There have long been whispers and suggestions that Calgary-based super-MSP Long View Systems has eyes on opening up shop in Ontario. Long View made that effort official by announcing that Dave Frederickson, former HP Canada channel chief and ESSN boss, has joined the company as vice president of business development and will be tapped with launching Long View in Ontario.

The 24-year HP veteran led the company’s channel efforts for many years, and then was promoted to head up HP Canada’s enterprise business, until earlier this year when he left the company as part of a re-organization that saw HP Canada president Peter Galanis play a more active day-to-day role in managing the enterprise business at the company.

Long View said in a press release that while Frederickson’s duties will be national in nature, that one of his first major initiatives will be the launch of a Toronto banch for Long View in early 2013.

“There are only a handful of people who have earned the level of respect that Dave has achieved as an important member of the IT Industry,” said Gord Mawhinney, president of Long View, in a prepared company statement. “Dave is one of the brightest, most innovative, and highly respected minds in the business.”

For Frederickson’s part, he said in the same prepared statement that he’s been aware of Long View – often an HP reference partner – for more than a decade. “I’ve always been impressed with its ability to connect with its customers need – not just in the near-term but also qualifying future trends – while bringing together the best people in the industry to craft those customer solutions.”

Kent MacDonald, vice president of network services at Long View, has long held out that the company plans to come to Toronto, and recently suggested that the launch was getting close. With Frederickson in place, the company appears ready to move.

While Frederickson’s background is in the channel, his time at the top of ESSN at HP Canada will likely prove valuable to Long View – he no doubt has extensive contacts in the Toronto enterprise and midmarket market, as well as a lot of experience recognizing and building on the needs of that market.

Long View’s move East comes at the same time as another major solution provider which had been largely regional focused on the East moves West. Dimension Data Canada earlier this year formally opened its own offices in Calgary, and Dimension Data Canada boss Wendy Lucas has indicated that she believes that up to half of the solution provider’s revenues will come from Western Canada in the not-so-distant future.

As for Long View, adding Frederickson ensures the Toronto launch will create a significant splash. I’ll be checking in with the company – and hopefully with Frederickson himself – in the near future to get a feel for the solution providers strategy, opportunity, and plans for the Central Canada market.