Since Viren Shah joined AGCO as CDIO in early 2024, he and Eric Hansotia decided to outsource all IT functions to India. In the autumn of 2024, a global 6% workforce reduction was announced, with the IT organization being the most affected. All internal IT services were transferred to Infosys. From the Budapest office alone, 97 out of 477 employees were laid off, and afterward more than 40 others resigned voluntarily.
In the autumn of 2025, the application teams were also outsourced, this time to Cognizant. Students and interns can no longer be retained or hired, and one entire floor of the office building was returned, as 320 people no longer require three floors of space.
As a result of these changes, employee morale declined sharply. Many of the most experienced and knowledgeable professionals have left, taking years of expertise with them. Collaboration and response times have significantly worsened, and communication with external vendors has become slow and inefficient. The remaining teams often struggle with unclear responsibilities and constant turnover on the vendor side.
Service quality has deteriorated dramatically, with frequent delays, errors and a lack of ownership. Business stakeholders have reported growing frustration due to poor support and the loss of trusted internal partners. What used to be a stable, knowledgeable in-house IT organization has been replaced by detached external providers who have little understanding of AGCO’s processes, systems and culture.
This outsourcing strategy—locked in for five years—has already shown negative operational and financial consequences. What was once a strong, collaborative and future-oriented IT community has largely been dismantled, and the long-term impact on the company’s effectiveness and reputation is becoming increasingly visible.
