The year in professional services was marked largely by concerns over new privacy legislation and increasing demands on corporate governance.
"The bad news is that we are still in a period of uncertainty. No one is really predicting a return to great times in 2004, but there is cautious optimism there," said Grant Jameson, managing partner at the local office of Ogilvy Renault, early in the year. "Overall, I'm optimistic about the professional services business in Ottawa in 2004. There are good indications that there will be a recovery for the economy."
The Ottawa Business Journal looked at a number of the issues, with the following findings:
May 10
Document retention and destruction strategies are especially critical in light of new corporate governance rules in the United States and Canada that demand greater accountability and improved disclosure from publicly traded companies. It's a good idea for private firms to also consider revising their document retention strategies, experts say, and executives should be prepared if called upon to produce corporate records during any future court cases.
June 7
In the aftermath of dot-com bubble bursts and high-profile accounting scandals, executive compensation becomes a minefield for company directors, with the only safe exit lying in due diligence and fiscal restraint, experts say. "Excessive remuneration has everyone very worried, but nobody knows what to do about it," says Penny Collenette, executive-in-residence at the University of Ottawa's school of management.
June 7
Increasingly stringent corporate governance rules and high-profile accounting scandals in North America could trigger a dire shortage of talented board directors, warns an Ottawa business leader. "We fear that, as these rules become more and more rigorous and as (personal) risks become larger, there will be fewer and fewer people who are prepared to serve (on company boards)," says David Paterson, executive director of the Canadian Advanced Technology Alliance. This high level of reluctance is already making it difficult for small tech companies to coax people on to their boards; people that would provide such companies with the leadership, insight and business contacts critical to success, Mr. Paterson says.
June 9
Scandalous headlines concerning the actions of senior executives at public companies bring the issue of accountability to the forefront of business education in Ottawa.
"Clearly, the content has changed because of recent issues and there is more case material," says Michael Kelly, dean of the University of Ottawa's School of Management. "We (have) fine-tuned the MBA so it involves (more) ethics and governance. Given the amount of attention (governance is getting), more attention is being paid to it in the classroom," says Mr. Kelly, adding students are more aware of governance issues because of media exposure.
June 9
Paul Renaud, chief executive of The Lanigan Group, notes the growing concern over corporate governance and the inability of many local companies to determine how much compliance is enough to keep them out of hot water. With this in mind, Mr. Renaud, the Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation and the University of Ottawa's school of management create a way to measure the level of compliance among privately held and publicly traded high-tech companies in Canada. The mainstay of the collaborative effort is a scorecard of 50 questions covering issues such as the independence of board members, officer and director accountability and financial disclosure. The initiative is hailed by experts such as Denis Desautels, executive director of the University of Ottawa's Centre on Governance and former auditor general of Canada. But despite the praise, the initiative attracts an "underwhelming" number of respondents, says Mr. Renaud.
July 12
A glut of Class A office space in Kanata and thousands of unemployed tech workers were not the only effects of the high-tech downturn: Ottawa law firms also rode the wave of good times and are only now adjusting to a new reality. "There's no doubt last year was a tough year," says Thomas Houston, managing partner at Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP. "Transactional activity was down (and) I think a number (of firms) were concerned."
Many firms had to re-evaluate their strategic direction in Ottawa, says Mr. Houston, including his own. "Last year, we started to try to broaden our corporate base to non-tech companies. We were more focused on marketing to non-tech (companies) than we have been in the past. We had to balance some of the cyclical (nature) of tech work by working on regulatory and government relations practice, as well as litigation."
July 12
On-site document destruction company Shred-It International chalks up strong growth in eastern Ontario to a combination of stepped-up promotional efforts and a growing interest in corporate security and privacy, company officials say.
