BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Changes are coming to operations at Rich Products, which is headquartered in Buffalo, but it remains unclear how this will impact its local workforce.
In a statement provided to 7 News on Friday, Rich Products said it has a vision to transform into a digitally powered global food organization and it is in the process of sharing its plans with its employees. The statement continued on to say that it is in the early stages and it could take two years to complete.
According to a report from The Buffalo News, Rich Products' plan is to shift work from its finance, supply chain, information technology and human resources departments to India. The report said Buffalo will be among the locations impacted by the shift, but not the only one.
7 News reached out to Rich Products again on Tuesday for confirmation and clarification and received the following statement:
"At Rich’s, we have a bold vision to transform into a digitally powered global food organization. Over the past three years, we’ve made significant investments in new technology and digital infrastructure that will power our global company and enable us to remain competitive both now and in the future.
We recently shared plans with our global workforce about important changes we’re making to the way we operate our business. This includes shifting time intensive, and in many cases, highly repetitive work to a central location in India where it can be done more efficiently and effectively, leveraging our new technology. For those associates whose work may shift in the future, we will work with them to find other opportunities within Rich’s – whether that's an open position we've purposely held off on filling or a new role created to support our transformation.
We are in the early stages of this new journey, one that will take two years to complete. Therefore, it’s too soon to know how this may impact individual roles across our global footprint. We are being deliberate in proactively sharing this news now so that our associates are fully informed as we begin this next step in our company’s evolution.
The decisions we make today are driven by our ongoing commitment to remain a private, family-owned company, headquartered in Buffalo, NY, that’s successful over the long term. As we have throughout our 78-year history, we will continue to embrace change and make deliberate decisions that create value for our customers, provide opportunities for our people and drive success into the future."
