Belfast Shared Services

Belfast has earned the reputation as one of Europe’s leading locations for shared service centres. With its abundant, high quality IT, financial and HR skills and a reputation as Europe’s best location for customer care operations, the city is now attracting shared services operations to serve UK domestic, European and global markets.

Shared Services Sector Profile 2005

Some investors who are already enjoying the benefits of having chosen Belfast as the preferred location for their shared service operations include: Abbey, Halifax, Prudential and Regus.

As the focus of Shared Services Centres shifts from cost reduction to value creation, Belfast is well placed to meet the demanding needs of a demanding marketplace.

• Belfast offers extremely high education standards and the highest proportion of college students in Europe.
• Annually 2000 IT graduates qualify from NI higher education institutes and a further 2000 qualify in Business with IT capability. Current enrolment of students for 2003/04 in IT related disciplines totals 22,900.
• A population with some 60 per cent under 40 years of age.
• Within the shared services sector, wages and salaries are up to 36% lower than other European locations.

Source: IBM Business Consulting Services September 2003.