Innovation Profile: IBM Toronto Software Lab and Ontario Cancer Institute (UHN)
IBM's worldwide software business is fueled by Canada's largest software development facility in Markham, Ontario. With over 2,500 employees, the IBM Toronto Software Lab is the largest R&D arm within IBM Canada and the third largest software lab worldwide. The Toronto Lab partners with research institutions such as the Ontario Cancer Institute at University Health Network (UHN) and the University of Toronto. Read full profile below.
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Martin Wildberger |
Dr Igor Jurisica | Aran Donohue Software Developer, IBM Toronto Software Lab |
Canada's Largest Software Development Facility
IBM's worldwide software business is fueled by Canada's largest software development facility in Markham, Ontario. With over 2,500 employees, the IBM Toronto Software Lab is the largest R&D arm within IBM Canada and the third largest software lab worldwide. The Toronto Lab partners with regional research institutions to recruit highly-skilled graduates and develop innovative partnerships.
Founded in 1967, the Lab recently celebrated its 40th anniversary in a high-tech campus set amongst the lush Rouge River Valley. The lab benefits from a dynamic mix of experienced professionals and young employees; about half of all employees are in the first five years of their careers. Recent recruit Aran Donohue speaks for many of the Lab's young employees when he says, "IBM is a company that to me means opportunity. There is a massive amount of support here for people to do what they want to do and what they're good at."
Uniquely, the Toronto Lab has worldwide mission responsibility for a broad cross-section of IBM's global products. These include leading-edge products such as WebSphere, e-commerce and DB2 information management technology. The Lab develops these products for clients around the world. In the emerging area of health informatics, Lab Director Martin Wildberger sees great potential. "There's a lot of work going on in terms of how we can use the technology that we work on to help revolutionize the health care industry. We're working very closely with our healthcare partners to help them understand how they can, in a secure manner, manage electronic health records."
Developing strong links to the region's world-class research institutions is an integral part of IBM Canada's business plan. Established in 1990, The Centre for Advanced Studies allows IBM to collaborate with academic and government partners on projects of mutual interest. Each year, the Centre hosts about 150 faculty members and 60 graduate students from some 50 universities around the world.
In 2006, the 12 founding universities and IBM Canada were awarded the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada's (NSERC) Synergy Award for their outstanding model of collaboration. Because of the success of the Centre, over 15 IBM labs and research facilities around the world have opened their own Centres for Advanced Studies modeled after the one here.
Centre for Advanced Studies Researcher, Ontario Cancer Institute Senior Scientist and University of Toronto Associate Professor Dr Igor Jurisica understands why this model works so well in the Toronto Region, "Toronto is truly a North American hub, similar to Boston a few years back. The many teaching hospitals provide a vibrant environment for research and localization with IBM."
© 2011 Toronto Region Research Alliance