Devbridge Group recently celebrated the opening of its new, state-of-the-art office in Kaunas, the second largest city in Lithuania.
The new facility opened Feb. 2 with a ceremony that welcomed Kaunas Mayor Visvaldas Matijošaitis, representatives from the Lithuanian government and the offices of the U.S. ambassador to Lithuania. Also in attendance were more than 300 Devbridge employees from the company’s five global offices in Chicago, Toronto, London, Kaunas, and Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital.
The new Kaunas location is a mix of architectural styles in city’s historic Šančiai district, home of once-abandoned military barracks that were constructed around the end of the First World War a century ago. The office resides within one of these former barracks, now fully fitted with modernized construction while retaining the historical flavor of the region.
The expansion will bring an expected 200 more tech jobs over the next two years, part of the company’s goal of making Lithuania the capital of European IT by 2023.
“Our engineers are already playing in the highest league, tackling the most complex challenges and creating great digital products,” Aurimas Adomavicius, Devbridge president said. “I’ve never had a doubt about the potential of Lithuania as an IT powerhouse—the question is, ‘how do we improve and accelerate?’”
The Kaunas facility is the latest in a series of office expansions. In the past year, Devbridge has expanded its facilities in Vilnius and Toronto, and added an office in London to meet the growing need for custom software solutions in Fortune 1000 organizations.
In addition to bringing numerous high-quality IT jobs to the region, the new Kaunas will also host Sourcery Academy, and Sourcery Academy for Kids, two Devbridge initiatives that offer students and children hands-on learning opportunities in computer science, free of charge.
“Lithuania has given a lot to us, and this is one way we can give back to this vibrant, energetic community of IT professionals,” Viktoras Gurgždys, head of the Lithuanian branch and Sourcery Academy founder, said. “We’re hoping to spread technical literacy by offering young people the skills and opportunity for immense personal and professional growth. Technology is rapidly changing how we communicate and do business, and we see Lithuania as a major part of that change.”
Due to the success of Sourcery Academy in Lithuania, Devbridge Group is bringing the program to the U.S. with Sourcery Academy for Product Managers, a training program launching in Chicago this spring.
Those interested in touring Devbridge Group’s Lithuanian offices are encouraged to sign up for “Open Days,” an event that will feature office tours, lecturers, career consultancy, and more.
