ST. CATHARINES, ON, Jan. 15, 2020 /CNW/ - Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has opened an intelligent operations centre in the Niagara region that serves as the hub for its newly launched intelligent sales and customer operations business.
Spanning 68,000 square-feet in downtown St. Catharines, the new "Niagara North" location is Accenture's second in the region and the company's third intelligent operations centre in Canada, with similar sites in nearby Thorold, Ontario ("Niagara South") and Fredericton, New Brunswick. The company plans to create an additional 100 local jobs by 2021 to support a variety of business functions such as marketing, sales, customer care and IT support.
Local officials and community groups are expected to attend the centre's opening event today, with St. Catharines' Mayor Walter Sendzik taking part in the ribbon-cutting.
"On behalf of the City of St. Catharines, I want to thank Accenture for this incredible investment in our city, which not only brings much needed jobs, but also plays an important role in bringing more people to our downtown," says Walter Sendzik, Mayor of the City of St. Catharines. "The arrival of Accenture in downtown St. Catharines sends a powerful signal about the transformation that we have seen here in recent years, and we are proud of the fact that a Fortune 500 company with a global reach like Accenture's has chosen our city for this intelligent operations centre."
Other attendees expected at today's opening include business leaders, like Metrolinx and Enbridge, which have embarked on innovative initiatives with Accenture, using emerging technology, shared services models and process innovation to drive sustained growth. For example, working with Accenture, Enbridge was able to reduce the call volume at its customer care centre by 20%, significantly reducing the cost to serve each customer.
"Through our partnership with Accenture, we've been able to transform how we serve our customers with cutting-edge solutions and leading support capabilities provided by our team in the Niagara region," said Darren McIlwraith, director of customer care operations at Enbridge.
Designed with collaboration and co-creation in mind, the new centre includes open areas with interactive digital surfaces, immersive demonstration space and theater seating for larger groups.
Emphasizing the well-being of employees — Accenture was recently named one of Canada's Top 100 Employers for the 10th consecutive year — the centre offers sit-to-stand desks, two wellness rooms, a mothers' room, a meditation and prayer room with a foot-washing station, a café and green areas. The site also has a fitness room equipped with treadmills, an area for yoga and Zumba classes, and a games room featuring ping-pong, air hockey and a pool table.
"We've been in the Niagara Region since 2001 and are thrilled to expand our footprint in the heart of St. Catharines with new employment opportunities for the deep talent pool and a new service offering for our clients," said Jeffrey Russell, president of Accenture in Canada. "In today's competitive customer landscape, we help our clients reinvent themselves with intelligent operating models, using the newest technology solutions to deliver value by working side-by-side with them to reimagine their futures and solve their biggest challenges."
New Offering Leverages Accenture's Human-Machine Operating Engine
The newly launched intelligent sales and customer operations business offering helps organizations achieve sustainable growth by eliminating silos across marketing, sales and customer service to power consistent, relevant interactions across all touchpoints and channels within the customer lifecycle. The new offering leverages the company's proprietary human-machine operating engine, SynOps, to deliver new user experiences across all customer touchpoints.
Danielle Moffat, who leads this offering for Accenture Operations, said, "Sustainable growth has never been more important to companies than it is today. Digital disruption and changing customer expectations have accelerated the need to reinvent sales and service. With the customer lifecycle no longer linear, companies are expected to engage and meet customers in their channel of preference and provide relevant interactions that demonstrate an understanding of their needs. Now is the time for companies to mobilize to an integrated front office, capitalizing on data, digital levers and engagement channels to drive growth and customer loyalty."
Accenture has approximately 5,000 people in Canada, including approximately 600 in the Niagara region supporting a variety of regional and global clients. Its new intelligent operations centre in Niagara is connected to a network of more than 50 delivery locations worldwide that seamlessly bring the best of the company's investments to clients anywhere in the world.
Accenture's intelligent sales and customer operations offering was recently ranked No. 1 in HfS' "2019 Top 10 Digital Front Office" report.
About Accenture
Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions — underpinned by the world's largest delivery network — Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With 505,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives. Visit us at www.accenture.com.
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SOURCE Accenture
Susan Kirwin, Accenture, +1 416-641-5148, [email protected]; Jenn Francis, Accenture, +1 630-338-6426, [email protected]
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