A tech company founded by a Nelson native plans to open an office in the city next year.
Traction on Demand CEO Greg Malpass says a team of 25 people will operate out of Nelson and will mostly include local recruits.
“There’s probably going to be a handful of people who aren’t working in technology jobs, really smart, really capable, but never had the opportunity because there aren’t a lot [of jobs] there,” said Malpass.
Traction on Demand, which currently employs approximately 450 people at offices in Burnaby, Toronto, Montreal and Houston, helps businesses implement the operating system Salesforce. The Nelson office will also be working with international clients.
The company is currently searching for office space. Malpass said he hopes to have an initial team of five employees in Nelson in January, and that recruiting for other positions has already begun.
“The brain trust there is incredible,” said Malpass. “We’re trying to find a pathway to get in with the community, potentially even create paths for [Selkirk] students… but then we could create the jobs back home for them, too, so they could get back.”
Malpass, who graduated from L.V. Rogers in 1994 and founded Traction on Demand in 2007, said his company has seen employees start prioritizing family over life in large cities. That, he said, is what led in part to the decision to open up shop in Nelson.
The Nelson area has been shedding jobs this year. Twenty-seven people were laid off when Can-Filters was shut down by its parent company in June. That was followed by mass layoffs at Pacific Insight, which announced in October it was moving most of its operations to a facility in Mexico.
Malpass, however, is adamant the company is committing to Nelson for the long term.
“We know this will work. Actually it’s been proven out in the business already, so the commitment is substantial and enduring from my perspective.”
Related:
• Hidden Innovators: Tech in the Kootenays
• Nelson health tech startup wins awards
tyler.harper@nelsonstar.comLike us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter
