Jobs boost: SA’s hi-tech mix behind MTX’s Adelaide hub move

US-based MTX Group is among the latest tech companies to announce plans to set up shop in SA, unveiling details of its plan to base its first regional service hub in Adelaide.

MTX Australia chief executive Ben Papps

South Australia’s mix of research, skills and partnerships – combined with its burgeoning AI, space technology, renewable energy and health sectors – has proved too enticing for global tech consultancy firm MTX Group to look past.

The US-based organisation is among the latest tech companies to set up shop in the state; unveiling details early last month of its plans to base its first regional service hub in Adelaide.

A key to driving the company’s expansion into the Asia-Pacific sector, the move is expected to create about 500 jobs within the next three to five years.

The company – which is currently managing the Covid-19 vaccination rollout for New York City, Chicago and Houston – provides expertise across a range of platforms and technologies, including Google Cloud, Salesforce, artificial intelligence/machine learning and data analytics.

Founder and chairman Das Nobel says Adelaide’s vision for the next decade was attractive to MTX as it complemented its push to “create high-paying jobs and make a meaningful impact in the community”. “South Australia offers a unique platform through research, skills and collaborations that will enable development opportunities in AI, space technology, renewable energy and health,” Nobel says.

MTX Australia chief executive Ben Papps

MTX Australia chief executive Ben Papps says the move will create opportunities across a broad spectrum of roles.

“There’s a whole world of future employment opening up as governments and companies harness data and technology to make smarter decisions and deliver better services,” he says. “A lot of these jobs are about understanding and managing data, analysing problems and helping design solutions. The really great thing is there’s a whole range of expertise involved, from high-end data scientists and analysts, software developers and integrators, business analysts and project managers, all the way through to computer operators and customer service people.”

Papps says one of the key reasons behind MTX’s decision to set up a hub in Adelaide is the “big focus” on the skills and capabilities the company required.

“There is a real buzz here and some awesome work at the universities, the Australian Institute for Machine Learning and innovative companies in and around Lot Fourteen,” he says. “We really want to engage with the local community to help open up career pathways, whether for women returning to the workforce or people whose work has been impacted by Covid-19 or for students graduating from uni and keen for advanced training and on-the-job experience.”

Data is transforming the way the world works, from smoother parcel delivery to better ways to organise health services and smarter traffic safety – and MTX is at the cutting edge.

“This is a global market and MTX is a global company,” Papps says. “So there’s a huge opportunity for our people in Adelaide to be working on exciting projects, not just in Australia but right around the world.”

The company is already seeking people to become part of its South Australian operation.

“We’re already advertising jobs for our Adelaide service hub and will add more as we build scale,” Papps says. “We’re looking forward to making announcements about training programs and university graduate programs to help accelerate pathways for people to join in coming months.”