Oracle gets tax breaks to build cloud campus in Texas

Oracle has unveiled plans for a technology campus in Austin, Texas in a bid to expand its workforce by 50% in three years. It’s looking for millennials who want to work and live on site and sell cloud computing systems, by creating a combined office and housing complex.

Oracle is also to close its Oregon offices and incorporate the facilities in the new Texas complex. No details were given over staff re-location.

The move is part of a state initiative, including tax breaks and low regulation, as Texas positions itself as a home for innovation and technology. “I will continue to pursue policies that invite the expansion and relocation of tech companies to Texas,” said Texas State Governor Greg Abbott.

The site will include cheap accommodation as Oracle competes for talent in a region with a high concentration of technology start-ups. Its recruitment drive will be aimed at graduates and technical professionals at early stages in their career with the majority of new jobs being created in Oracle’s cloud sales organisation, Oracle Direct.

Oracle is to work with local firms in building the campus, the plans for which include the consolidation of Oracle’s facilities in Oregon. In the first phase it will build a 560,000 square foot complex on the waterfront of Austin’s Lady Bird Lake. It is also building a housing complex next door, with 295 apartments, for employee housing.

Austin’s technology community is teeming with creative and innovative thinkers and the town is a natural choice for investment and growth, claimed Oracle Direct’s Senior VP Scott Armour. “Our campus will inspire, support and attract top talent, with a special focus on the needs of millennials,” said Armour.

Austin’s biggest problems are affordability and mobility, according to Austin’s Mayor Steve Adler. “I look forward to working with Oracle to tackle our biggest challenges,” he said.

[Source:- BCN]