Tech company failed to create jobs in Charlotte. NC just yanked $2M in tax incentives

Catherine Muccigrosso
·2 min read

North Carolina canceled over $2 million in tax incentives Tuesday for one the largest information and technology companies in the country after it failed to meet its promise of creating 300 jobs in Charlotte.

The state’s Economic Investment Committee on Tuesday voted to cancel the Job Development Investment Grants for Cognizant Technology Solutions.

Cognizant said “due to economic uncertainty and decreased demand” the company would not meet its job creation goals, according to a letter sent to the committee last month seeking to terminate the grant.

It was not immediately clear how many, if any, jobs had been created.

The company is re-evaluating its real estate needs, the letter stated, which includes plans to close its Charlotte delivery center. That center is at 8520 Cliff Cameron Drive in University City area. It was not immediately known how many employees work there now.

Cognizant has more than 1,900 employees based in North Carolina, Cognizant chief human resource operation officer Felix Weitzman said in the letter

“We remain committed to our presence in Charlotte, but as we adjust our ways of working and embrace our new model, more work will be delivered directly from client sites and/or through remote work,” Weitzman said.

Cognizant officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

The N.C. Economic Investment Committee on Tuesday voted to cancel the $2 million Job Development Investment Grants for Cognizant Technology Solutions. 
The N.C. Economic Investment Committee on Tuesday voted to cancel the $2 million Job Development Investment Grants for Cognizant Technology Solutions.

What Cognizant said in 2018

In 2018, Cognizant said it would add 300 jobs in Charlotte, thanks in part to a state grant for just over $2 million spread over 12 years, provided that the company meet its job hiring goals. Jobs included IT application developers and business consultants with average salaries at $68,317.

“That was the potential. Companies have to perform before they are reimbursed,” David Rhoades, spokesman for the North Carolina Department of Commerce, told The Charlotte Observer Tuesday. “No payment has ever been made.”

Separately, in 2014, the state awarded the company up to $5.1 million over 12 years for expanding in North Carolina, including hiring 150 workers in Charlotte and 350 around the state. That grant is still active, Rhoades said.

Cognizant, a Fortune 500 company, is based in New Jersey and specializes in providing tech and consulting services.

In 2020, Cognizant acquired Bright Wolf, a company founded by alumni from N.C. State University and UNC Chapel Hill’s computer science departments. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

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