Customer Call Centers Dial Into Catawba
Published May 27, 2009
Two new call centers in Catawba County mean at least 1,200 new jobs and greater economic diversity.
Call-center giant Convergys, which serves at least two dozen Fortune 500 companies, considered several sites before giving Hickory the nod for the $4 million project.
Covation, a new company, also picked Hickory, where it plans to hire more than 900 people within three years and invest $5.5 million. Average pay is $34,500, above the average pay for the region. Convergys already has hired 500 people, more than its initial estimates.
Both companies cited a good supply of qualified workers as a factor in their decision to set up shop in Catawba County.
Covation plans its operations in McDonald Crossings Business Park. Convergys renovated the former Joan Fabrics corporate headquarters. It opened for business in October 2008.
“Convergys simply had to add the workstations and computers for the customer-service agents, as well as the technology systems to accommodate our business,” says Jill DiPuccio Giles, Convergys senior manager for economic development and government relations. “The first-class infrastructure was in place.”
The Catawba County Economic Development Corp. is now eyeing data centers as a new opportunity and has added that sector to its Plan of Work. The agency lists available sites at www.datacentersites.com.
Story by Pamela Coyle
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