A major metro Atlanta tech employer says it will move its headquarters to New York City next year and start a division there with 75 software engineers and designers.
A spokesman for Infor said the company's Alpharetta campus will not lose the 480 jobs in its finance, human resources and tax divisions.
Infor, a diversified firm whose clients include drug companies that use its software to run global supply chains, was lured by three factors: the availability of workers in New York City's "Silicon Alley"; a proposed engineering school the city is building in partnership with a consortium of universities; and the ease of access to customers in 167 countries.
The company of about 8,000 workers has executives scattered in the Northeast, including its CEO, and the new headquarters will give them a common location, company spokesman Dan Barnhardt said.
Infor plans to integrate its software with social applications such as Facebook and Twitter, which will require "a talented development team working in an environment that fosters collaboration and innovation," Barnhardt said, that will be available in New York.
Georgia, like many states, is striving to grow its technology businesses. A Science and Technology Study Commission, formed by the General Assembly last year, is holding a series of public meetings throughout the state to learn about encouraging business growth.
Sen. John Albers, R-Roswell, a member of the commission, said he heard about Infor's move Monday.
"They had not talked to us at all," he said. "It's always concerning when someone is moving part of their company out of Georgia. We didn't win. I want to win all the time."
"We want those high-paying jobs in Georgia," he said.
Tino Mantella, CEO of the nonprofit Technology Association of Georgia, said metro Atlanta is home to more than 250,000 high-tech jobs.
"Though I am sure Georgia does not want to lose any opportunity, it is not a significant amount of jobs," he said of Infor's new division.
A survey from the third quarter of 2011 showed metro Atlanta high-tech jobs increased 2.3 percent compared with the same quarter last year.
"We get a lot of companies coming into our state to find talent," Mantella said, "and occasionally we get one that is going out."
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