Ninon Laforce

ICYMI: Ken Doyle, Executive Director of Tech-Access Canada, is on the latest podcast. He shares how TACs serve as trusted innovation intermediaries, acting as the "anchor" that supports companies on their growth journeys. 🎧 : http://bit.ly/3X6amAo 📺 : http://bit.ly/3O8otSd

6

There are some events that fundamentally shift trajectories. In 2017, the Canadian tech sector rallied in response to the Trump travel ban, defining itself as place that embraced innovators with open arms. Last night, the BetaKit Town Hall ushered in another momentum shift in Canadian tech as some of the sector's biggest names gathered in reaction to the Canadian budget and how to approach the current challenges facing productivity and innovation. My takeaways: FOR GOVERNMENT Tobias Lütke continued his criticism of changes to the capital gains tax, which he described as a clumsy and misguided move that "taxes innovation the way we tax cigarettes" and will serve as the same disincentive of behaviour. But Lutke's overall assessment of the budget may be a bigger problem for Ottawa, as he called out the discrepancy between "what the government says it wants and what it shows it wants." No one likes a hypocrite, and it seems that capital gains has focused the sector's attention on a government innovation and spending narrative that may not hold up to scrutiny. FOR INVESTORS AND INDUSTRY Ivan Zhang from Cohere pointed out that of all the companies and founders in the room (and there were a lot) almost none could claim a Canadian as their first customer. Courage is required to back new ideas and new products, and the room seemed to agree that courage is in short supply in Canada. FOR BUILDERS When asked what he would love Canadian tech to be the best at, Lutke said "craftsmanship." It was one of the most surprising moments of the night for me, and I love the idea of defining ourselves around building beautiful and truly unique products - not just the idea, but the implementation. "If you build something great, it sells itself," he said. FOR EMPLOYERS Jocelyne Murphy had the mic drop moment of the night, and may have single handedly changed the tech sector's approach to hiring when she talked about the negative impact that drawn out recruitment processes and repeated layoffs are having on her isolated generation. FOR BETAKIT The energy and interest in the room is yet another proof point that storytelling matters. People are looking for a centre of gravity for Canadian tech and innovation and somewhere to convene around the issues that affect their lives. BetaKit aspires to be that place. Big thanks to everyone involved, especially Satish Kanwar Arati Sharma Douglas Soltys Lauren Arnold Category Communications eThereLIVE.com

172

10 Comments

INDOCHINO Sets Their Sights on Data Driven Brand Development as Pathway to Accelerating Growth. The addition of Ryane Askew as Vice President of Marketing is an exciting investment in this next phase of profitable growth. VANCOUVER, BC, Dec. 11, 2024 /CNW/ - INDOCHINO, the global leader in made to measure apparel, is excited to announce its strategic focus on brand development as a key driver for growth in 2025. The company is committed to expanding its presence in the retail industry by enhancing its brand story and customer journey. In line with this ambition, INDOCHINO has appointed Ryane Askew as the new Vice President of Marketing, a move that signals the company's commitment to deepening its connection with consumers and accelerating its growth trajectory. "INDOCHINO has experienced remarkable growth over recent years, and we are now entering a new chapter where brand development will be central to our continued success," said Drew Green, Chief Executive Officer, and President of INDOCHINO. "Ryane Askew brings a wealth of experience and a forward-thinking approach to marketing, making her the perfect fit to lead our efforts in shaping the future of the INDOCHINO brand. We are confident that her leadership and deep understanding of analytics and data will help us forge deeper connections with our customers and bring our vision to life in a bold and compelling way." Ryane is a seasoned and dynamic growth leader with over 15 years of experience delivering impactful growth for globally recognized brands. Ryane's most notable results during her time at Pier 1 Imports, Blue Nile, and Nordstrom were driven by her unwavering customer focused leadership style. Throughout her career, Ryane has built and scaled high-performing teams across a variety of functions, including marketing, e-commerce, analytics, and technology. "I am thrilled to join INDOCHINO at such an exciting time in the company's journey," said Ryane Askew. "The INDOCHINO brand has always stood for quality, craftsmanship, and personalization, and I look forward to leading the team in building a stronger connection with our customers. Together, we will elevate the brand experience and create new opportunities for growth as we approach 2025 and beyond." As INDOCHINO looks toward the future, the company's focus on brand development is expected to encompass a variety of initiatives, including refining its digital presence, expanding marketing efforts across channels, and enhancing the overall customer journey. With the appointment of Ryane Askew, INDOCHINO is confident that these initiatives will not only strengthen its position in the market but also solidify its reputation as a leader in custom apparel. Matthew Berglass Ryane Askew Vanessa Pillay (CA)SA, CPA BC Alex Buhler Sean Wrenn Morgan Whitney

42

2 Comments

Returning from your annual leave to the news of a mass layoff is not easy, even if you have not been impacted directly. While I am sure this decision was not taken lightly and I could not agree more with what our CEO Dax said below about all the people we hired at Lightspeed over the past few years, it will take a while for those of us who are still here to go back to business as usual. Until then I need your support! This is where you all potentially come into play as my LinkedIn network: To my HR & Recruitment connections across EMEA & NOAM (Germany, Netherlands, UK, Belgium, France, USA & Canada) please email our talent directory [email protected] or reach out to me for more information if your company is hiring for various positions across most departments. As a recruiter, it is hard to see folks you hired and worked with being let go, and as a colleague even harder.... To my former colleagues who were impacted, if you need any support with your CV, need an intro email to someone I might be connected with who has an open position at their company or just want to chat, please reach out. ... also please remember you are so much more than your job!

44

2 Comments

Great news for Northern Ontario: High-speed internet is coming to remote communities. $109 million in new funding from federal and provincial governments is making this a reality for a community in need. This investment will connect 18,600 homes, bringing a proven way to create real value for these communities. But it's not just about faster internet—it's about opening doors to new opportunities. Local businesses can reach wider markets. Students can access more educational resources from home. Healthcare becomes more accessible for everyone. At Sonar, we often talk about how connectivity brings people together and sparks positive change. It's fantastic to see these investments turning that vision into reality for Northern Ontario. Thanks for sharing Ella Pratti (Gemmell)! #Broadbandforall #digitaldivide

4

🔥 Huge day for Float as we become the only company in Canada to offer a single, unified platform for all non-payroll spend. We have come a long way since our early days as a single product company. Float Bill Pay is Canada's fastest bill payment experience. Full stop. Create, approve and pay bills quickly, and reconcile the records with your accounting system. Float Reimbursements gives you the ability to reimburse employees for out-of-pocket expenses that are not on Float cards and pay quickly using direct EFT payouts. We built these products in response to customer feedback on the significant gap in the market – Canadian businesses were either forced to rely on international solutions that weren't localized for Canada or settle for outdated or clunky local point solutions. I’m excited for everyone to try it - sign up to get early access at www.floatcard.com/bill-pay

57

4 Comments

Unpacking Innovation and Regulation in Canadian Housing. Excited to share James Keirstead's recent interview with the Canadian Construction Institute (CCI)! He joined CCI President Benjamin Bergen for a "5 Questions" deep dive into: Levven's Switched Right Technology: How are we revolutionizing construction with innovative solutions? The Canadian Housing Ecosystem: What are the key challenges and opportunities within the Canadian housing market? The Power of Collaboration: How can better regulatory frameworks foster Canadian innovation in construction? Curious how Levven is shaping the future of construction? Read the full interview here: https://lnkd.in/eddQejHx

27

1 Comment

Over $500M in Sales. 12 Toronto tech leaders. One dinner table... A powerful reminder of what really drives business in 2024. Last night, I hosted top GTM executives from Google, Cisco, OpenText, Stack Adapt & some of the fastest growing startups. In a world obsessed with digital transformation, one truth stood out: real relationships close enterprise deals. Why this matters: • Top execs are flying weekly to NYC & SF • Multi-million dollar deals are getting closed in person • Trust = currency in enterprise sales • Digital tools support, but don't replace relationships The reality of enterprise sales in 2024: • One champion isn't enough • You need buy-in from entire teams • Face-to-face builds deeper trust • Community drives opportunities Key lessons from the room: • Enterprise sales cycles are getting more complex • In-person meetings convert at 3x digital • Community is the new competitive advantage • LinkedIn is underpriced attention This wasn't just another networking event. This was Toronto's top minds sharing battle scars and victories over good food and better conversation. Shoutout to all the amazing GTM leaders for your insights. Max Woo 👋 Saad Khan Yugbodh Singh Steve Young Neil Duffy Shwetha Vincy Michael King Nabeil Alazzam Leo Vynnyk Hamza Farhat Ali Vik Kandeth Want to join the next gathering of Toronto's finest? Drop a 🤝 below. These insights are reshaping how we're building at Virio. #toronto #b2bsales #enterprisesales

277

69 Comments

Emmanuel Grenier of #carrefour taking a different view on a phased rollout at #techforretail: phase 1 is about developing and testing and take time to do it properly; phase 2 is then about creating value. Value creation cannot happen without a dev / test mindset. #composablecommerce #grocerycommerce

16

I recently had the opportunity to discuss the critical role of preventive maintenance in car wash operations with Tom Venetis from Convenience Store News Canada & OCTANE. In our conversation, we explored how digitizing maintenance processes can significantly reduce unplanned downtimes, ensuring a seamless experience for customers and protecting revenue streams. A big thank you to Tom for the engaging discussion and to Convenience Store News Canada for featuring our insights. For those interested in enhancing operational efficiency in the car wash industry, check out the article below. Your thoughts and feedback are welcome! #CarWash #PreventiveMaintenance #DigitalTransformation #OperationalExcellence #CustomerExperience

17

I'm hiring a Senior II (Staff level) Content Designer at HubSpot in the US Eastern Time zone or in Ontario or Quebec. US salary is $161,500–$258,400, Canada salary is $129,700–$207,500. ▶️ US: https://lnkd.in/ePR9ER54 ▶️ Ontario & Quebec: https://lnkd.in/e8Kesrqn This is a great opportunity if you're: ▶️ A very senior content designer with a strong record of success in solving complex problems at scale ▶️ Experienced in building product and UX, creating and clarifying IA and systems, and enabling people and teams to raise the quality bar ▶️ Physically resident in the Eastern Time Zone of the US or in Ontario or Quebec, Canada (we can't offer relocation) What makes this exciting: ▶️ You'll be part of an established, centralized team of talented content designers who all support each other ▶️ You’ll help evolve our team's setup and ways of working by adding your  ▶️ You’ll do content design at scale with a focus on building product, systems, and enablement ▶️ Your UX leaders and colleagues know what you do, why it's valuable, and will expect you to have strong opinions about your work ▶️ You'll use modern tools like Figma, Writer, and others—you may even help us build some of our own! ▶️ We're committed to being remote-friendly for the long term. This means you can work remotely, in an office, or any mix of both that you like! All that said, I want to be open about a few more things… HubSpot laid off 20+ content designers earlier this year and centralized our CD team. Our new setup is still a work in progress—it's not perfect and it's not done. There's lots of things we can do to improve. And we'd love your help! It doesn’t feel good to hire another CD after we've laid off so many great people. The folks we laid off are eligible to apply for this role. I hope they’ll apply, but I’ll 100% understand if they don’t. If they apply, they’ll go through a complete interview cycle just like everyone else. I’ve heard stories about companies reducing salary when hiring people after layoffs. That’s not the case with us: we haven’t changed pay ranges, equity, or other comp/benefits for this role. We've also deeply considered this new hire in light of the volatile economy. We expect the person we hire, the CD team, and our partners to all be around for the long term. But, as always, this could change if our business is unexpectedly disrupted. I hope being open shows you can expect me and our CD team to be direct and explicit about what's going on. We always try to Say The Thing™️ so that you never have to guess what we think. Still interested? Learn more and apply: ▶️ US: https://lnkd.in/ePR9ER54 ▶️ Ontario & Quebec: https://lnkd.in/e8Kesrqn Pro-tip: You can strengthen your application by knowing what we look for: https://lnkd.in/eSP2bXrY

293

21 Comments

Reposting as I am a lover of great graphic design.

18

Kids are expensive. So is owning a house (in certain markets). Explains the following: 1. 55% of Canadians 18-34 in recent study said housing crisis affected their decision to start a family. (CREA Poll, September 2023, n = 3500) 2. Canada's total fertility rate dropped in 2022 to its lowest point in more than a century, at 1.33 children per woman, Statistics Canada | Statistique Canada reported in January. The agency also previously reported that affordability concerns were a major factor in younger Canadians not having children. 3. Under 1% of rentals are both vacant and affordable for the majority of the country's renters (SOURCE: CBC) CBC via Natalie Stechyson University of Saskatchewan Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) Société canadienne d'hypothèques et de logement(SCHL) RBC Kijiji Canada Scotiabank Bank of Canada City of Toronto Josh Matlow TD Sonnet Insurance Company RBC The Walrus CBC #rent #affordability LINK: https://lnkd.in/g-tsTJDq

28

19 Comments

Thank you Sean Silcoff for this insightful article. The Canadian tech sector has never been brighter as evidenced by: - Venture capital dollars invested into Canadian companies is higher than any year except 2021 and 2022, and is up 12x vs 15 years ago. - There are more Canadian tech companies with over $100 million in sales than ever before. - And importantly, we are recognizing tech companies based on their revenue (while noting that many are very profitable) rather than their valuation. There is a tremendous amount to be excited about when looking at the future of the Canadian tech sector. While there is always work to be done, and we need to focus on raising the bar and accelerating the growth of the most promising tech companies, I applaud the teams who are heads-down, growing their businesses, too busy building to complain how hard it is.

53

5 Comments

If you're interested in EV charging technology, then you might be interested in this recent patent filing ... #EV #EVCHARGING #ELECTRICVEHICLES #ELEVATEIP #ACCELERATEIP #IPON #INVESTOTTAWA #SPRINGBOARDATLANTIC

12

Whether you’re a restaurateur or a “tech” person, if you’ve worked with me in the past five or six years, you know I’ve been obsessed with the idea that, with the right technology and data, we could give restaurateurs market information they simply couldn’t get. Answers to questions like: 🔍 Was I the only one slow last Saturday? 💵 Am I pricing my menu competitively for my neighborhood? 🍽️ Is it worth staying open for lunch shifts? With Benchmarks & Trends,  Lightspeed is leading the charge in offering a machine learning-driven tool for U.S. restaurants that delivers the market insights you need to stay ahead of the competition. This groundbreaking feature gives you tailored data, local comparisons, and machine learning forecasts—all at your fingertips, directly from your POS. We’re redefining how restaurateurs make decisions, helping you optimize operations and boost profitability in a way that’s never been done before. https://lnkd.in/e9NV8CJw

74

5 Comments

Spotlight: Kathryn Lockhart, Propel CEO on Atlantic Canada’s tech sector For over two decades, Propel has been part of the growing tech startup ecosystem in Atlantic Canada. About four years ago, Kathryn Lockhart took over as the CEO of the accelerator. She’s spearheaded its shift to a virtual continuous-intake model and pushed forth with what she terms as the ‘baby unicorn’ movement. The Tech Factor caught up with her in this exclusive tete-a-tete. Recently listed among Atlantic Canada’s 25 most powerful women in business by Atlantic Business Magazine, Kathryn Lockhart has spent most of her life in the region. She has a Bachelor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Leadership from Renaissance College, University of New Brunswick, and an MBA from Harvard Business School. She highlighted – “Atlantic Canada is a kind, friendly, and welcoming place, but it’s also risk-averse. Founders here need to be brave and comfortable with ambiguity and risk-taking. The challenge is overcoming this risk-averse mentality, especially when it comes to funding. Moreover, founders often need to travel, which can be expensive, to connect with customers, partners, and investors outside the region." Several of Propel's past founder graduates have recommended the program, including Christy Barsalou (Silvestri) of QuickFacts, Imad Boumahdi of PayTic and Joel Muise of Tranquility Online. Read all of Kathryn's thoughts on Propel & Atlantic Canada's tech sector in the link. #propel #accelerator #atlanticcanada cc: Tara Wickwire, Angela Hodgson

2

Canada Post strikes aren't just a local carrier issue. It's much more concerning than that🤔 👉eCommerce and Retail Impact: SMBs that rely on Canada Post for affordable parcel delivery are facing disruptions, especially during the holiday season. This is in no way ideal. 👉Rural places will get the worst hit: Rural and remote areas, where Canada Post is often the only mail service, will feel the greatest impact. 👉Economic Ripple Effects: Canada Post is a major service provider, and a prolonged strike could lead to significant financial losses for businesses. The ripple effects might also hit other sectors relying on timely shipping. 👉Increased Costs for Consumers: The need to switch to other couriers could raise costs for consumers and businesses. For example, courier services like Purolator and UPS charge higher rates than Canada Post's flat rates, which might make everyday transactions more expensive. 💡The way out? Get a backup carrier before it's too late. Q4 is not when most businesses think about switching carriers. However, in this situation, having a contingency plan is a great idea. At ShippingChimp we help ecom businesses ship without surprise fees, complex contracts, or sky-high costs. Let’s talk. #canadapost #canadapoststrikes

5

Trolley isn’t just making moves—it’s rewriting the playbook. $23 million in Series B funding just landed, courtesy of Wavecrest Growth Partners leading the charge, with Pace Capital and GreenSky Ventures in the mix. Tim Nixon, the mastermind CEO and founder, is steering this Toronto-born powerhouse into uncharted territory, turning payouts and tax compliance into an art form. The kind that businesses don’t just appreciate—they can’t function without. This isn’t your standard “look, we got funding” story. Trolley is scaling the mountain of cross-border payments, dragging outdated systems kicking and screaming into the 21st century. Billions in annual payments, 2.5 million recipients, 210+ countries served—it’s global domination with a side of razor-sharp precision. They’re taking the internet economy’s wild west of payouts and whipping it into shape, slashing compliance costs by 35%, keeping 99.99% uptime, and moving money so fast, even banks are taking notes. And let’s not ignore the tech flex here: fraud prevention that catches what others miss, ID verification to keep things clean, tax compliance across 200+ jurisdictions, and parent-child account management that scales like it’s 2050. Toss in NetSuite integration, and Trolley isn’t just building a platform; they’re building the infrastructure for how global business gets paid. It’s no wonder heavyweights like Envato, Downtown Music, and GoTo have hitched their wagons to this rocket. But this is just the warm-up. With this fresh $23M injection, Trolley is gearing up to plant flags in even more territories, scale their go-to-market teams, and keep innovating where it matters—compliance and efficiency. Tim Nixon and his team aren’t just running a company; they’re orchestrating a global takeover with a fintech symphony that’s as ambitious as it is effective. This is the kind of momentum that doesn’t just shake up the industry—it reshapes it. For every startup eyeing global growth or every #Fortune500 chasing efficiency, Trolley’s making it clear: there’s a new standard in payouts. It’s faster. It’s smarter. And it’s here to stay. Tim Nixon, take a bow. The internet economy just found its backbone. #Fintech #Payments #TaxCompliance #IDVerification #Compliance #Efficiency #Technology #Innovation #TechEcosystem #VentureCapital #StartupFunding #StartupEcosystem #Startups

3