ICT Industry News

Business council expanding mandate

johnsgunn — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 10:44:18 -0300

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Rebecca Penty

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Telegraph-Journal, Published Friday July 3rd, 2009

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http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/rss/article/717637

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Don Dennison, Executive Director. Photo Peter Walsh/Telegraph-Journal

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Governance Group recruiting new players to include greater representation of small enterprises, women and the north

The New Brunswick Business Council is ramping up its work to help make the province the best jurisdiction in the country to start and grow a company, the organization's new chairman said.

Derek Oland, who has taken the reins for a one-year term, said the group is expanding its mandate and including greater representation from small enterprises, women and the north.

"We have been doing quite a bit of thinking about the future of the council and we want to move it into more of an active mode," Oland said in an interview Thursday.

"We have to increase the skill level of our entrepreneurs and bring as many of them into an active forum as well because that's going to be the long-term answer for the province."

Oland, the chairman of Moosehead Breweries Ltd., replaces Denis Loser, president and CEO of Assumption Life.

The business council formed in 2005 and currently has 20 members; under its reorganization as many as 30 members could be included.

Oland said he is the midst of recruiting new players to the team, many of whom will come from the province's north to reflect the business group's focus on the region.

The council commissioned a study on northern New Brunswick and submitted a report with recommendations to the province, but Oland said the council is launching its own programs, too, which are currently being planned.

"My theory behind it is that we have to make sure that we get a group of people from the north to get together to develop what they want to do up there and what works for them," he said.

"Nobody, in my mind, in government or from the business council can tell them what should happen up there.

"Once they know what they want to do and it works, we'll help them get what they want."

Don Dennison, who has served as executive director since the council's formation, will leave in the fall and be replaced by a new president and CEO, whose role in working with government will be expanded.

"Don Dennison has been an absolutely wonderful executive director and I can't say enough of the leadership he's provided," Oland said.

The new chief executive will be an "independent voice" for the council, Oland said, and one who will bring the greater business community together to share best practices.

Overall council membership has shuffled somewhat over the last year.

Karen Sheriff - who took over as president and CEO of Bell Aliant (TSX:BA.UN) last October - joined, replacing the telecommunications company's former chief executive, Stephen Wetmore.

Dick Carpenter, the president of Heritage Developments Ltd., completed his three-year term this week and will not seek another.

John McLaughlin, who will be replaced as president and vice-chancellor of the University of New Brunswick by Eddy Campbell - the acting president of Memorial University of Newfoundland - will no longer serve on the council.

The group's next quarterly meeting will take place in Saint John on Oct. 7.

Current membership of the New Brunswick Business Council

Wesley Armour, president, Armour Transportation Systems

Ed Barrett, co-chief executive officer, Barrett Corp.

Normand Caissie, president and CEO, Imperial Manufacturing Group

Michelle Carinci, president and CEO, Atlantic Lottery Corp.

Andrea Feunekes, co-CEO, Remsoft Inc.

Yvon Fontaine, president and vice-chancellor, Université de Moncton

David Ganong, chairman, Ganong Bros. Ltd.

David Hay, president, NB Power

Bernard Imbeault, chairman, Imvescor Inc.

Jim Irving, president, J.D. Irving, Limited

Denis Losier, president and CEO, Assumption Life

Allison McCain, chairman, McCain Foods Ltd.

Francis McGuire, president and CEO, Major Drilling Group International Inc.

Derek Oland, chairman, Moosehead Breweries Ltd.

Gerry Pond, chairman, Mariner Partners Inc.

Jean-Claude Savoie, president, Groupe Savoie Inc.

Karen Sheriff, president and CEO, Bell Aliant

Kelly Shotbolt, president and CEO, Flakeboard Company Ltd.

Robbie Tozer, president and CEO, Atcon Group Inc.

Michael Wilson, president, Atlantic Industries Ltd.

Web company Hostopia hosts holiday job fair

johnsgunn — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 09:06:28 -0300

Author

John Pollack

Source

Telegraph-Journal, Published Thursday July 2nd, 2009

Source Url

http://nbbusinessjournal.canadaeast.com/journal/article/716410

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‘We need to bring quite a number of people into our organization fairly quickly,’ says Howard Bell, vice president operations of Hostopia. Photo Daniel Martins/canadaeast news service

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When Hostopia decided to fill 88 new positions for its Miramichi operations, Howard Bell knew regular employee search tactics wouldn't be enough.

So the web services company hosted a job fair on Tuesday and Wednesday to help fill the customer service, billing, sales and other positions it has available.

"We need to bring quite a number of people into our organization fairly quickly to meet the business that we have," said Bell, company vice-president of administrative operation.

He thought the fair went well - the company interviewed more than 200 candidates over two days.

Holding the event on the Canada Day holiday attracted more already-emplyeed applicants, Bell said.

When Hostopia hired its first 26 workers in Miramichi in June 2007, the province gave the company $1.35 million to help train 207 people within three years. With the new people that are expected to be hired by Friday, Hostopia will employ just under 200.

The jobs will pay $12 to $16 per hour and will require two to four weeks training.

While many of the jobs are contact centre work, there is a larger technical aspect to it than the average call centre job - the company provides website hosting, email, and web application services to businesses in North America and Europe.

The company doesn't sell directly to the public but it provides customer service on behalf of some of its clients, which includes telecommunications companies that sell Hostopia's services to the public.

The company began in Mississauga, Ont. 10 years ago and still employs 150 people there, as well as 30 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., which is listed as U.S. headquarters on the company's website.

Hostopia's presence in Miramich has been viewed positively by Jeff MacTavish, the city's economic development director.

"As they grow in Miramichi there's other opportunities that might come to life because of the fact that Hostopia is here. Because of the clients, they're building an awareness of Miramichi," he said. "I don't have their client list but one has to assume that with the type of clients they're dealing with, if the business climate is good in here for them, why wouldn't it be for some other organization?"

Hostopia's rise in Miramichi has happened around the same time as mill closures cost the area 750 jobs and the once thriving FatKat Animation Studios Inc. fell into bankruptcy from more than 100 employees. However Hostopia didn't notice a significant number of those laid off workers apply.

While MacTavish was positive about Hostopia's growth, he assumes the company won't likely have as big of an economic impact on the region as the mills did. The city had calculated the forestry sector is worth 1.2 times its actual output, because the mills bought from other local businesses.

Business New Brunswick doesn't consider the economic impact of technology operations to be much more than the wages paid, department spokesman Ryan Donaghy said.

New Brunswick entrepreneurs recognized

johnsgunn — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:46:34 -0300

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Daily Gleaner, The, Published Wednesday July 1st, 2009

Source Url

http://dailygleaner.canadaeast.com/rss/article/715233

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Several Fredericton companies in the running: this year marks the 16th annual ernst & Young entrepreneur of the Year awards in Canada. new Brunswick has 19 nominations which represent a tremendous turnout for this year’s program. Recently, each nominee was recognized by ernst & Young at a reception in moncton. the nominees for this year are, front row, from left: Kara Hachey, Go-Go Gymnastics, new maryland; Carole michaud, CaJmO Comfort inc., Grand Falls; Valerie O’Donnell, O’Donnell Cottages and expeditions, Doaktown; Delores Whalen, LuminUltra technologies Ltd., Fredericton; Heather macLeod, the Barking Lot, Fredericton; Cindy Lee Donovan, Loch Lomond Villa, Saint John; and therese murray, muriel mcQueen Fergusson Foundation, Fredericton. Back row, from left: David Veale, Vision Coaching inc., Saint John; William Gale, Business Community, anti-Poverty initiative, Saint John; Ken LeBlanc, PropertyGuys.com, moncton; Daniel Vienneau, nanoptix inc., Dieppe; Greg Hemmings, Hemmings House Pictures, Saint John; Seth asimakos, Saint John Community Loan Fund, Saint John; Paul Leroux, imperial manufacturing Group, Richibucto, representing normand Cassie, who was unable to attend; Robert Sweeney, Sweeney international management Group, St. Stephen; George Donovan, Gogii Games, moncton; murray Simard, Dramis network Cabling Ltd., moncton; Pierre martell, martell Home Builders, moncton; and Keith mcintosh, Professional Quality assurance, Fredericton. the finalists will be announced July 7 and those chosen will travel to Halifax to compete in the regional gala Oct. 1 at the Halifax marriott Harbourfront Hotel

Time for reform

Rowser — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 09:27:41 -0300

Author

Brett Bundale

Source

Telegraph Journal, Published Saturday June 27th, 2009

Source Url

http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/rss/article/711648

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Victor Boudreau

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Government Amid calls for an overhaul at Business New Brunswick, new minister says he's listening. But will Victor Boudreau bring real change

A handful of the province's top leaders say Business New Brunswick needs an overhaul and newly-minted minister Victor Boudreau says he's ready to listen.

Days into his new post, the Shediac-Cap-Pelé MLA told the Telegraph-Journal he wants to sit down with "key stakeholders" in the coming weeks to see how the department can be improved.

"I've already put calls out to members of the business community," he said from his new office on the fifth floor of the Centennial Building. "I'm certainly open to suggestions and ideas as to how we can improve things."

Boudreau admitted the department needs to streamline some of its processes in order to respond more quickly to businesses, something Denis Losier agrees with.

"Access to capital has to be sped up," said Losier, chairman of the New Brunswick Business Council.

Losier, also the chief executive of Assumption Life in Moncton, said Business New Brunswick needs to examine economic development models used in other jurisdictions such as Nova Scotia, Maine and Quebec.

"We need to look at other models and what works elsewhere in terms of business development," he said. "We need to find creative solutions to our business problems."

Donald Savoie said the department's new minister signals an opportunity for change.

"I think the status quo has run its course," said Savoie, the Canada research chairman in public administration and governance at l'Université de Moncton. "If a year from now Business New Brunswick functions and operates as it does today it will be a missed opportunity."

Although Savoie said Boudreau should use the coming weeks to "take stock" of the department and not rush into anything, he added that Business New Brunswick needs to become much more aggressive.

"There has to be a more entrepreneurial culture," he said. "He needs to light a fuse in that department."

Savoie said there are economic development models "floating around" that are less bureaucratic and operate with incentives, like Nova Scotia Business Inc.

"They are rewarded for what they accomplish," he said.

Savoie said under normal conditions he would advise against the loan guarantees being handed out to companies - such as the $50 million loan guarantee for Miramichi construction giant Atcon Holdings Inc.

"The Graham government provided quite a rich loan guarantee," he said. "But it's not the only government in the Western world that went down that road. I would advise against it in normal times but we're not living in normal times."

Louis-Philippe Gauthier, president of the Conseil économique du Nouveau-Brunswick Iinc., said many members of the province's francophone economic council are having difficulty accessing credit.

"In some regions 40 per cent of our businesses can't access credit," he said. "That's almost one in every two businesses."

Gauthier said the government needs to fast-track applications.

"I understand they are doing their due diligence but it's taking too long to evaluate the files," he said. "It has to be done on business time and not on government time.

"Having a structure that is at arms length from government is one concept that has worked in other areas," Gauthier said. "It would be a unique point of access for businesses and would improve the quality of services."

David Plante, vice-president of the New Brunswick division of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, said given the economic storm Business New Brunswick is "largely in a reactionary mode."

"In the near term they'll be dealing with issues of access and cost of credit," he said. "The jury is still out as to whether the economy is turning around."

But over the longer term, Plante said Business New Brunswick could benefit from a restructuring to better serve business.

"I've heard that 80 per cent of time the department is busy just putting out fires," he said. "There needs to be more time spent on business attraction and expansion."

David Whitton, president of Custom Electronics Integrators in Dieppe, said his company's experience working with Business New Brunswick has been positive.

"They've partnered with us and helped us grow from a small company in a garage to landing competitive contracts," he said. "They've got top of the line executives who come in and understand what our business needs to succeed."

Whitton said that changes within the department, such as the retirement of deputy minister Brian Dick, could be an opportunity to tweak the department.

"Brian Dick was pretty aggressive saying we don't need change and everything is fine," Whitton said. "I don't agree with that. There is always room for improvement and change. I think the department could use an increase in its budget and exposure."

Many of the province's top leaders agreed Business New Brunswick should look at other models of economic development - including Nova Scotia Business Inc., the province's business development agency, which is led by a private-sector board of directors.

But Elizabeth Beale, president and CEO of the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council, said there is an absence of quantitative measures to accurately compare the economic development models.

"Lots of people have opinions on these matters but right now we lack a rigorous and independent way of measuring the different approaches to economic development," she said. "It's also possible that certain industrial incentives are better suited for some areas."

In addition, Beale said the issue of attracting investment and supporting business is couched in broader issues such as location, transportation, income tax rates and energy costs.

Although there are advantages to the Nova Scotia Business Inc. model - like having an independent board of directors - Beale said there are also advantages to being strategically coordinated within government.

"Building a business-friendly climate includes having the trained workforce - and that takes coordination with the Department of Training and Labour," she said. "So there are benefits to being at arms length from government but there is a broader set of issues that needs to be addressed in determining what model works well."

Bathurst to go wireless

johnsgunn — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 10:05:39 -0300

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Telegraph-Journal, Published Friday June 26th, 2009

Source Url

http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/rss/article/710982

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The City of Bathurst has signed an agreement with mobile Internet company Red Ball Internet to bring its wireless network to the city. With it's "iBurst" networks the company currently offers mobile solutions, such as Internet and wireless debit and credit card machine connections, to clients in Moncton and Fredericton. "It will help area businesses differentiate their offerings, find new ways to improve operations and introduce new products and services," Bathurst's mayor, Stephen Brunet stated in a news release. Red Ball will install two base stations in the city which will send wireless data signals that can only be red by secure mobile receivers that customers will have to register with the company.

Business development program for women launched

johnsgunn — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 09:33:25 -0300

Author

Jamie Ross

Source

Times & Transcript, Published Wednesday June 24th, 2009

Source Url

http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com/news/article/708488

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Nancy Hartling, left, executive director of Support to Single Parents; Joanne Richard, project assistant; Hilda Brudkowski and Cathy Leaman of the women's club Sew & Sew meet yesterday to discuss the Co-operative Enterprise Development Program. Photo Greg Agnew/Times&Transcript

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Support to Single Parents Inc. offers three-year program to help women launch own business

Michelle Salloum wants to know what her options are.

A single mother of a special-needs child, she hasn't worked full-time in nearly 10 years.

Instead, she chooses to put all of her time and effort into the development of her autistic seven-year-old son.

Salloum, who has an income of about $18,000 a year, survives on support from the Department of Social Services, but she doesn't want to live on that assistance for the rest of her life, and hopes a new program launched yesterday for marginalized women will provide her with the know-how to start her own business in Metro Moncton.

"I'd like to make a living where I can do something I enjoy," said Salloum, a Moncton resident. "Because if you enjoy something, it doesn't feel like work and, that way, I can have the energy and the time to help my son become all that he can be,"

The Co-operative Enterprise Development Program for women in Metro Moncton, backed by $300,000 in funding from the federal government's Status of Women Canada and administered by Support to Single Parents Inc., will provide free business training and mentoring for 'priority women,' those classified as "low income, single mothers, immigrants, off-reserve First Nations, physical or mentally challenged, victims of violence and former offenders."

The goal of the program is to guide participants through a four-stage, three-year project that will teach personal and enterprise development skills with an end goal of allowing them to start up their own business venture.

It will include courses ranging from time management to bookkeeping and financial reporting.

Nancy Hartling, executive director of Support to Single Parents Inc., said, so far, the poverty reduction initiative has received a warm response from the business community.

"I think Moncton is right for community economic development," said Hartling. "It's growing a lot and I think the economy here is ripe for new ideas."

The program will require 25 hours a week from participants.

Between 10 and 15 women will be admitted every six months.

The program will also address the additional needs of women in situations like Salloum, who have children or lack transportation.

For Salloum, a former nurse, the program is an opportunity for her to pursue something she would otherwise never get the chance to do.

"They're going to teach you what the needs are to set up a business," she said. "They have mentors who have been in business, who can help you along the way because, right now, I don't have the information and I wouldn't know where to begin."

Hartling said she expects the program to be in full swing by the end of September.

Remsoft invited to speak at transportation sector conferences

johnsgunn — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:11:04 -0300

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Daily Gleaner, The, Published Thursday June 11th, 2009

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http://dailygleaner.canadaeast.com/rss/article/695821

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Local analytics software developer Remsoft has been invited to deliver presentations at two of this year's biggest transportation industry conferences.

The company will be at the Transportation Association of Canada's Annual Conference and Exhibition in Vancouver, and the United States Transportation Research Board's National Conference on Asset Management in Portland, Ore.

Remsoft's software supports the infrastructure planning and asset management system of New Brunswick's Department of Transportation.

The company was recently mentioned in a report from the National Cooperative Highway Research Program, which said "Remsoft, with its advanced analytics and linear programming software and technical expertise, is a logical next step for transportation asset management systems."

Caris is charting a better course

johnsgunn — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:07:20 -0300

Author

Kyle Mullin

Source

Daily Gleaner, The, Published Thursday June 11th, 2009

Source Url

http://dailygleaner.canadaeast.com/rss/article/695820

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Mapping the world: Mark Masry, seated, research and development manager at Caris, looks at the 3-D view of downtown Fredericton made by the company’s software. Looking on is software developer Kevin Phillips, left, and Mike Henheffer. Phtot Stephen MacGillivray

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Maps | Software helps countries to plot navigable waters

A local company is helping countries around the world to chart their waters.

Software from Caris, which was founded in Fredericton about 30 years ago, is used by navies and mapping companies to develop 3-D maps of the ocean.

Mark Masry, Caris's research and development manager, said mapmaking has grown much more technologically sophisticated in recent years. He said sonar and digitized broadcasting has virtually replaced compasses, pencils and paper on charting vessels.

Those new methods are so detailed that they yield billions of data points per day. The resulting information is so dense that it can be difficult for even the most sophisticated computers to process.

To lessen the workload, Caris's software uses the Csar engine to help users convert that intricate raw data into easy-to-read maps and diagrams.

"If you use Google Earth or Google Maps, these things are really big in scale, you have a huge area and lots and lots of detail to cover," Masry said.

"Our clients have a similar problem: they need a toolkit for programming code, storing it, processing it and converting it into maps of the ocean floor they can see in 3-D."

Caris's clients include:

* the Canadian Hydrographic Service (part of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans);

* the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (which is a branch of the United States Department of Commerce);

* the U.K.'s Hydrographic Office (also known as the British Admiralty, which Masry said has a history as the most well-known charting agency worldwide);

* and FURGO, a Dutch multinational company that provides geotechnical, survey and geoscience services to oil, gas, mining and construction industries around the world.

Caris has offices in Washington, D.C., and Australia, but its headquarters is still in Fredericton on Waggoners lane, across from Odell Park.

Senior products manager Mike Gourley said Canada has a special edge in the sea-mapping field because of its large area of navigable water.

Masry said it's important for those skills to be put to use in every country around the world.

"All countries with navigable waters have a responsibility in the international community of charting those waters for purposes of safe navigation," he said.

"All these countries have obligations to do this and they need the tools and the means to carry that out. The role of Csar within that has to do with providing the technology to continue to support the advancement in sonar and other imagery-based data to map the sea floor."

Gourley said 3-D mapping isn't so much the way of the future as a presumption of the present.

"Seeing the sea floor in that real-world experience, in 3-D, is something that our customers around the world expect to able to do with our tools," he said.

"We have to make sure our products are ready to do that right off the shelf."

Firm aims for fast rollout of wireless Internet

johnsgunn — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 09:32:15 -0300

Author

Shawn Berry

Source

Daily Gleaner, The, Published Wednesday June 10th, 2009

Source Url

http://nbbusinessjournal.canadaeast.com/gleaner/article/694566

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Charles Beaudet, Eastern Canada General Manager, Barrett Xplore

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The general manager of Barrett Xplore Inc. says the company is rolling out its fixed wireless Internet in a manner that benefits the most people in the shortest time frame.

The company is putting up antennas for the service over the coming 13 months to deliver high-speed Internet to residents who don't already have access to broadband.

Florenceville, Nackawic, Woodstock, Oromocto and Perth-Andover will be among the first to receive access.

"Our commitment is to supply high-speed Internet to unserviced homes at close to 100 per cent," said Charles Beaudet, Barrett Xplore's general manager for Eastern Canada.

But he said not everyone will have access to fixed wireless Internet.

"Although we have a beautiful province, it's full of tall trees, peaks and valleys - places where the population is very small."

That's where the company's satellite service will be used, he said.

Through government subsidization and a price cap, the monthly price for satellite or fixed wireless broadband will be comparable to service offered in urban areas, at $49.99 for satellite coverage and $44.99 for fixed wireless. For either service, there's a one-time installation cost of $99.

Beaudet said there's no lag on the wireless system. On satellite, there's a latency of up to 1.2 seconds as the signal travels to a satellite and back to Earth.

Both systems offer download speeds of up to 1.5 megabits per second.

Beaudet said there are no data caps with either service, but the company manages traffic over its satellite service to prevent a minority of users from monopolizing bandwidth.

Barrett has hired K-Line Construction Ltd. to help build the fixed wireless network.

The Carleton County construction company has expertise in the engineering and construction of information infrastructure.

K-Line Construction first brought wireless Internet to New Brunswick in 2003 through its subsidiary, Aernet Wireless, a company that Barrett purchased last fall.

In other parts of the province, the cost of high-speed Internet begins at $29.95 through providers such as Bell Aliant.

"We wanted to get a price that's essentially the same so we don't differentiate between people," said Beaudet.

An online tool has been set up by Barrett Xplore Inc. to determine what technology, service and pricing is available to residents depending on where they live. The tool can be accessed by logging on to www.highspeednb.com.

Barrett Xplore Inc. has also set up a phoneline where people can call for more information at 1-866-841-6001.

High-tech library planned for UNBSJ

johnsgunn — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0300

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CBC News, Published Tuesday, June 9, 2009

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http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/2009/06/09/nb-unbsj-building.html?ref=rss

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The most recent concept presented to and discussed with the public. Courtesy of http://urbanplans.blogspot.com

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A new high-tech building planned for the University of New Brunswick Saint John campus will attract future students, say recruiters.

"It's going to be a state-of-the-art library and technology centre," said UNBSJ recruiter Cory Brown, describing the high-tech learning commons planned for the campus.

The provincial and federal governments announed on Monday that they would provide $18 million for the $25-million complex to be used for research and public gatherings.

Brown said he's looking forward to telling potential students they'll have new technologies and resources right at their fingertips when he's recruiting around New Brunswick.

UNBSJ vice-president Robert MacKinnon said the school will begin working on plans for the new building this week.

'A library of the future'

"It won't be a traditional library. It will be, in a sense, a library of the future. We've got an opportunity to create a building that's unique to Saint John, unique to UNB," said MacKinnon.

"This building is going to mean a lot to the campus. It's going to completely change the way our students are able to study on campus, with an integrated technology and information system in the library. This will mean better services for our students."

New Brunswick Energy Minister Jack Keir said he also hopes the funding will help draw people to UNBSJ.

"You know, the biggest factor that we're going to overcome to get where we want to go … is to make sure we've got the work force in place to do it."