Information Technology:
Advanced telecommunications can make geographic challenges virtually disappear. Our state-of-the-art network forms a reliable platform for R&D, contact centres, software developers, web designers and a host of other industries.
Northern Ontario's telecommunications infrastructure and industry (including secondary services such as Internet service providers, call centres, Website developers, and on-line businesses) has grown dramatically. The contact centre industry alone has created 8,000 new jobs during the last three years in North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, and Timmins.
Sophisticated telecom networks located throughout the North continue to expand. Northern Ontario's advanced telecommunications infrastructure provides seamless voice, video and data links with major U.S. carriers, supporting the smooth cross-border operation for Ontario based companies.
The North has attracted a sizeable contact centre community due to robust telecom infrastructure available throughout the region. There are many factors that attract call centres to this vibrant region, including:
- low communications costs;
- available educated workforce;
- large bilingual population;
- available and affordable commercial space; and
- excellent quality of life.
Colleges in Northern Ontario also provide structured courses related to the industry, as well as customised training for call centre employees, creating a favourable labour market for telecom businesses.
Look at just a few of the companies that are already here...
Cross Country Automotive Services provides General Motors' 24/7 roadside assistance service for drivers across North America from its facility in Sault Ste. Marie.
TeleTech offers solutions to a variety of industries, including financial services, transportation, communications, government, healthcare, and travel. They interact with millions of customers every day using the phone, Web, email, and automated solutions, from several locations throughout Northern Ontario, such as Timmins. In the first three years of operation at its Timmins site, employment numbers have grown from 400 staff in 2002 to just under 900.
Did you know...
The world's first ever tele-robotic assisted surgery involving hospitals in North Bay and Hamilton, Ontario was made possible by an IP network with surgical grade reliability.
The new Northern Ontario School of Medicine has state-of-the-art facilities at Laurentian University in Sudbury and Lakehead University in Thunder Bay. The two campuses, 1000 km/627 miles apart, are connected by an ultra-fast fibre optic network that makes video-conferenced lectures and laboratory work routine.
