NYSE-listed data centre and technology services provider Pure Storage inaugurated its new research and development centre in Bengaluru on Thursday, committing to the government’s ‘Make in India’ push.

The acceleration of digital transformation around the world is fuelling the growth of data, specifically unstructured data such as video, picture and audio files. That is creating demand for professionals who are experts in solutions that store, manage, protect and analyse such data, the company said in a statement.
“We are excited to see another leading global technology company commit to investment in India and the Karnataka region. Pure Storage is providing an opportunity for Indian talent to contribute to technologies that are in demand around the world,” said C N Ashwath Narayan, minister for higher education, government of Karnataka.

“India has long been a source of technology talent and we have to stay ahead of the game. With data continuing to grow in volume and complexity, the skills to manage, protect and move it around in hybrid and multi-cloud environments, will become even more in demand and it’s important for Karnataka to be involved in this movement.”

A new study conducted by Pure Storage with market research by Zinnov, a management consulting firm, found that over 700,000 professionals in India have the relevant data management skills. This is around 14% of the total technology workforce in the country and is poised to grow further.

India makes up more than 10% of the worldwide talent pool of data management professionals and more than a quarter of Asia Pacific.

“We strongly believe that talent knows no boundaries and can be found across all regions. This approach encourages a culture of inclusivity, new ways of thinking, customer centricity and provides an opportunity to develop skills to build products across the globe. The India R&D centre will further foster data management capabilities in India while ensuring Pure’s global customers benefit from this abundance of talent,” said Ajay Singh, chief product officer, Pure Storage.