February was an incredible month on the jobs front, which is welcome news after a relatively quiet January.
Welcome to the inaugural edition of the latest fixture in the Careers section: the monthly jobs round-up!
We appreciate that you don’t always catch every single jobs announcement that arises in a given month. Finding the job of your dreams is tough enough as it is without having to laboriously backtrack through older posts, so we figured it’d be helpful to gather everything in one place every month.
It also gives us a great opportunity to reflect on which companies are getting funding, which sectors are booming and which roles are most in demand.
Really, what better month to start than February? Despite the fact that is the shortest month of the year, there was a bevy of jobs announcements. In total, around 1,081 new roles were created across the island of Ireland in February.
I say ‘around’ because it’s probably more in reality. For example, the announcement that payments giant Stripe is to establish a major European engineering hub in Dublin did not specify how many jobs were being created, so we can’t be entirely sure of the final figure.
These 1,081 roles were created by 11 different companies, all operating in a variety of different sectors, so it couldn’t really be said that one industry is flourishing more than another.
The most obvious trend from these announcements is that it’s a good time to be an engineer (though one could argue it’s never not a good time), as five of these companies created new positions for engineers. I can’t help but love the timing, as it’s just in time for Engineers Week, starting tomorrow (24 February).
The biggest announcement of the entire month came from pharmaceutical multinational MSD. The company revealed a staggering 350 new roles with the news that it will construct a shiny, new biotech plant in Swords. Ireland has more than 40 FDA-approved pharmaceutical manufacturing sites, and is the largest net exporter of pharmaceuticals in the EU.
Another big one this month came from design software firm Autodesk, which revealed 200 new positions in Dublin along with news that it will open a new Irish office. Autodesk is best known for its pioneering AutoCAD software, which has been leveraged to construct everything from the Freedom Tower at the One World Trade Center to Tesla’s electric car motors.
As you can see (and as is to be expected), most jobs were announced in Dublin. It’d be nice to see the jobs announcements spread in a way that points towards Ireland’s economy becoming a little more decentralised, but you can’t really blame companies for wanting the capital to be their base of operations.
Ammeon, a Dublin-based IT professional services firm, is set to create 100 roles in software engineering and consultancy over the next 18 months.
Irish chipmaker DecaWave announced that it will also take on 100 new employees over the next three years after raising an incredible $30m in funding.
AI-powered US cybersecurity firm Vectra will establish a new R&D centre in Dublin following a €10m investment from the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, and with it bring 100 jobs to the capital.
Luckily, not all the announcements were limited to Leinster. The wealth was somewhat spread across the island.
Heading west, US medical diagnostics firm Quidel is to open a business centre in Galway and create 75 jobs.
IT firm Ergo did not only announce roles in Dublin but also in Cork. In total, the company has 100 jobs up for grabs amid forecasts that it will reach €100m in revenue by 2020.
Northern Ireland capital Belfast got some exciting news this month, as two digital agencies, Flint Studios and Made to Engage, announced eight and 28 new positions, respectively.
Meanwhile, Limerick will be host to a brand new ‘fibre centre of excellence’ formed by network infrastructure provider 4Site, creating 20 new roles in the process.
For more on any of these stories, follow the links below.
1. DecaWave reveals 100 new jobs after raising $30m in funding
DecaWave creates 100 new roles to welcome more staff into its chipmaking fold.
2. IT firm Ergo brings 100 new jobs to Dublin and Cork
Cloud and managed services provider Ergo is expanding its workforce.
3. Stripe to establish a major European engineering hub in Dublin
Collison brothers’ $9bn payments giant is bringing engineering home to Ireland.
4. Ammeon creates 100 new Dublin jobs in engineering expansion
Ammeon enables IT acceleration across a plethora of industries.
5. Belfast-based Made to Engage to hire 28 new employees
Made to Engage, which was formed in 2012, is creating 28 new roles.
6. Autodesk to open Irish office and bring 200 jobs to Dublin
Autodesk, which is best known for its pioneering AutoCAD software, will hire 200 new employees before the end of 2018.
7. 20 jobs announced at 4Site Limerick HQ for ‘fibre centre of excellence’
Network infrastructure provider 4Site is to create jobs at its Limerick HQ in its new ‘fibre centre of excellence’.
8. AI-powered US cybersecurity firm Vectra brings 100 jobs to Dublin
Following a €10m investment from the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, US firm Vectra will establish an Irish R&D centre in Dublin.
9. 350 jobs bonanza for Dublin as MSD plans to build new biotech plant
New plant will play a pivotal role in manufacture of MSD’s biologics-based medicines.
10. Belfast-based Flint Studios to bring eight new jobs to NI capital
Digital solutions agency Flint Studios has already begun recruitment for eight new positions at its Belfast office.
11. Major US diagnostics company Quidel to hire 75 in Galway
Some joyous news for the west of Ireland as California-based medtech firm Quidel creates 75 new roles in the vibrant city of Galway.
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