A SPECIAL INTEREST SECTION BY MEDIAPLANET
Read more at innovatingcanada.ca
Canadian Innovation Q&A
Q & A with Arlene Dickinson The CEO of Venturepark, Canada’s most extensive business growth ecosystem, talks ideas, business, and the true key to innovation. What makes the Canadian landscape so unique when it comes to innovation? Arlene Dickinson: Canada has several advantages when it comes to driving innovation. We have a strong education system that produces world-class engineers, scientists, and business people as well as extraordinary natural resources, from natural gas to precious metals. We have dependable technology infrastructure, a stable and transparent government, and the secret ingredient to driving innovation which is hard-working, creative, and brave entrepreneurs. As a nation, we have all the raw ingredients to be the most innovative and prosperous country in the world. The task we have before us is to turn these raw ingredients into products and turn those products into international businesses.
What’s the biggest obstacle you have overcome to become successful? AD: I’ve always said I wish I had dreamt bigger. People
say to me, “But look at all you’ve done!” and I can only think of how much more I could have accomplished had I allowed myself to have a larger scale view. Ultimately, the biggest obstacle became myself and self-moderating my vision. I believe the bigger a vision you have — the more audacious a plan you have — the bigger your world becomes.
Why should Canadians care about entrepreneurs? AD: Canadians should care about entrepreneurs because they’re the most important element of the Canadian economy, and ultimately they help build our social and cultural makeup. When an entrepreneur creates a successful business, they generate incremental wealth for the country, which contributes to the tax base, which contributes to the social programs we as Canadians hold so dear, like public health care and education. If you’re a patriotic Canadian, you should be passionate about helping entrepreneurs succeed.
How can we encourage youth to stay innovative as they start to think about their future? AD: It’s important to let our youth know that innovation doesn’t just mean a tech startup run out of your parents’ garage. Innovation isn’t just about technology. It’s about new ideas and new ways of doing things. The reality is that innovation can happen anywhere. Innovation can happen at a marketing firm, in the food and beverage industry, or in agricultural and environmental practices. To that end, it’s important to teach youth that innovation starts with how they think about how the world operates. Seeing new ways to do things and exploring them is perhaps what youth are best at. Innovation is the fountain of youth of every industry and sector and is what’s needed in order for it to be competitive. If we take the broader idea of what innovation is and teach it to youth, they can begin to practise it no matter where they are or what they’re interested in.
To read the full interview, visit innovatingcanada.ca.
INSIGHT
Tech Startups Are Powering the Shift to Hybrid Working As some workers return to the office and others stay home, businesses are leaning on innovative technologies to keep employees healthy and engaged. Krista Jones
M
oving a gym online requires some technological heavy lifting. During the pandemic, thousands of fitness studios turned to Toronto-based WellnessLiving to help them make the leap. The company, whose software simplifies processes like running virtual classes, managing memberships, and conducting digital marketing, was a lifeline for gyms shuttered by COVID. As the economy reopens, its platform is providing flexibility for owners to manage employees and classes offered in person or online. WellnessLiving is part of a new generation of Canadian tech firms that are proving indispensable to businesses as they adjust in the wake of the pandemic. It’s clear that there will be no simple snap back to regular office life. More than half of employees want to keep working from home at least part time, and several banks and multinationals have already said that they’ll make telecommuting a permanent option. Much of the return-to-work focus has fallen on the tools that will enable companies to operate with hybrid workforces. This is benefitting ventures like
Axonify and Humi, which provide software that helps businesses to onboard, train, and manage workers remotely. Both are growing rapidly as managers consider how to oversee and develop staff they may rarely see in person. For some industries, reopening safely will entail regular COVID testing, especially if new variants take hold. Guelph-based Precision Biomonitoring has created an on-the-spot testing system that can deliver results in 80 minutes. It’s already in use in remote mining operations, which are vulnerable to outbreaks, and its system is likely to be deployed by other businesses that need to give returning employees additional confidence that their workplaces are safe. Meanwhile, corporations are looking to tech companies to help them reconfigure health benefits for the new hybrid workplace. Dialogue, a telemedicine company used by many businesses to provide physical and mental health services to their employees, recently listed on the TSX after growing rapidly during the pandemic. League, a benefits platform used by such companies as Unilever and Shopify, provides flexible health spending accounts that staff
can use to sign up for a gym membership or even just buy a pair of running shoes. It’s no accident that Canada’s tech companies are well-placed to capitalize on opportunities in new areas like wellness at work — it’s the result of a decade of investment in building an innovation ecosystem that’s characterized by technological talent, significant intellectual property, and a focus on solving real problems faced by business and society. The country now has a large group of innovative companies reaching the scale at which they can make a sizable impact. Many are on course to hit $100 million in revenues in the next few years. That’s more than a psychological milestone. It’s the point at which ventures become too big to be bought out by all but the most deep-pocketed foreign competitors, increasing the chances that they’ll stay in Canada and create jobs here. These companies are oiling the wheels of Canada’s economic engine. With the right support, they can continue to win clients at home and abroad. Operating behind the scenes and supporting other businesses, they may never be household names, but they can become global powerhouses.
Krista Jones Vice President of Venture Services, MaRS Discovery District
Publishers: Christy Yam, Sierra Nardella, Jessica Golyatov Business Development Manager: Julia Colavecchia Country Manager: Nina Theodorlis Content and Production Manager: Raymond Fan Designer: Filip Jansky Web Editor: Karthik Talwar All images are from Getty Images unless otherwise credited. This section was created by Mediaplanet and did not involve National Post or its editorial departments. Send all inquiries to ca.editorial@mediaplanet.com.
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