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Stream Opens in Seargant Bluff,Iowa
| | Stream - 12/11/2006 | | |
Stream finalizes deal for Sergeant Bluff center
Texas firm will create 1,000 new jobs; 80 already hired
Stream has reached a deal to lease the former MCI call center in Sergeant Bluff, clearing the way for the global contract center outsourcer to create 1,000 new jobs in the metro area. The Texas-based company expects to fill the first 500 positions by the end of December.
"We have been interested in the Sioux City area for quite some time," Stream CEO and president Toni Portmann said in a statement provided to the Journal on Wednesday. "The outstanding facility and the talented local work force, ultimately made for an easy decision."
Stream has scheduled a news conference today to formally announce its plans to open the Sergeant Bluff contract center, which will provide technical support and customer service for clients that include major technology companies.
State and local officials are expected to join Stream for the announcement, which greatly brightens the local job outlook following the loss earlier this summer of the 569-employee Verizon Business call center.
"This is terrific news for Sergeant Bluff and the entire Siouxland community," Sergeant Bluff Mayor Dale Petersen said in a statement. "We look forward to many years of a mutually beneficial relationship with this growing company.
In a statement, Gov. Tom Vilsack also praised Stream for opening its first Iowa facility.
"We understand that a global company such as Stream has many options available on where to locate its facilities," Vilsack said. "We are grateful that Stream has decided to choose Iowa."
As the Journal first reported, Stream began advertising for applicants for the Sergeant Bluff center last month. But the company waited to make an announcement until it had reached an agreement to lease the former Verizon Business facility.
Verizon, which inherited the residential long-distance call center after acquiring MCI earlier this year, closed the center on June 30, saying it did not fit into the companys long-range plans.
Many of those displaced workers are expected to now apply with Stream, which has laid out an aggressive hiring schedule. Katherin Dockerill, Stream senior vice president of marketing and business strategy, said the company expects to hire 500 employees by the end of December, and fill the remaining 500 positions early next year.
"We have both full-time and part-time positions in technical support and customer service," Dockerill said in an interview while enroute to metro Sioux City for todays announcement. "We have hired over 80 individuals so far. We have training classes that start on Monday.
"We expect to get the site full by the first quarter and at the latest by the second quarter."
Streams first client in the new facility will be a satellite radio subscription service. By early next year, the site also expects to begin providing services to a leading tax software company.
The new Sergeant Bluff facility expands Stream global reach to 26 sites in 14 countries, with 12,000 employees providing services to more than 85 business clients.
Dockerill said rapid expansion forced Stream to open a new contract center, and metro Sioux City topped the list of sites the company considered.
"Our sales have been high and it is filled up our other sites. Capacity has become a constraint," she said. "To satisfy our clients needs in a timely fashion, we needed to find a site that we could move into quickly."
Dockerill said Stream was impressed with metro Sioux City educated work force, which includes a large number of residents who have previously worked in customer service and/or technical support positions.
Tracie Franko, who has 17 years of call center management experience and most recently worked at the Verizon Business center in Sergeant Bluff, has been hired as the site director for Streams new center.
Those interested in a job with Stream are encouraged to apply online at www.stream.com | | | | Number of Employees: | 1000 | | Square Footage: | 100,000 | | | | Contact Name: | NA | | Contact Phone: | NA | | Contact Email: | NA | | Web Address: | NA | | City: | Seargant Bluff | | State: | Iowa | | Country: | US | | |
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