Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) is bolstering its presence in Ireland, announcing plans to hire 150 new people in the country over the next two years. Those new hires will also be part of the vendor’s move to boost its efforts on cybersecurity and software development on the Emerald Isle.

The new positions are being focused on cybersecurity, software development, global research and development, and cloud consulting. They will be based in HPE’s sites in Galway and Kildare, through the vendor noted that its current Edge-to-Office work-from-home initiative means that “the majority of work can be carried out from flexible locations, thus opening up these roles to applicants from anywhere in the country.”

The hiring focus is also part of HPE’s move to “locate global centers of excellence focused on cybersecurity and software development in Ireland.” The vendor explained in a press release that it has been building out its cybersecurity “footprint” in Galway over the past five years, and that the location houses its Cyber Defense Center.

“The Galway site already has the largest footprint of cyber professionals within HPE globally and is set to expand with new roles for data scientists and incident response practitioners,” the vendor noted.

Ireland is also a research and development hub for HPE’s GreenLake consumption-based infrastructure and services portfolio. That business has been one of the fastest growing for HPE, with its most recent results showing a 27% year-over-year increase in segment revenues and a $649 million annualized run rate.

HPE Financial Services also has its Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) hub in Ireland, and its Aruba business has a global operations team in Cork.

The latest hiring plans somewhat counter the approximately 2,200 employees HPE shed during its fiscal 2020. It ended that financial year with around 59,400 employees worldwide.

HPE last year announced that employees and board members would take a pay cut following dismal second-quarter 2020 earnings that were hit hard by the global COVID-19 pandemic. It also announced a wage freeze and hiring freeze through its 2020 fiscal year.

That move was followed later in the year by the surprise announcement that HPE would move its corporate headquarters from San Jose, California, to Houston, leaving its storied Silicon Valley roots where founders Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard started the company in a Palo Alto garage in 1939.

HPE CEO Antonio Neri said that the company’s leadership made the decision to relocate “after listening to our team members preferences about the future of work.” He added that the move will save money because Houston real estate isn’t as expensive and that the change would not result in any job cuts.

The company is consolidating several Bay Area sites to its San Jose campus, which just opened in 2019, and that facility will house its Aruba, storage, and software businesses.