Once-proud call centre is little more than a dandelion farm (4 photos)

When it opened its doors on Dec. 7, 2004, it was the pride of Sault Ste. Marie.

Sutherland Global Services Inc. had signed a 10-year lease on the Bruce Caughill-designed building at 71 Old Garden River Rd.

Dilip R. Vellodi, founder and chief executive officer of the privately-held Rochester, N.Y. multinational, was in town for the opening of his new business-process outsourcing centre.

Vellodi spoke glowingly about the work ethic of the people Sutherland had recruited in the Sault.

They were so good that he predicted these extraordinary Saultites "may end up crisscrossing the globe providing best practices to other geographies where we might open up as well," Vellodi said.

Eleven years later, Sutherland was still madly in love with Sault Ste. Marie's labour pool.

"Our Sault Ste. Marie operation and its workforce are recognized by our clients as providing excellent quality of service," said Sutherland's head of Canadian operations, Lori Atkinson.

"There is a strong demand for the calibre of employees we have in Sault Ste. Marie, which is why we are looking to increase our presence here," Atkinson said, promoting an April, 2015 drive by Sutherland to hire 250 more local employees.

The company described its employee retention rates here as well above industry norms.

Average tenure for managers was almost nine years.

Regular employees stayed for close to 4.5 years.

Flash-forward to this week.

The love, it seems, is gone.

On Monday afternoon, just a handful of the 213 parking spots at 71 Old Garden River Rd. were occupied when SooToday visited during regular business hours.

The entrance door was locked.

The dominant business activity at this once-thriving call centre appeared to be growing a bumper crop of dandelions.

Sutherland Global Services is currently hiring for eight Canadian positions, none of them in Sault Ste. Marie.

Last week, Sault Ste. Marie Economic Development Corp., owner of the $7 million Old Garden River Rd. site, listed it for sale with an asking price of $2.85 million.

Here's the property description, as posted by Century21.ca:

Attractive stucco 30,000-square-foot, one-storey building built in 2004 with a modern curb appeal. Centrally located in excellent hilltop location on Old Garden River Road between former Sault Star and fire hall. Situated on large lot of 3.73 acres. Site improvements include 213 parking spaces. Interior layout has a mix of private offices, reception, meeting rooms, kitchen and large open area. Former call centre use results in a wide open area which lends itself to many potential uses. HVAC, electrical, roof all in great condition and have been well maintained. Building has three-phase main service and is handicap accessible.

As rumours spread that Sutherland is through with the Sault, company executives have been ghosting local media outlets all this month, one-time lovers inexplicably transformed into discarnate souls who don't respond to repeated phone messages asking their intentions.

A small number of Sutherland staff appear to be still in the building.

Are they, as some former employees suspect, conducting training?

Is Sutherland switching to a new model of home-based workers?

Sutherland isn't talking, but Sault Ste. Marie Economic Development Corp. is.

"The facility was built in 2004 on 3.73 acres of land located between Great Northern Road and Second Line East. Since then, the building has been used by Sutherland Group as a business‐process outsourcing centre," says EDC executive director Dan Hollingsworth.

"The EDC over the past several years has worked with Sutherland to assist with employee recruitment and on a retention program for their operations," Hollingsworth tells SooToday.

"It is our understanding that the model has evolved and Sutherland's approach in Canada has changed."

"We have worked with Sutherland to extend the lease agreement for the past couple of years as they have been a great business partner with the EDC and in the community." 

"Sutherland informed us in early 2019 that they would not be renewing another term and the lease terminates this fall. We then explored other client options for this facility but our board of directors has determined that it is best to place the asset for sale."

"Our e‐commerce centre provided significant employment opportunities in the city. This project proved to be an excellent investment for our community, and we look forward to finding a new owner to continue utilizing the space," Hollingsworth says.