Center Partners employees relocate to Liberty Lake
<p>Al de la Cruz, the facilities manager for Center Partners Inc., worked at the company's new location last September in Coeur d'Alene as final preparations took place before operations began.</p>
Call center company Center Partners has moved 350 employees from its site on Ironwood Drive in Coeur d'Alene to Liberty Lake.
Center Partners has 500 seats at the former Telect site in Liberty Lake. Telect, which has downsized, moved to a nearby location in that city.
"We needed to grow and they had a facility that met our need," said Matt Carleton, who manages the two Coeur d'Alene sites and one in Post Falls for Center Partners.
About 250 workers remain at the Ironwood site. The Post Falls location and Coeur d'Alene site near U.S. 95 and Prairie Avenue were unaffected by the move, Carleton said.
Carleton said all three North Idaho sites are expected to remain open.
"The company is very healthy and doing well," he said.
Carleton said the company has a continuous hiring cycle due to turnover and expansions. He said there's part- and full-time openings in all four locations the company leases in this area.
The typical starting wage for customer service representatives is $9.50 an hour.
Carleton said he couldn't put a number on how many employees are needed as it fluctuates.
"We grow to our clients' needs," he said.
Although growth is the reason for expanding to Liberty Lake, Carleton declined to specify a specific contract that fueled the move.
Center Partners opened in 1997 and is based in Fort Collins, Colo. It employs about 1,000 people in North Idaho and 4,000 people companywide.
The Ironwood office opened in 2001, Post Falls in 2002 and north Coeur d'Alene last year. The company also has an operation in Idaho Falls.