igh, N.C. - Governor Pat McCrory and North Carolina Commerce Secretary Sharon Decker announced today that American International Group (AIG) will establish a technology center in Mecklenburg County. The company plans to create 230 new jobs in North Carolina by the end of 2017 and invest more than $5.5 million in Charlotte.
“We’re proud of the financial and professional services cluster that has formed in the Charlotte region, and AIG will be a welcome addition to the community,” said Governor McCrory. “Global industry leaders know that Mecklenburg County and North Carolina offer them a large pool of highly-skilled talent, a strong business climate and outstanding infrastructure, which entities like AIG need to succeed.”
The AIG center will provide application development and management services for the company. AIG is a leading international insurance organization serving more than 130 countries. United Guaranty Corporation (UGC), AIG’s mortgage insurance division, is headquartered in Greensboro and AIG Property Casualty, AIG’s property and casualty insurance division, has existing operations in Charlotte.
“Attracting high-tech jobs like those with AIG is a great fit for the Charlotte region,” said N.C. Commerce Secretary Secretary Decker. “We’re excited to welcome the company to the North Carolina family and know they’ll find success here like UGC did.”
The new operation is expected to be launched in 2014 and fully staffed in 2017. Activities at the center will include the design, development, testing and deployment of software supporting various insurance functions. The functions include underwriting, sales & marketing, digital channels, risk selection, risk rating, claims adjudication and claims payment.
“We are looking forward to growing our capabilities in Charlotte,” said Robert Dickie, AIG’s Chief Operations and Systems Officer. “The combination of a highly-skilled workforce and a focus on economic growth in North Carolina supports our goals of developing world-class IT products and services to support our business and our customers.”
Salaries will vary by job function, but the total annual payroll for the new jobs will be more than $23.1 million. The average annual wage in Mecklenburg County is $57,144.
“We are committed to creating new jobs in North Carolina and welcome these new, high skilled jobs to Charlotte,” said Representative Becky Carney. “We know that AIG will find the qualified talent they need to succeed and expand their presence here in Mecklenburg County.”
The project was made possible in part by an award to AIG from the state Job Development Investment Grant (JDIG) program, as voted by the state Economic Investment Committee. Receipt of the award is based on proof of job creation and other performance requirements. JDIGs are awarded only to new and expanding businesses and industrial projects whose benefits exceed the costs to the state, and which would not be undertaken in North Carolina without the grant.
Under the terms of the company’s JDIG award, AIG is eligible to receive up to ten annual grants equal to 58 percent of the state personal income tax withholdings from the eligible new jobs created since the date of the initial award. Receipt of each annual grant is based on state-certified proof that the company has fulfilled incremental job creation requirements. Over ten years, the JDIG award could yield aggregate benefits to AIG of up to $4.9 million upon creation of 230 new jobs.
In addition, up to $1.6 million in additional funds from the company’s JDIG award could be added to the state’s Utility Fund for infrastructure improvements in economically distressed counties. When a JDIG is awarded to a company whose site is located in the state’s more economically prosperous counties such as Mecklenburg, 25 percent of the company’s grant is allocated to the Utility Fund to encourage economic development in less prosperous counties.
For more information on the county tier designations, visit: http://www.nccommerce.com/research-publications/incentive-reports/county-tier-designations.
Other partners who assisted with this announcement include: the N.C. Department of Commerce, N.C. Community Colleges, Charlotte Chamber, Mecklenburg County, the City of Charlotte, Charlotte Center City Partners, and the Charlotte Regional Partnership.
For more information about AIG, including job opportunities, visit http://www.aig.com/.