The news came as the company announced its third quarter results last night, reporting 5pc increase in earnings to US$1.8bn.
Revenues for the third quarter increased 9pc to reach US$21.5bn compared with US$19.8bn during the same quarter last year.
Claiming that the IT industry will see a pick-up in spending, IBM CEO and chairman Samel Palmisano said: “We are beginning to see signs that the economy has stabilised. As we look to 2004, more customers are expected to increase their investments in IT. While demand is not yet across the board, it is strongest in the areas where we have positioned the company and strengthened our capabilities.
“Next year, in fact, we see the need for approximately 10,000 new positions in key skill areas, including high-value services, middleware technologies, Linux and open standards-based hardware and software. And we are committing US$200m of our US$700m in training and learning to equip more than 100,000 existing employees with the skills that are highest in demand.
“Although it is too early to say that a rebound is at hand, we are confident that we will benefit from both a pick-up in IT spending and an economic recovery,” Palmisano said.
IBM employs almost 4,000 people in a variety of highly skilled positions, ranging from R&D and hardware manufacturing to technical support and global services. Revenues from global services rose 17pc in the third quarter to US$10.4bn, aided by the addition of PricewaterhouseCoopers’ former consulting business.
By John Kennedy
