Effects of Tpp on Bc’s Computer Systems Design Industry

Effects of TPP on BC’s Computer Systems Design Industry

Team 5 – Chee Cheng, Deepak, James, Liza, Sandra, Xintian

Royal Roads University

Author Note

This paper was prepared for MGMT 561 taught by Professor Ed Bruning

Effects of TPP on BC’s Computer Systems Design Industry

The information and communication technology (ICT) sector in British Columbia (BC) has shown promising growth in the past decade. The sector has managed to attract labor and investment from around the world, particularly in start-up businesses. Investors from Asia, Europe and the United States (U.S.) are discovering the benefits of investing in BC’s ICT sector. Within this sector, computer systems design and related services (CSDRS) is a major driver to growth. This paper will analyze BC’s CSDRS industry group from the perspective of supply, demand, and international trade effects. Furthermore, the paper will discuss the effects of Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement that was recently signed.

Overview of CSDRS

CSDRS consists of establishments that specialize in planning, designing, and supporting computer software technologies that integrate with hardware and communication technologies (Industry Canada, 2015). The services range from supporting on-site management, and operations of data processing facilities to providing other professional technical computer related services. This industry group comprises 38% of the province’s technology businesses, thus making it the largest within the ICT sector (BC Stats, 2013).

According to BC Stats (2013), CSDRS generated around $4.3 billion in revenue which was an increase of 3.4% from 2012. In the same year, employment in this industry group declined by 0.1% to 29,750 employees. However, wages increased by 3%, accounting for approximately $1.6 billion. This increase in wages has been consistent in the past 4 years which is indicative of the scarcity of ICT specialists in the country (Euro Monitor, 2015). Moreover, the productivity of...