From the OT Q3 FY2025 Financial Results at
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/opentext-reports-third-quarter-fiscal-year-2025-financial-results-302443218.html?tc=eml_cleartime
It's happening in Provo, consolidating to two floors, closing the 3rd floor on June 30th..
Most overused word at OT - "center of excellence".
@23j , in 10 years, if lucky, Opentext will only have AI for employees. No COE. Not even India.
If unlucky, no Opentext in 10 years.
@1d4 not sure about this. I know the old center of excellence in Utah that the price of paying engineers pretty cheap. They had interns at $16 an hour and 3 universities nearby to select candidates from. Most of the people I met when visiting in the area only had salaries in the $70 - 90k range unless they are high up engineer. I have also seen online that here in Canada some of the jobs they are hiring for in Provo actually cost more here to hire than in Utah. So I am quite confident to say that I think they just do not value US employees as much.
In 10 years OpenText will only have employees in India and will use AI for all the rest. But the executives will all stay in Silicon Valley.
@1d4 Think twice. Barrenechea only gives lip service to Canada because Canada requires it. Even you are too expensive. India has almost 2 billion people, their conversion rate puts yours to shame, and their universities have enough American trained teaching that they are putting out very qualified candidates. 10 years ago, they were substandard. Now they are adequate. In 10 more years...
Mark is all about growing via acquisition and the cutting as much as possible and now he is pivoting to AI will replace human workers which is music to the ears of investors. The issue is now morale is so low that the machine learning from the remaining employees will be low quality. Mark is not wrong, but he probably needs to go where a new leader raises morale and does a better job expediting a successful transition to AI.
Do you agree? AI response: He is more of a consolidator/operator than a visionary innovator.
His track record shows mixed outcomes, with OpenText being his most sustained success — though not without critique.
So, yes, criticism is valid, particularly regarding strategic direction, company culture, and long-term innovation.
A Canadian employee, with equal skills and output to a USA employee costs 40% less (lower salary in Canada plus currency conversion).
Plus the Waterloo and Toronto have a ton of universities generating a large flow of qualified employees.
Locations are chosen, based on cost of employee, available skill set and future business considerations.
Centers of excellence are in the Philippines, India, Canada and Romania only. All other offices will eventually close in time unless there are customer requirements to have support or personnel stationed in their country of origin.
This all started 19 years ago https://www.informationweek.com/it-leadership/open-text-to-cut-more-than-500-jobs
Look at what happened to Computer Associates, Silicon Graphics and Scopus Technology… all places where Mark was an executive. OpenText is probably next.
Let's be honest. If you are a US based opentext employee. It's over. You have no more than one more fiscal year left if you are lucky. The Fort Collins office closed in March last year and they laid off half the staff in July. The remaining teams are seeing India staff infiltration as if they are being trained. The rest of the staff expects to be gone this July.
2030 plan is to have execs in Menlo Park and everyone else in offices in India.
The (former) CoEs you list all share commonalities: all are in the US, all are not being hired into or invested in.
Salt Lake was a center of excellence, until it was no longer. Provo was a center of excellence until it was no longer. Broomfield was a center of excellence until it was no longer. There is no rhyme or reason. Its how many bodies are in an office so they can get the best ROI for the building. I anticipate provo and broomfield closing by the end of the year. Its all about the money.
Provo is a COR since it’s listed as an office here: https://www.opentext.com/about/office-locations#region2
Soon after MF was acquired by OT, Provo was a CoE. It's never been clear from OT ELT why Provo is no longer a CoE, and what criteria makes one office a CoE and another not.
Expect more closures until only Center of Excellence offices remain.