Foster a High Tech Hub

Ian Cavanagh
Telegraph-Journal, Published Saturday January 3rd, 2009

As the turbulent wave of the global economy starts to crash, and people find themselves bracing for what follows, ironically I don't spend much time thinking about the dark underside of the wave. Rather, I spend my time thinking about what opportunities will exist when our heads rise out from under the water and we look to catch the next wave that can propel us forward. Life is full of waves ... rising and falling ... but the key is to learn how to pick a promising one and ride it as long as you can, rather than finding yourself swamped beneath it!

The last significant wave that I rode was the Internet wave, and I rode it quickly to the top and then fell hard - along with many others - into the trough that followed. But I learned a lot from that experience. Key among them? It is usually the reckless that go surfing when the tides are high and weather is stormy. For the lucky ones, being at the right place and time, they can catch the ride of a lifetime. Unfortunately most of us end up miss-timing the wave, getting bruised and battered in the crush that follows.

Now I don't look for waves that are high and fast anymore... I still look for waves that are large, but with a longer period. They are still a challenge to ride, but when you catch a good one and have stable footing then you can ride it successfully all the way into the beach.

So what does all of this have to do with our local economy? I have been giving a lot of thought in recent months to the future of our region and specifically the New Brunswick government's vision of self-sufficiency. I see the idea of self-sufficiency as being both noble and audacious, which is a compliment, but I am not yet exactly clear yet on how the vision will be realized. At this point, using our wave metaphor, I can't yet read the wave, or even know which beach to go to in search of one.

As an executive in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector, I have a particular bias that pertains to how this sector can contribute to our future economic prosperity. I believe that the growth and development of the ICT sector, in many forms, can contribute meaningfully to the vision of self-sufficiency and the long-term sustainability of the New Brunswick economy. This is from both an end- user's perspective (for example: universal broadband for knowledge access), and as an enabler for economic development and growth: supporting local commerce and trade, and realizing regional and international import and export opportunities for our products and services.

New Brunswick has many of the right ingredients to become a significant ICT hub. We have universities that produce world-class engineering and computer science graduates. We have professionals in both the public and private ICT sector who are experts in their fields. We have experienced people, whether those originally from here or immigrants and anyone else "from away," who would love to live here and are willing to make the move to our region. Finally, and very fortunately, we have an exploitable geographic advantage that positions us ideally to be a bridge between markets in North America (New York and New England) and Europe... and even Asia.

I am not the type to complain, and I always seek to provide ideas and solutions rather than simply level criticism for criticism' sake. I also do not expect non-ICT people to just "get it" without the support of those in our industry who do. After-all, we have spent most of our entire careers within this sector. So I would like to offer a few ideas for our government to consider, to help bring a greater focus to the opportunity that ICT represents for our future.

I believe that if we are to get serious about ICT in New Brunswick in the context of economic development, we need senior government leadership to drive it, with fundamental support and input from the private sector. Specifically, I recommend that the Premier establish a Ministry of Information and Communications Technology. Undertaking such a move not only demonstrates bold leadership, but also a keen understanding of the strategic relevance of ICT in today's global wired economy.

Traditional industries are still very important elements of our economy and must be managed accordingly, as is currently done through various ministries. However, ICT is deserving of clear and published ministerial responsibility and accountability. The fact that we have a minister responsible for Liquor and Gaming, but not ICT or technology in general, suggests that the government leadership does not yet fully appreciate the strategic relevance of ICT to our economy.

We need a champion within government who is knowledgeable of the ICT sector, of its related trends, opportunities and threats, and we need a very clearly articulated vision, strategy and policy that describe how ICT will support our drive to self-sufficiency. At the same time, the private sector needs to support our political leadership: just as the fisheries minister announced the appointment of an eight-member advisory group on seafood marketing this summer, we, too, should seek to establish a group to act as an advisor to the government on ICT strategy and marketing. There is also a wealth of ICT knowledge and expertise within the existing government departments and they, too, should be engaged to help develop solutions and evolve our region to be a leader in the global ICT sector.

ICT is an industry where New Brunswick can establish a powerful value proposition in the same manner that it did in the 1990s with the establishment of the call centre industry.

ICT is a wave that ideally suits the New Brunswick economy and is one that we must swim towards and ride to greater prosperity.

Ian Cavanagh is Chief Executive Officer of Ambir, an ICT company.

© Telegraph-Journal 2009