IBMisbuildingbiginCanada
IBM is growing its Canadian footprint, fast. Why is Big Blue so enamored with the Great White North?
IBM established its first Canadian base back when it was still building punch card automation devices, over 100 years ago. But the iconic global company has substantially grown its north-of-the-border presence in the last two decades and continues to drive this growth in hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence (AI).
By deploying powerful hybrid cloud and AI technologies, IBM is helping businesses seize new opportunities, overcome today’s challenges, and emerge stronger. It is building a stronger company working alongside ecosystem partners that is closely aligned to the needs of its clients.
Multinationals like IBM – which has operations in over 175 countries – are free to invest wherever suits their needs. What is it that makes Canada so attractive to a global technology giant like IBM?
IBM established its first Canadian base back when it was still building punch card automation devices, over 100 years ago. But the iconic global company has substantially grown its north-of-the-border presence in the last two decades and continues to drive this growth in hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence (AI).
By deploying powerful hybrid cloud and AI technologies, IBM is helping businesses seize new opportunities, overcome today’s challenges, and emerge stronger. It is building a stronger company working alongside ecosystem partners that is closely aligned to the needs of its clients.
Multinationals like IBM – which has operations in over 175 countries – are free to invest wherever suits their needs. What is it that makes Canada so attractive to a global technology giant like IBM?
Pioneering Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Much of the global data in AI software development that we share with our clients around the world is done here in Canada ”
Dave McCann
IBM is a world-leader in AI, most famously with its Watson platform. And Canada is home to some of AI’s most intrepid pioneers, such as Yoshua Bengio, Geoffrey Hinton, and Richard Sutton. That cutting-edge status was crystallized in the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy, the first government AI strategy in the world. This synergy is one reason IBM is investing in Canada.
“Much of IBM’s Data and AI software that our clients use around the world is built here in Canada,” says Dave McCann, President of IBM Canada.
One striking example of IBM’s Canadian AI footprint is the Halifax, Nova Scotia-based DeepSense, its flagship oceanic big data project. Advanced AI sifts through the vast tracts of data generated by underwater sensors tracking everything from marine wildlife movements to biomarkers like temperature, salinity, and blue green algae.
The project is a public-private partnership with Dalhousie University, the Province of Nova Scotia, the Government of Canada, and various maritime organizations. The data is used to feed research projects and inform the maritime economy.
It is one of several strategic partnerships between IBM and Canadian universities. Another headline example is its partnership with Memorial University in Newfoundland and Labrador that focuses on innovation and research in such diverse fields as data science and astrophysics, genetic analysis, artificial intelligence, machine learning, image analysis and scientific computing.
These close relationships with post-secondary institutions are vital to IBM’s R&D, but they also offer another key attraction: Talent.
Pioneering Artificial Intelligence (AI)
IBM is a world-leader in AI, most famously with its Watson platform. And Canada is home to some of AI’s most intrepid pioneers, such as Yoshua Bengio, Geoffrey Hinton, and Richard Sutton. That cutting-edge status was crystallized in the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy, the first government AI strategy in the world. This synergy is one reason IBM is investing in Canada.
“Much of IBM’s Data and AI software that our clients use around the world is built here in Canada,” says Dave McCann, President of IBM Canada.
One striking example of IBM’s Canadian AI footprint is the Halifax, Nova Scotia-based DeepSense, its flagship oceanic big data project. Advanced AI sifts through the vast tracts of data generated by underwater sensors tracking everything from marine wildlife movements to biomarkers like temperature, salinity, and blue green algae.
Much of the global data in AI software development that we share with our clients around the world is done here in Canada ”
Dave McCann
The project is a public-private partnership with Dalhousie University, the Province of Nova Scotia, the Government of Canada, and various maritime organizations. The data is used to feed research projects and inform the maritime economy.
It is one of several strategic partnerships between IBM and Canadian universities. Another headline example is its partnership with Memorial University in Newfoundland and Labrador that focuses on innovation and research in such diverse fields as data science and astrophysics, genetic analysis, artificial intelligence, machine learning, image analysis and scientific computing.
These close relationships with post-secondary institutions are vital to IBM’s R&D, but they also offer another key attraction: Talent.
The most educated workforce in the world
Canada has the most educated workforce in the world. 62% of residents aged 25-64 graduated from tertiary education. 25% of post-secondary enrolments are in STEM subjects. Computer science applications for the 2017/18 academic year were 46.9% higher than for 2013/14.
This homegrown talent is supplemented by a stream of international students. In one recent survey, 39% of students said Canada was their first choice for study, more than any other country. And the five-year-old Global Skills Strategy makes it easy for companies in Canada to recruit from abroad. 94% of applications have so far been approved, often within two weeks.
At last count, there were close to 2.8 million STEM graduates in Canada. It’s just phenomenal ”
Dave McCann
President of IBM Canada
McCann says talent is a major reason IBM invests in Canada. “At last count, there were close to 2.8 million STEM graduates in Canada. It’s just phenomenal.” But it’s a two-way street. “We’re always looking for ways to develop new skills, grow the ecosystem, and help make IBM have a longer lasting, more positive impact on the economy.”
He cites IBM’s commitment to skilling 30 million people worldwide by 2030 through its SkillsBuild education program. SkillsBuild is a comprehensive education portfolio to approach future, current and intermediate needs of learners and aspiring professionals. But he also says that university-partnered projects aren’t just about advancing research, they’re about advancing skills to help make graduates job-ready.
After all, there is a global undersupply of tech talent. And while IBM is most famous for hardware and software, it also provides consultancy services, something McCann characterizes as “supplying amazing talent to our clients.”
McCann says talent is a major reason IBM invests in Canada. “At last count, there were close to 2.8 million STEM graduates in Canada. It’s just phenomenal.” But it’s a two-way street. “We’re always looking for ways to develop new skills, grow the ecosystem, and help make IBM have a longer lasting, more positive impact on the economy.”
At last count, there were close to 2.8 million STEM graduates in Canada. It’s just phenomenal ”
Dave McCann
President of IBM Canada
He cites IBM’s commitment to skilling 30 million people worldwide by 2030 through its SkillsBuild education program. SkillsBuild is a comprehensive education portfolio to approach future, current and intermediate needs of learners and aspiring professionals. But he also says that university-partnered projects aren’t just about advancing research, they’re about advancing skills to help make graduates job-ready.
After all, there is a global undersupply of tech talent. And while IBM is most famous for hardware and software, it also provides consultancy services, something McCann characterizes as “supplying amazing talent to our clients.”
Environment for innovation
Ten years ago, supplying talent meant connecting companies with local professionals. But in this age of hybrid working, talent can be based anywhere. For U.S. clients, that’s often at IBM Canada’s Client Innovation Centers in Halifax (Atlantic Canada), Montreal (Quebec), and most recently in Calgary (Western Canada). The Nova Scotia CIC first opened in 2013 and announced plans to expand in 2021.
“I had the privilege of working with IBM for many years as they expanded their footprint in Nova Scotia. I am excited to see continued growth from IBM in communities right across Canada,” said Laurel Broten, CEO of Invest in Canada and formerly CEO of Nova Scotia Business Inc. at the time of the 2021 announcement.
IBM’s Client Innovation Centers combine world-class talent with cost efficiency. “Our clients were saying, ‘we want the work to be done in Canada, for timezone or security or economic impact reasons. But we don’t necessarily need that to be done downtown, in a seat we pay real estate on.’ What’s really interesting here is the role of hybrid, you have the ability to optimize the type of skills needed and leverage markets that have strengths in delivering those skills,” McCann explains.
This concept is extended in IBM Garage, which upends the traditional, reverse engineering approach to ICT problem-solving, instead taking a ‘co-creation’ approach with our clients. It’s a methodology that has been adopted globally, though McCann says Canada was “on the early side of adoption.”
Environment for innovation
Ten years ago, supplying talent meant connecting companies with local professionals. But in this age of hybrid working, talent can be based anywhere. For U.S. clients, that’s often at IBM Canada’s Client Innovation Centers in Halifax (Atlantic Canada), Montreal (Quebec), and most recently in Calgary (Western Canada). The Nova Scotia CIC first opened in 2013 and announced plans to expand in 2021.
“I had the privilege of working with IBM for many years as they expanded their footprint in Nova Scotia. I am excited to see continued growth from IBM in communities right across Canada,” said Laurel Broten, CEO of Invest in Canada and formerly CEO of Nova Scotia Business Inc. at the time of the 2021 announcement.
IBM’s Client Innovation Centers combine world-class talent with cost efficiency. “Our clients were saying, ‘we want the work to be done in Canada, for timezone or security or economic impact reasons. But we don’t necessarily need that to be done downtown, in a seat we pay real estate on.’ What’s really interesting here is the role of hybrid, you have the ability to optimize the type of skills needed and leverage markets that have strengths in delivering those skills,” McCann explains.
This concept is extended in IBM Garage, which upends the traditional, reverse engineering approach to ICT problem-solving, instead taking a ‘co-creation’ approach with our clients. It’s a methodology that has been adopted globally, though McCann says Canada was “on the early side of adoption.”
Secret sauce
“The research ecosystem, synergies with our American clients and operations, the talent, a government investing in homegrown technology and innovation; it all adds up to a secret sauce,” says McCann.
That ‘secret sauce’ explains why IBM continues to invest in Canada for innovation. “We are about to deploy the first IBM quantum system in Canada and the fourth outside the U.S. We think it’s going to be a half a billion-dollar market by 2025. It’s going to create so many opportunities.”
And where IBM goes, others are sure to follow. As McCann says, “Success breeds success. We benefit from Canada’s healthy tech ecosystem. But we like to think that our investments strengthen that environment too.”
