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HI-TECH BOOM
The modern Côte d'Azur, which receives 45% of its revenue from information technology industries, began to take shape in the 1960s. IBM's e-Business Solutions Center and Texas Instruments' Center for Application-specific Products, were both established here in the early 1960s. Their presence inspired other companies to relocate to the area, which rapidly became an international reference point for information technology. Top executives who have chosen to move to the Côte d'Azur all refer to its cosmopolitan outlook and English-speaking tradition. The Nice - Côte d'Azur International Airport however, seems to have been the major influence in most executives' decision to relocate here. "It's easier to use than any capital city airport, and it's ten minutes by car from Nice," notes Christian Tordo, Managing Director of Texas Instruments, France. Another key factor, according to Jacques Gros, Director of IBM's e-Business Solutions Center, was the founding of Nice University and several specialized engineering and advanced technology schools on the Côte d'Azur. Most of them are based at Sophia Antipolis. SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS — THE FUTURE OF TECHNOLOGY An impressive number of IT and biochemical companies have re-located to the region since the 1970s, many of them in the business parks that have sprung up here, such as l'Arénas opposite Nice Airport. Spearheading the growth of inform-ation technologies in the region is the Sophia Antipolis Business and Science Park situated just outside Nice and 15 km from Nice Airport. Established in 1969, the park is now ranked among the top ten technology centers in the world. Located on 2,300 hectares of forest land, two thirds of which is environmentally protected, this private business park has garnered an international reputation as a major scientific research center, particularly in the field of telecommunications. Founded in 1969 by Senator Pierre Laffitte and industrialist Jérôme Monod, the park today houses 1,200 companies, from start-ups to multinational firms. These include Nortel Networks, Air France (which operates Amadeus, its worldwide reservations system here), Compaq, Siemens, Cisco Data Systems and Toyota. Around 36,000 people work at the park at any given time. Christian Van Gelder is Director of European Operations at Lucent Technologies, the world leader in networks and communications systems. Based at Sophia Antipolis for two years, Van Gelder says of the environment: "The level of creative energy is very high, even in the restaurants here. That's why I did not want to install a company restaurant - it's the open discussion that generates new ideas." Jacques Gros of IBM, also stresses the importance of the creative atmosphere: "This is a meeting place of superior talents with a potential for cross-fertilization that is unique in the world." When Lucent Technologies came to Sophia Antipolis, it was on Van Gelder's insistence. "I took the job on the condition of bringing the operation here. There is a dynamic atmosphere and an exchange of ideas on an international level." HIGHLY-SKILLED WORKFORCE "Financing our development is no problem. Neither is selling our products worldwide. But recruiting the best people is fundamental," says Christian Tordo. The region is blessed with a plentiful supply of highly qualified labor. The source is a collection of specialized educational institutions, whose students tend to build their careers in the region. The University of Nice has built a campus at Sophia Antipolis, placing students and faculty at the nerve center of scientific research and education. Eurécom, Europe's leading school of communications engineering and computer science, was jointly founded at Sophia Antipolis in 1992 by the French National Telecommuni-cations School and the Swiss Polytechnic School of Lausanne. Also found here are the Theseus Institute, which trains managers in the strategic use of information technology in business, and the Ceram Institute, which offers a Masters in software engineering. ENGLISH AS A WORKING LANGUAGE Nearly all the researchers and graduates are bi-lingual. This is partly because the student bodies are multinational, and partly as a result of the region's decade-long push to assure fluency in English in a greater proportion of its graduates and executives. "An executive I know who lived here for three years never learned to speak French. He didn't need to," recalls Jacques Gros. "The region can compete with anywhere in the world for its highly skilled labor supply," says Christian Tordo. "Unlike other hi-tech areas, it is not a serious problem to recruit and keep top people. In Silicon Valley, recruiting wars mean your Director of Research can pack up and leave without a day's notice. Here, a bit removed from the major technology clusters, people have no reason to move around. There is more company loyalty." He also believes that, contrary to popular opinion about the European and US labor markets, the Côte d'Azur "is much more flexible than Boston, Denver or California. The Côte d'Azur is not France." SETTING GLOBAL STANDARDS The research undertaken by these centers, notably in telecommunications and mobile telephony, is of worldwide significance. The European Telecommunications Standards Institute based at Sophia Antipolis, developed the GSM standard, the globally applied norm for transnational mobile telephone interface. One of the world's largest standards entities, it has 490 member organizations (service providers, manufacturers, administrations and users) from 34 countries. All these elements have proved to be an irresistible draw for the information technology industry, arguably the fastest-growing and most dynamic sector in the world economy. According to Jean-Pierre Mascarelli, President of Côte d'Azur Developpement, the development advisory council for the region, "The Côte d'Azur has attained critical mass as a center for information technology industries, and in fact it is now considered as a world center for wireless Internet connection and mobile phone Internet interface." Underpinning the region's links with the rest of the IT world are associations like the Telecom Valley Association, formed notably by AT&T, IBM and Texas Instruments. The Association recently signed co-operation agreements with Telecom City in Sweden and the Telecom Corridor in Texas and now boasts over 70 member companies. Its purpose is to facilitate the exchange of information and expertise among small businesses in the three countries and put regional start-ups in touch with venture capital from the US and Sweden. The Côte d'Azur is also the number one region in Europe for the testing and assembly of satellites. Alcatel Space Industries has its facility in Cannes. Offshoots of this company include Nice-based Soditech, which designs and tests components for Alcatel. Others in the region include Acri, GeoImage, and Istar, all of whom specialise in earth observation image processing. QUALITY OF LIFE Citing the positive effects of the region's natural beauty and climate on their creative teams, Toyota opened its new design center in the region - a momentous decision for the flagship Japanese company. Executives invariably agree that the climate and quality of life on the Côte d'Azur are the main reasons for a very low rate of employee turnover and a high rate of productivity. According to Mascarelli, a study carried out within an international company showed its Côte d'Azur facilities had 20% higher productivity rates, than in the Paris metropolitan area. Companies have little trouble convincing executives to relocate to the Côte d'Azur. An important consideration is the excellent choice of international schools. There are ten bi-lingual French-English schools and one German-French school, which cater for children from kindergarten through to secondary school level. The international baccalaureate is also available. Spouses find fulfilling social, cultural, culinary and leisure activities. Foreign employees appreciate easy access to the rest of Europe and the world, via direct air links to 94 international destinations including seven flights a week to New York, daily services to London, Brussels, Barcelona and all major capitals. MORE>> |
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