On May 3, Microsoft welcomed the press and Toronto Mayor John Tory in the opening ceremony of its new Canadian headquarters located in the CIBC SQUARE building.
Spanning 132,000 square feet, the new headquarters offers an expansive view of the Toronto downtown core and Lake Ontario. Following a “Team Based Space design,” the hybrid office features a mix of open and private workspaces for employees and partners, as well as social spaces and event areas.
Prior to moving downtown, Microsoft Canada’s headquarters was located in Mississauga.
“This office was designed to…capture the essence of Canada and bring it in to inspire: inspire us for innovation and inspire ambitions for not only the current generation, but the next generation of business leaders,” said Peesker during the office tour with media. “We also built this facility to be at the heart of such a vibrant ecosystem, which is critical for every aspect of our economy.
“As we digitize, we pull together technology and infuse it into each industry, regardless of organization size or regardless of its private sector or public sector. It’s also here to support employees, it’s here to support customers, it’s here to support our partner ecosystem, and it’s here to support the community.”
In addition to employees and staff, the space will also host the Envisioning Centre and Microsoft’s Data Innovation Centre of Excellence (DICE). The two centres will allow Microsoft to more closely collaborate with customers, partners, and academia to innovate future solutions.
Toronto Mayor John Tory joined the celebration with Microsoft Canada president Kevin Peesker. After touring the space and trying out several Microsoft innovations, he welcomed the company’s new presence in downtown Toronto.
“Part of it is to find ways in which we can make sure the downtown of the city, first of all, reflects that hugely important message of innovation and creativity, and commitment to those things,” said Tory.
Tory emphasized that attracting more talent to the downtown area not only bolsters the economy at scale but also revitalizes the thousands of businesses that were hurt by isolation efforts during the pandemic. Additionally, the mayor noted that it also helps to increase ridership on the Toronto transit system (TTC), which saw ridership dip to 30 per cent capacity during the pandemic.
“Whether it is companies that are homegrown here, or whether it’s global companies that have been around for decades, we need them all here,” said Tory, highlighting Toronto’s diverse talent pool and investments that will shape Canada’s future economy. “I think the offices, and of course, more importantly, the people who work in the office are hugely important to our future success.”
Microsoft currently employs around 5,000 people across Canada.
