March, 2009 – Brampton Board of Trade

Peel-based Nytric Limited has found global success through the cutting- edge ideas of its diverse workforce more than two-thirds of their employees are skilled immigrants.

This innovation-consulting and venture technology firm turns back-of-a-napkin ideas into marketable products.

With big clients like EA Games, Pratt & Whitney and video game manufacturer Global VR, Nytric generates about $4 million per year in revenue. Ninety per cent of their products are exported.

To compete in the international market, Nytric leverages the brain power of its twenty-seven employees. In the engineering department, for example, the ratio of immigrants to Canadian-born employees is two to one. Immigrants also hold executive positions: Av Utukuri, President and Chief Technology Officer, was born in India;
Ted Chen, Director of Product Development is from Taiwan and Anthony Gussin, Director of Business Development is a native of the United Kingdom.
Because Nytric’s management team can personally relate to other skilled immigrants struggling to find work, the company welcomes candidates with international credentials and experience. “From our perspective, Canadian experience is irrelevant-if someone is a good engineer, he’s a good engineer. It doesn’t matter where he came from,” Anthony Gussin says. “That’s one of the key components of our hiring strategy.”

This inclusive policy has helped skilled immigrants like Riddish Raval. He came from India in 2001 with a bachelor’s degree in electronics engineering and experience with a multi-national software company. After working a general labour job for $8 an hour and volunteering in his field, Riddhesh found a position with Nytric as a senior software engineer.

In addition to valuable experience, Nytric’s diverse team brings a knowledge bank of various languages and cultures. With input from their Indian-born staff, for example, Nytric changed the trivia questions in a family DVD game to reflect the colloquialisms of South Asian cultures. This savvy marketing strategy enhanced the product’s appeal of overseas. Employees fluent in Mandarin and Cantonese have also helped the company negotiate with Chinese suppliers and oversee international manufacturing – both assets that were highlighted during Nytric’s delegation to Asia last year.

“Nytric is a very innovative organization,” Anthony Says, “And I don’t think we would have this unique approach to innovation if we didn’t have different people from different walks of life.”

Nytric was recognized by the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council (TRIEC) with the RBC Best Immigrant Employer Award, for a small or medium-sized employer with fewer than 500 employees that successfully recruits, retains and promotes skilled immigrants. To learn more about other 2008 IS Award winners vist www.isawards.ca.

Posted in the Brampton Board of Trade

By Claire DeVeale of TRIEC