"This summer we will have some 500 to 550 agents at our St. John's center," said Director of Operations Margo Beckwith-Byrne. "We have found that we can practically turn on a dime and get things going very quickly to pick up extra call volume from the U.S. We just can't hire as fast in the U.S."

Beckwith-Byrne credits the NB Tel team for its quick response time.

"They never say 'You can't do that,'" she said.

New Brunswick was the first Canadian province to pursue call centers aggressively and has reaped hand-some benefits.

Clinidata, a health information management provider, and Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories of San Francisco, are just two of the companies that have added their names to a growing list. The story of Cendant is typical of the level of success enjoyed by U.S. centers in New Brunswick.

Cendant operates 70 call centers worldwide and services brands including Days Inn, Ramada, Howard Johnson, Travelodge, Avis, Century 21 and Coldwell Banker for its franchisees.

However, Canada's main attraction for call centers could well be its people: well educated, multilingual, productive and available. Who would think high unemployment could actually become a trump card?

All 10 Canadian provinces are vying for a piece of the action and have all met with some measure of success.

Regional powerhouses
Other Maritime provinces have followed New Brunswick's lead and have been successful in attracting top ranking corporations to their shores, proving, indeed, that small can be beautiful.

Colin Taylor, president of Watts Communications, an inbound call center outsourcer, admits he had misconceptions about Prince Edward Island and only reluctantly added the pro- vince when sending out a first RFP.

"When PEI landed on top, we revised our process thoroughly," he said.

When Watts sent out an RFP to some 20 jurisdictions for another 150-station center, the province landed on top again and garnered a second Watts center.

All this activity has created opportunities for local companies like On-Line Support. On-Line provides technical support for Internet service providers throughout the United States and Canada from Prince Edward Island.

"We started off with a 30-seat call center three years ago, which has tripled in size," explains President James Hill. "Just keeping up with the growth of our customers' client base is challenging enough."

However, Canada's powerhouse when it comes to call centers remains Ontario, where 100,000 are employed in the industry, and where over 3,000 call centers with more than 10 agents can be found.

Among the more recent announcements made in the province are: Media Express of Montreal, Quebec, with a new call center in Hamilton, Ontario; EDM (Electronic Direct Marketing), which has opened a second call center in North York with 300 seats; S&P Data, with a third location in St. Catherines; and Epson, opened in Richmondhill.

A host of cities across the province can make for good call center locations.

Sarnia-Lambton, where Excell Agents Services of Phoenix, Ariz., recently established a 60-station center, has much to offer the industry, according to George Mallay, General Manager of the Sarnia-Lambton Office of Economic Development.

"The restructuring of the petrochemical industry has left this Southwestern Ontario municipality with ample Class A office space, which can be had at Class C rates, and an excellent telecommunications infrastructure," said Mallay. "A lower cost of living and high unemployment represent further opportunities for the industry."

Canada's capital, Ottawa, is also a strong contender.

"Call centers are a natural fit, given the presence of the telecommunications and IT sectors in Ottawa," notes Gary Roberts, director of marketing for the Ottawa Economic Development Corporation.

Over 60 call centers have set up operation in Ottawa, most recently Mutual Group, a premier Canadian insurance company, and MBNA Corp. of Wilmington, Del., the second largest credit card lender in the United States.

Ontario's neighbor to the east, Quebec, can now count on Vision Quebec to promote the province's advantages to the industry. In just over a year of operations, Vision Quebec has created 800 jobs by attracting five major centers, according to Regional Director Brigitte Simard.

"Quebec offers the best of all worlds," she says. "U.S. companies will find here the language capabilities that will enable them to service European and Asiatic markets at a lower cost, while Quebec can effectively bridge the language and culture differences for European companies cracking the American market."

Insight Canada, a business-to-business reseller of computer hardware and software, opened its first Canadian call center in Montreal, Quebec, in October 1997.

"In a sector where margins are declining, we're looking at containing costs to pass on the savings to our customers," explains Kirby Myers, vice president and general manager.

"The province of Quebec had much to offer with a lower cost of operating a business than many Canadian provinces. High unemployment -- especially among college graduates -- afforded further opportunities and a large bilingual population meant bilingualism could be had without a premium."

"We have found that our employees in Montreal are not only bilingual, but very often multilingual," said Vice President and General Manager Don Poulter. "They also have the right attitude and want to contribute to the success of the organization. Funding from the Quebec government for job creation and a favorable exchange rate also weighed in Montreal's favor."

Rising star
Out west, Manitoba continues to enjoy continued success with its call center initiative. Among recent openings in the province are MCI and Gage Marketing Group of Minneapolis, with its first Canadian call center.

Alberta has seen more than 15 new and expanding companies since the creation of Team Alberta, a partnership between TELUS Corporation and Economic Development and Tourism Alberta, in 1996.

The new kid on the block is British Columbia. The province already has over 1,500 call centers including those operated by Canadian Airlines and Rogers/Cantel. BC Tel itself runs 11 major centers totaling over 2,000 agents.

Fluency in Chinese, Punjabi, Hindi, and Japanese makes British Columbia the ideal location for Asian companies requiring access to North American ethnic markets.

ACCPAC^® INTERNATIONAL INC., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Computer Associates, with headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., recently expanded its call center operation in British Columbia serving clients throughout North America.

According to Ron Barker of ACCPAC, British Columbia provides the company with a number of advantages including a large multilingual labor pool equipped with technology and customer service expertise and a favorable U.S. exchange rate.

"By investing in technology and highly skilled employees rather than expensive real estate and decor, we pass the savings on to our members in the form of better rates," says Rolf Baumbusch, vice president of operations and marketing for Citizens Bank.

In fact, no matter how tall the order or how technically advanced the application, Canada has proven time and time again that when it comes to call centers it can not only deliver the goods but also exceed all expectations.

Louise Legault is a freelance business writer based in Montreal, Canada.