Technology companies in Ottawa and across Canada are posting jobs by the dozens but may soon have trouble finding talented people to fill those openings, industry representatives say.

"We've got a fairly ominous storm warning in front of us as far as the talent situation," said Linda Leonard, senior vice-president of the Information Technology Association of Canada.

"This is particularly critical because virtually the only resource that goes into the production of IT goods and services is the brainpower that we hire to keep our enterprises running."

Leonard, whose organization lobbies on behalf of technology companies, said the industry has recovered from its downturn in 2000 and surpassed its level of employment before the dot-com crash.

Meanwhile, she said, baby boomers will leave behind a rash of empty posts when they reach retirement age in the near future.

At the same time, enrolment is sluggish in many computer science and engineering programs across the country.

Claude Lague, the dean of engineering at the University of Ottawa, said enrolment at his faculty is flat because people think the industry is still in a slump.

In fact, the industry seems to be flourishing, he said.

"Most of the students we talk to have had job interviews, they've had job offers, so it would appear the employment market is doing pretty well," he said.

Nortel alone has hired 250 new grads recently, said Jeffrey Dale, president of the Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation, an economic development group for the local technology industry.

Immigrants, recruiting strategy needed: industry

He said Canada needs to attract more highly skilled immigrants to fill its employment gaps.

Leonard agreed, adding that Ontario also needs to develop a strategy to recruit new talent.

Meanwhile, the province is trying to lure back Canadians working south of the border. This summer, it is launching a $2-million program promoting new job opportunities, improved taxation and a higher dollar in their home country.

The industry is also targeting ex-pats. A group of corporate recruiters from Waterloo, Ont., attended a Canada Day picnic on the weekend in San Jose, Calif., as part of a program called Operation Boomerang.

Lague said the industry could promote the growth of new talent at home as well.

"The industry people need to come out and basically spread the word loud and clear about what their expectations are in terms of future hirings, so that message carries on to the general public and especially to the students in the high schools, and in the grade schools as well."