The Ottawa region, home of the country's capital and more than 1.23 million people, is the fourth largest metropolitan region of Canada. Its close proximity to the U.S border and easy access to two other metropolitan regions of Canada - Toronto and Montreal - gives it a unique advantage as a growing business centre of Canada.

The Ottawa region has long been recognized as a centre for innovation and technological advancements. The city's visionary corporate sector, highly educated workforce, diverse employment opportunities and unique blend of world-class research institutions make it an ideal location for the global nature of business today. 

Professor Richard Florida, Director of the Martin Prosperity Institute at the University of Toronto and the award-winning author of Who’s Your City?, rates Ottawa as the “Best Overall” city in Canada on a “Creative Class Index” based on the 3Ts of economic development – Technology, Talent and Tolerance. That's why Ottawa has dubbed itself “Canada’s Creative Economy Capital”. Ottawa also rates higher on many economic and quality of life criteria than American cities such as New York, Boston, Washington and San Jose. 

Part of the strength of Ottawa’s economy is the diversity of its industries.  Ottawa’s high tech sector continues to grow employing nearly 75,000 employees within 1,944 companies. The Knowledge Based Support Services industries is the largest with 582 companies established in the community followed by the software sector with a total of 385 companies in the region. The Defence and Security, eBusiness, Telecommunications and Cleantech industries also have a significant impact in Ottawa's high tech sector with a total of 619 companies between them. Although the Knowledge Based Support Services industry employs the largest number of people, the Telecommunications sector follows closely has the second largest employer. The Software and Defence and Security sectors also play a hefty role in the community, employing 23,065 people between them. IBM is now Ottawa’s largest employer outside of the public sector.

Supported by a strong professional services cluster, Ottawa's economy is complemented by a vibrant tourism sector and the presence of more than 110,000 government employees. With the highest level of R&D spending per capita in the country, the Ottawa region has become the home of leading economic clusters. An economic powerhouse with a quality of life second to none, Ottawa is one of North America's fastest growing economies, and one of the world's most progressive centres of innovation.

Related Data, Charts, and Figures:  

• Number of Employees in Knowledge-based Industry, 2002-2010
  
• Number of Companies in Knowledge-based Industry, 2000-2010
• Companies by Sector, 2010
• Employees by Sector, 2010
• Top Ten Technology Companies, 2010

Related Reports:

• The Ottawa Report
  Definitive and comprehensive reference guide to Ottawa's knowledge-based business community.
  Ottawa Center for Regional Innovation, 2010
  

• Ottawa after Nortel: Ottawa's creative economy turns lemons into lemon aid
  Study explaining how a new generation of technology entrepreneurs and multinational companies discover Ottawa.
  Ottawa Center for Regional Innovation, 2010

• The Global Competitiveness Report - Canada
  Report identifies key factors determining economic growth used to raise domestic income levels and opportunities.
  World Economic Forum, 2010-2011
  

• Doing Business in Canada
  Series of annual reports investigating regulations that enhance business activity and those that constrain it.
  The World Bank and the International Finance Corporation, 2011

• The Index of Economic Freedom
  Covers 183 countries around the world with an economic freedom score based on 10 measures of economic openness, regulatory efficiency, the rule of law, and competitiveness.
  The Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation, 2010