Swisscom opens DevOps Center in Latvia

Developing and operating software for the number 1 Swiss telecommunications provider and one of the leading IT companies in the Swiss market from Latvia: Swisscom locates its second European DevOps Center in Riga. The investment project has been implemented in close cooperation with the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia.

Swisscom is the number 1 telecommunications provider and one of the leading IT companies in Switzerland. Its products and services range from B2C products, such as Swisscom blue TV, to B2B IT solutions in multiple industries, such as Banking, Health, Energy, Entertainment and Advertising. Living up to its ambition to lead the way as a responsible organization, corporate citizen and employer, Swisscom is one of Switzerland’s most sustainable and innovative companies. For several years, the company has continually been voted one of the most attractive employers by Swiss IT professionals, alongside Microsoft and Google.

Innovation is deeply rooted in the Swisscom DNA; both in terms of technology and in forms of collaboration. Facing a continuously growing IT skills gap with rising demand and insufficient supply within Switzerland, combined with an ambition to establish a leading DevOps organization in Europe by 2025, looking further afield was the next logical step for Swisscom.

Riga the ideal location for continuing Swisscom’s DevOps Center success

Riga offers the ideal location for Swisscom’s second DevOps unit abroad after Rotterdam. Latvia is widely acknowledged as a centre for IT, software and digitalisation excellence and is raising the next generation of qualified IT experts through the local educational system.
Swisscom's DevOps Center in Riga was established on 8 October 2020 with the first engineers pencilled in to start work from January 2021; initially, from temporary premises at Workland Telegraph, and later from the permanent offices in Z-Towers with a stunning view over Riga. The plan is to grow the Center to 40 employees by the end of 2021. The recruitment phase is starting now.

‘’For several years the Ministry of Economics has been working to realize the ambition of Latvia becoming the centre of IT education in the Baltic States. We’ve created cooperation between the government, the leading IT companies, and the higher education institutions, by doing that, we have provided an environment for the preparation of qualified IT experts. It’s a pleasure that a well-educated workforce is one of the reasons why ‘’Swisscom’’, the number one telecommunications provider and one of the leading IT companies in Switzerland, has chosen Latvia as the place for one of their DevOps centers. It gives us the incentive to continue improving on the workforce qualification,’’ emphasizes the Minister of Economics Jānis Vitenbergs

Swisscom DevOps Center, a playground for IT experts

Swisscom DevOps Centers have a unique setup in Swisscom. Managerial structures and hierarchies are kept to a minimum, and all of the employees are specialised in DevOps and absolute experts in their field. As the Swisscom DevOps Center in Riga is being set up from scratch, all of its future employees will help to define its structure, processes and environment with support from the existing DevOps Center in Rotterdam, which has already completed the pilot phase, and the parent company Swisscom.