CanadianSME July 2020 edition by CanadianSME

ISSUE 20 - JULY 2020

CANADIANSME Empowering Canadian Small & Medium Businesses PC PARTNER

BANKING PARTNER

Diversity in the Workplace For Small Business

Who Said Work and Play Have to be Separate?

To Learn More Visit: solutions.lenovo.com/thinkbook

Meet ThinkBookâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the first laptop designed exclusively for Small Business. Outfitted with smart and secure business features, a premium aluminum design, and top-notch audio, ThinkBook was built for every aspect of your life. CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Built for Business Designed for you

WELCOME Welcome to the July issue of CanadianSME Magazine. Now that the quarantine period has slowly come to an end and most businesses have started to reopen their doors, entrepreneurs must get used to what has now become our new normal. Managing a business during a pandemic is no easy task, especially when it comes to ensuring that global health regulations are met. Many businesses are finding it difficult to adjust to the new way of doing business, but it’s important to consider the safety of the consumers so that business owners can embrace the new way of doing business - which will ultimately contribute to the success of their business. At CanadianSME it is our goal to ensure that small businesses succeed during these challenging times. Therefore, since the beginning of the pandemic, we have been providing our readers with resources as well as crucial tips that can help guide them during these unprecedented times. As always, we’ve worked hard to find topics that we believe will benefit our readers. With that in mind, our July issue includes resourceful articles such as Diversity in the workplace for Small Business, Five Ways to Help Small Businesses Survive and Thrive in the New Economy, Driving Innovation in Canadian SMEs Through Transformational Leadership, How to Dress for a Virtual Interview, Health and Safety Advice for Reopening Your Business, and finally, Stephen Burke, CEO and Founder of Cyber Risk Aware discusses a crucial aspect in his article, Are Businesses Prepared for the ‘Return to Work’ Security Risks. Additionally, this month’s issue also includes interviews from top Canadian leaders such as Bert Balas, founder of The Straw, Mike Sharun, President and General Manager of Dell Technologies Canada, Co-Founder and COO at BagsAway Irina Zusman, Director for Technology Marketing at Trend Micro, Myla Pilao, and last but not least, Dan Kelly, President, CEO and Chair of the Board of Governors of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB). We hope you enjoy this month’s issue and find answers to your questions and concerns in our articles as well as our exclusive interviews. Our team at CanadianSME is always working hard to find topics that matter and we believe will help our readers in their journey of entrepreneurial success. As always, we look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks for your support!

www.canadiansme.ca info@canadiansme.ca canadiansme canadian_sme canadiansme canadiansme Publisher Shaik Khaleeluddin (SK)

Webmaster Ashraf

Consulting Editor Shiraz Siddique

Social Media Cmarketing Inc

Creative Designer Rakibul Islam

Photography Ahsan Khan 416 617 3058

Client Manager Sheliza Yacoob Contributors Mike Sharun Myla Pilao Thomas Gronnevik Chris Justice Dan Kelly

Emily Kate Grey Hope McManus Irina Zusman Mostafa Sayyadi Tom Burmeister

Stephen Burke Laura Jones

For Advertisements: info@canadiansme.ca Cmarketing Inc 2800 Skymark Avenue, Suite 203 Mississauga, ON. Canada. L4W 5A6 +1 647 668 5785 + 905 206 0055 MEMBER OF

ISSN (International Standard Serial Number) ISSN 2562-0649 (Print) ISSN 2562-0657 (Online)

Published by Cmarketing Inc 2800 Skymark Avenue, Suite 203 Mississauga, ON. Canada. L4W 5A6. Copyright © 2020 CMarketing Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part of any text, photography or illustrations without written permission from the publisher is prohibited.

The contents in CanadianSME Magazine are for informational purposes only. Neither Cmarketing, the publishers nor any of its partners, employees or affiliates accepts any liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential loss arising from any use of its contents.

UP-CLOSE & PERSONAL INTERACTION WITH

DAVID PATCHELL-EVANS Founder and CEO of GoodLife Fitness Dont miss the opportunity to learn what it truly takes to be an

ENTREPRENEUR An exclusive event for SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS Monday, JulyÂ 13, 2020, 11 am - 12 pm (EDT) Virtual Event

to learn from successful business leaders

www.businesstalks.ca

MODERATOR: SHIRAZ SIDDIQUE Consulting editor and founder of Leverage consulting

Canada Business Talks is organised by CanadianSME Business Magazine in association with exclusive partners, Cisco, Lenovo and RBC

Presenting partner

PC partner

Banking partner

CONTENTS

EYE ON TECH 15

CISCO DESIGNED FOR BUSINESS BUILT TO HELP WITH TODAYâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MOST PRESSING CHALLENGES By Lissa Ricci, VP of small business solutions, Cisco Canada

ONE-ON-ONE WITH THOMAS GRONNEVIK CEO and Co-Founder of Wasder

MYLA PILAO Director for Technology Marketing at Trend Micro

COVID-19 SCREENING By Chris Justice Associate - MacDonald & Associates

BENEFITS OF DIVERSITY IN THE WORKPLACE FOR SMALL BUSINESS

SMALL BUSINESS CHAT WITH DAN KELLY

President, CEO and Chair CFIB

ONTARIO BOX MYSTERY Emily Kate Grey, The founder of the Ontario box

STARTUP FINANCING

A PARTNERSHIP, NOT JUST A HANDOUT

HEALTH AND SAFETY ADVICE FOR REOPENING YOUR BUSINESS Hope McManus, Head of Health and Safety, Peninsula

Q&A WITH IRINA ZUSMAN Co-founder & COO at BagsAway

LEADERSHIP THOUGHTS WITH MIKE SHARUN President and General Manager of Dell Technologies Canada

ARE BUSINESSES PREPARED FOR THE ‘RETURN TO WORK’ SECURITY RISKS? Stephen Burke, Cyber Risk Aware CEO & Founder

INNOVATIVE VIRTUAL MEDICAL ASSISTANT USES AI TO DIRECT CANADIANS ON ALL THINGS PANDEMIC-RELATED Have you come into contact with someone who has COVID-19 and don’t know what to do? Do you need to self-isolate and require support? With the list of coronavirus-related symptoms constantly changing, are you unsure if you’re infected?

in helping to advance Chloe,” Smirnov explained that “the students are working alongside our engineers to solve our most important technological challenges.”

Montreal-based virtual care leader Dialogue is providing all Canadians with real-time answers to these, and other, coronavirus-related questions with the launch of a free virtual medical assistant called Chloe for COVID-19. The user-friendly, automated resource uses artificial intelligence to provide daily check-in support to those in isolation, and direct where and when to get tested for the virus, in addition to addressing a wide variety of concerns.

Mitacs intern Nicolas Trudel-Mallet, for example, is working to fine-tune Chloe’s natural language processing abilities, while Yassir El Mesbahi is helping to advance the underlying chatbot conversational system.

“

“When the pandemic hit, we asked ourselves ‘What can we do to help the public?’” said Alexis Smirnov, Dialogue cofounder and CTO. “We were already providing virtual care services to millions of Canadians through our corporate service, but felt we had a greater responsibility to support the public at large.”

“

The team initially developed Chloe for COVID-19 in March as an information resource to give Canadians access to relevant and accurate data, and alleviate strain on 811 health services nationally. The latest version, launched this month with funding support from national CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

innovation organization Mitacs, offers robust features such as wide-ranging Q&A capabilities, daily guidance for those in required 14-day selfisolation, and up-to-the-minute information on coronavirus testing, including nearest test centres nationally and whether or not an appointment is needed. “If you need to self-isolate, for example, Chloe will get in touch with you every day to track your symptoms, tell you what to expect, and provide guidance on where to go for support if you need help,” Smirnov explained.

“The challenge with a virtual assistant is that messages can be construed in multiple ways,” said Trudel-Mallet, explaining that the system needs to understand such things as whether ‘no, thanks’ means ‘no’ or ‘thanks.’ “Our goal is to achieve the highest accuracy possible,” he explained.

Accessible at covid19.dialogue.co from any device with Internet access, including smartphones, tablets and computers, the Chloe for COVID-19 virtual assistant takes the form of an avatar inspired by the first registered nurse hired by the company when it launched in 2016. It relies on information from trusted Canadian medical and government sources to provide general information on the virus as well as to answer more specific questions related to infection and complication risk, virus spread, symptoms, treatment, travel plans and more.

For Trudel-Mallet, the experience is an opportunity to learn about the burgeoning world of telemedicine — which he believes will only grow in importance once the pandemic is over — while doing good at the same time. “It’s super gratifying as an intern to be able to work directly on something that’s going to be valuable to so many people,” he said.

Data is fast moving and varied across Canada, with every provincial and municipal jurisdiction having its own COVID-19 website, explained Smirnov, so it’s Chloe’s job to quickly access that information, index it and use it to provide the most relevant and accurate information to users.

The project has capacity for more research interns. Interested students studying software engineering, artificial intelligence or telemedicine anywhere in Canada should contact the Mitacs business development team

Chloe for COVID-19 is being developed in conjunction with technology partners Dataperformers, Google Cloud, Mila, Nu Echo, Samasource and Scale AI.

About Mitacs: Students help accelerate technology Helping to accelerate the technology’s development are Université de Montréal Master’s students from the Mila Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute, who are sharing their expertise in machine learning. Their internship is funded by Mitacs, which is currently offering Canadian companies developing solutions to COVID-19 a special promotion where the company need only invest $3,750 towards total funding of $15,000 that covers an intern’s stipend for up to six months. Calling the Mitacs interns’ work “instrumental

Mitacs is a not-for-profit organization that fosters growth and innovation in Canada by solving business challenges with research solutions from academic institutions. It is funded by the Government of Canada, the Government of Alberta, the Government of British Columbia, Research Manitoba, the Government of New Brunswick, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Government of Nova Scotia, the Government of Ontario, Innovation PEI, the Government of Quebec, and the Government of Saskatchewan. For information about Mitacs and its programs, see mitacs.ca/newsroom.

REMITR LAUNCHES GLOBAL

BUSINESS ACCOUNTS FOR CANADIAN SMALL BUSINESS Canadian businesses can now receive free, instant USD, GBP, and EUR international bank accounts

emitr, the Toronto-based business payments platform, today announced Global Business Accounts, the first Canadian fintech solution for international banking. Remitr GBA replaces the hassle of cheques and wire transfers or the need to set up a foreign account. With small businesses’ need for increased cash flow and digital payments, Remitr’s Global Business Accounts enables Canadian businesses to pay and get paid internationally like a local business.

Remitr Global Business Account launches, offering Canadian businesses a new way to manage their money internationally. (CNW Group/Remitr) Remitr Global Business Account (GBA) offers Canadian businesses unique, instant USD, GBP, and EUR accounts and routing numbers to reduce the friction and costs of doing business internationally. GBA is ideal for eCommerce stores, exporters, and SaaS companies that frequently make or receive payments abroad. Remitr customers can receive and hold funds in three currencies until they need to deposit to their Canadian bank account or transfer to one of the 150+ countries Remitr serves.

About Remitr GBA (Product Video) •

Open instant accounts to pay and get paid like a local business in the US, the UK and Europe

•

Receive payments without incurring bank fees

•

Get paid faster: Remitr payments arrive in 1 day compared to 3-7 days with banks

•

Hold currencies to avoid unnecessary currency conversion costs

•

Save money with no setup or maintenance fees

•

Streamline billing without managing an international entity

•

Avoid poor exchange rates when you decide to convert funds

Samir Al-Battran, Founder of Tweepsmap Inc said, “Having a global footprint, Tweepsmap receives funds from different payment solutions and pays international vendors, which often resulted in delays and unwanted currency exchange. Remitr’s Global Business Accounts helps us consolidate all our international transactions in one place, saving us both time and unnecessary currency exchange fees.”

•

Use Remitr’s exchange rate with a flat transfer fee of $5

Kanchan Kumar, Co-founder and CEO of Remitr said: “GBA provides an end-to-end solution to the payment problems small businesses face, starting with their ability to pay and get paid. Not only does GBA replace untimely and inconvenient cheques, it also cuts out the fragmentation of using one provider to collect payments and another to convert it back to the business’s Canadian account. At a time where cash flow is king and more and more businesses are moving to digital payments, we’re dedicated to providing a more seamless banking experience where multi-provider friction is a thing of the past.”

Money is received nearly 3 days faster with Remitr.

Sandeep Todi, Co-founder and CBO of Remitr said: “Representing almost 98 per cent of all businesses, small businesses are the backbone of the economy - from eCommerce, the developing technology ecosystem to importers and exporters. With the effects of COVID-19, liquidity, savings, and the ease of doing business are more important than ever. Losing up to six per cent in bank fees is something most small businesses cannot afford. We are committed to championing small businesses, giving them more freedom and control over their finances.”

About Remitr

With Remitr, businesses can avoid exorbitant bank fees.

Remitr is a Toronto-based fintech startup for business payments that offers an alternative to wire transfers, cheque payments and bank visits. The established Remitr Global Network allows businesses to make fast—often one day—payments across Canada and in over 150 countries. The platform also offers freeof-cost deposit accounts in USD, GBP and EUR, removing the exorbitant banking fees of receiving international payments. Co-founded by Kanchan Kumar and Sandeep Todi in 2016, Remitr now processes hundreds of millions of dollars annually and is backed by global investors such as Roots VC, Smart Start Fund, Venture Highway, Whiteboard Capital and Vijay Shekhar Sharma.

•

SOURCE Remitr

The Remitr Difference Ecommerce companies selling internationally have a three per cent charge on card payments. When transferring this back to Canada, they are hit with another three per cent charge for bank currency conversion charges (FX). •

Sales of $100,000 would on average be net sales of $94,000.

•

Up to $6000 or six per cent is lost in payment processing costs.

Sales of $100,000 would be net sales of $96,550.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Photo credit: American Express

AMERICAN EXPRESS CANADA STANDS BY LOCAL BUSINESSES WITH SHOP SMALL: A MAJOR CAMPAIGN TO SUPPORT SMALL BUSINESS REVIVAL IN CANADA AND AROUND THE WORLD More than half of Canadian business owners say they need a sharp recovery for their business to remain viable; American Express to stimulate support with advertising, marketing and a Cardmember offer.

merican Express announces the launch of Shop Small - a major campaign across Canada and a number of other international locations to support small businesses as they strive to recover from the impacts of COVID-19.

This latest Shop Small campaign comes at a critical time as many businesses are fighting to overcome unprecedented challenges. It includes national advertising with a message for Canadians to get behind their local small businesses and help revive local communities and is backed by a largestever Canadian Shop Small Cardmember offer to drive spending at local businesses. “Small businesses across the country need our support now more than ever. Shop Small is about standing by the small business owners who have given so much to our communities,” says Lisa Kalhans, President and CEO of American Express Canada. “As an organization, we understand the critical role we can play in encouraging not only our own Cardmembers, but all Canadians to get out there and show up for small businesses.” According to the Small Business Recovery Research conducted by American Express, which surveyed small business owners and consumers in Canada, most business owners are ready to take on the challenge of rebuilding (73 per cent); however, they are deeply concerned about the future, and about half (49 per cent) of business owners say that every day is a fight to keep their business alive. Many are uncertain about their ability to re-hire and retain staff (30 per cent & 31 per cent), while about half (53 per cent) are nervous about making it through 2021. Underscoring the need for urgent support, the results also showed over half (51 per cent) of small businesses need a sharp recovery to remain viable.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Photo credit: American Express

Although small businesses are fighting to stay open, Canadians are determined to see them survive. The majority (83 per cent) of consumers surveyed agree that it is time to rally around the small business community and two-thirds (62 per cent) fear local businesses will not re-open and that their communities will no longer be as vibrant. A strong majority (77 per cent) of business owners agreed sales promotions are important to stimulate spending for their business to make a successful recovery. Which is why this Shop Small campaign includes a Cardmember offer to encourage spending at small businesses over the next three months. Eligible Cardmembers can earn $5 back in statement credits when they spend at least $10 at up to 10 different qualifying small businesses, allowing them to earn up to $50 in statement credits through the program. “Our goal with this promotion is to have Cardmembers show up for small businesses as much as possible. We want them to support multiple local businesses which is why we’ve made it possible to earn the credit ten times by shopping at ten different businesses – online, curbside or instore,” Kalhans said. Additionally, American Express is making it easier for Canadians to locate local businesses that are open for in-store or online purchases with an updated Shop Small Map. The company is also providing small businesses with a suite of marketing tools and resources to help them attract new and existing customers and assist with reopening. Globally, American Express is investing in Shop Small across six international markets to jumpstart spending at local businesses. The campaign is currently live in several markets including the UK and Australia with more to follow later this month. American Express has been running Shop Small and the popular Small Business Saturday program in the US for 10 years. Shop Small launched in Canada in 2013, and this marks the first time the campaign has extended its reach at such a large-scale in Canada.

Photo credit: American Express

build business success. American Express was established in Canada in 1853 and offers a variety of consumer and business products. Learn more at americanexpress.ca and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.

About American Express Shop Small Shop Small is a national movement founded by American Express to ignite passion for small businesses, call attention to the valuable contributions they make to their communities and the economy, and encourage shoppers to support them. Shop Small celebrates small businesses ranging from retail stores and restaurants to fitness studios and salons, and everything in between. Visit www.americanexpress.ca/shopsmall and follow #ShopSmall for more information.

About the Survey This survey was conducted by Morning Consult between May 28-June 1, 2020 among a national sample of 750 Canadian consumers and a national sample of 500 Canadian small business owners. The interviews were conducted online and the data were weighted to approximate a target sample of consumers and small business owners based on age and gender. Results from both samples have a margin of error of plus or minus 4%. SOURCE American Express Canada

To learn more about the offer and for Cardmembers to enroll, visit: www. americanexpress.ca/shopsmall

About American Express in Canada American Express is a global services company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and

Photo credit: American Express

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

EMOTIONAL WELLNESS SUBSCRIPTION KITS FOR KIDS

U.S. & CANADA LAUNCH Witz & Marbles, monthly inclusive subscription kits, raises awareness for children about their emotional wellness and helps to stimulate an open dialogue with their parents about their feelings.

TORONTO, ON – June 16, 2020 ~ WITZ & MARBLES INC. announced today the launch of the first ever emotional wellness kits mindfully curated for children of ALL diverse backgrounds.

Themes of the kits will vary each month, here are some examples of the first series of kits: Diversity/Inclusivity, Worries, Bullying, Stress, Obesity, Fear and more! These topics are covered from a positive and age appropriate perspective in order to help motivate and empower children. The inclusive kits are designed for Ages 4 to 8 and Ages 9 to 12. They are designed to be enjoyed individually and co-operatively with family. Free Shipping to Canada and heavily discounted Shipping to U.S.

Each themed kit will include: Engaging Story Book, Activity Cards, Sensory Toy, Co-Operative Game, Do-Good/Feeling Tracking Calendar

“

“We want children to be comfortable in their own skin and with their own thoughts. We couldn’t standby and watch both of these racial and viral pandemics take a toll on our children without trying to do something about it.” Co-Founders, Kaaveh Shoamanesh & Kristin Groves

For further information and pictures, please contact: Witz & Marbles Inc. Kaaveh Shoamanesh & Kristin Groves – Co-Founders Tel: 416-902-3631 Email: kaaveh@witzandmarbles.com Website: www.witzandmarbles.com

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

THE CANADIAN CHAMBER ANNOUNCES

$10K LIFELINE FOR 62

SMALL BUSINESSES ACROSS CANADA The Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Salesforce today announced 62 businesses received the $10,000.00 grant from the Canadian Business Resilience Network Small Business Relief Fund. “Reviewing the applications was both heartbreaking and inspiring, We saw how seriously small businesses across Canada have been hurt by the pandemic, but we also saw how determined these entrepreneurs are to preserve their employees’ jobs and to serve their customers and their communities. But today is a happy waypoint, not an end point, and we won’t stop finding new ways to help Canada’s businesses re-open and recover. We’ll be with you every step of the way,” said Perrin Beatty, President and CEO, Canadian Chamber.

ore than 1100 small businesses across Canada applied to the relief fund. The recipients best demonstrated their financial strain, how the business will use the grant to change or innovate, how the change or innovation will sustain the business’s recovery and allow it to prosper, and how the grant will support the role each business plays in their community.

The fund was managed by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and made possible through the generosity of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM). The funding was designed to help small businesses across the country stay afloat and support their recovery efforts, paying salaries, retrofitting their workplaces and acquiring technology to adapt their business model. “It has been incredible to see the resilience coming from Canada’s small business owners over the last few months. We know it hasn’t been easy,” said Margaret Stuart, Canada Country Manager, Salesforce. “The applicants have further demonstrated what we at Salesforce already knew to be true - that Canada is rich with innovation and entrepreneurial talent. We’re hopeful that these grants will provide essential support to small business owners as they return to work.”

About the Canadian Business Resilience Network Supported by the Government of Canada and led by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, the Canadian Business Resilience Network is a coordinated, business-led, inclusive campaign to help businesses emerge from this crisis and drive Canada’s economic recovery.

About Salesforce Salesforce is the global leader in Customer Relationship Management (CRM), bringing companies closer to their customers in the digital age. Founded in 1999, Salesforce enables companies of every size and industry to take advantage of powerful technologies—cloud, mobile, social, internet of things, artificial intelligence, voice and blockchain—to create a 360-degree view of their customers. For more information about Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), visit: www.salesforce.com.

About the Canadian Chamber of Commerce – Because Business Matters The Canadian Chamber of Commerce helps build the businesses that support our families, our communities and our country. We do this by influencing government policy, by providing essential business services and by connecting businesses to information they can use, to opportunities for growth and to a network of local chambers, businesses, decision-makers and peers from across the country, in every sector of the economy and at all levels of government, as well as internationally. We are unapologetic in our support for business and the vital role it plays in building and sustaining our great nation.

Please visit www.salesforce.com/careforsmallbusiness to learn more and view our full suite of resources helping small businesses navigate the global COVID-19 pandemic.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

INVEST OTTAWA TO DELIVER NEW DIGITAL MAIN STREET PROGRAM TO HELP FUTURE-PROOF 4,100 SMALL BUSINESSES Helping Thousands of Main Street Companies Open Their Virtual Doors

to Generate New Revenue, Survive the Pandemic and Drive Our Economic Recovery nvest Ottawa, lead economic development agency for knowledge-based industries in Canada’s Capital, is honoured to join the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), the Government of Ontario, and partners across the province to announce a new $57 million program that will help main street businesses impacted by COVID-19 ‘go digital’ to generate new revenue, survive the pandemic and thrive in the new economy. This new pan-provincial Digital Main Street program will inject $9.3 million into Ottawa and Southeastern Ontario. Invest Ottawa will lead the creation and delivery of the new FutureProofing Main Street program, and collaborate with Launch Lab, the Regional Innovation Centre serving Eastern Ontario, to support 4,100 companies and create 350 jobs for students in this region. Together with the Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA), the Ontario Business Improvement Area Association (OBIAA) and Communitech, the broader pan-Ontario Digital Main Street program will support 21,900 businesses and 1,400 jobs for students province-wide. The pandemic has had a detrimental impact on businesses of all sizes across the country. Many ‘bricks and mortar’ main street companies were forced to close their doors or suspend inperson commercial operations. The federal and provincial governments have joined together with Invest Ottawa and fellow partners to help small businesses go digital, and generate revenue through this new pan-Ontario program. Building on Toronto’s foundational investments into Digital Main Street and, most recently, ShopHERE (a collaboration including Google, Shopify, Mastercard and Microsoft), this new program will create new digital capabilities and support for Ontario businesses. It will help main street companies navigate the COVID-19 crisis by enabling them to leverage digital, e-commerce and online strategies, new business models and digital technologies to access broader domestic

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

and global markets, customers and revenue. Employing talented local digital experts and students, this program will help to facilitate the digital transformation and sustainable commercial success of main street companies in sectors such as hospitality, retail, trades and services. Within Ottawa and Southeastern Ontario, the program will target small business owners from every walk of life in Canada’s Capital, the St. Lawrence Seaway (including Brockville, Cornwall and surrounding areas), Kingston Region (including Belleville and Napanee) and Peterborough County. Companies are invited to register for this program on the Digital Main Street website. “Building on critical support from our federal government, we are honoured to collaborate with FedDev Ontario and partners across the province to help future-proof our main street business and economy. This new program will help companies to evolve, maintain jobs and revenue in any storm, and continue to operate and grow in any economic climate. It will equip business owners from every walk of life with new digital business models and strategies, helping them to access new domestic and global markets and drive our economic recovery.” -Michael Tremblay, President and CEO, Invest Ottawa and Bayview Yards

and Minister responsible for Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontarios “Ontario’s small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and their recovery is critical to Ontario’s recovery. As thousands of small businesses across the province closed their doors and halted business during the COVID-19 outbreak, many struggled to shift sales or services online. I am very pleased, that together with Minister Joly and our federal partners, we are providing small businesses with the tools they need to recover and flourish as Ontario reopens.” -The Honourable Prabmeet Sarkaria, Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction, Government of Ontario “On behalf of the City of Ottawa, I want to thank the Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario for this critical investment in small businesses across our region. I am delighted that Invest Ottawa will lead the delivery of this new program in the nation’s capital and across Southeastern Ontario to help thousands of companies impacted by COVID-19 get online, build a virtual business, and generate new revenues that strengthen our economy.” -Jim Watson, Mayor of Ottawa

“As local economies across Ontario reopen, we’re focused on ensuring that our main streets don’t just survive, but thrive. These businesses are the backbone of our economy, a source of local jobs – and local pride. Thanks to the expanded Digital Main Street platform, they’ll be able to expand their offerings and take advantage of more and more people shopping online. Our message to Ontario’s small businesses, and those whose livelihoods rely on them, is clear: we’re working with you to support good jobs and help our economy come back stronger than ever.”

“We’re excited to architect and deliver the new Future-Proofing Main Street element of this program in Ottawa and Southeastern Ontario. Combining the expertise of our Entrepreneurship Team and local tech talent, we look forward to working with main street companies to address current challenges and pursue new opportunities. This includes helping business owners assess the future of their sector, leverage different digital tools and business models to capitalize on new markets. It will also enable us to put talented students to work on digital marketing strategies and campaigns for these businesses at no cost.”

-The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages

-Nick Quain, Vice President Development, Invest Ottawa

Venture

ONTARIO BOX MYSTERY Emily Kate Grey, The founder of the Ontario box

STARTUP FINANCING

A PARTNERSHIP, NOT JUST A HANDOUT

HEALTH AND SAFETY ADVICE FOR REOPENING YOUR BUSINESS Hope McManus, Head of Health and Safety, Peninsula

Q&A WITH IRINA ZUSMAN Co-founder & COO at BagsAway

LEADERSHIP THOUGHTS WITH MIKE SHARUN President and General Manager of Dell Technologies Canada

ARE BUSINESSES PREPARED FOR THE ‘RETURN TO WORK’ SECURITY RISKS? Stephen Burke, Cyber Risk Aware CEO & Founder

Canadian SME Magazine

Leadership Thoughts with

Mike Sharun

President and General Manager of Dell Technologies Canada For more than a decade, Dell Technologies has built a culture around the idea that work is outcomes based, not anchored to a specific place or time. While every industry and business is different, the majority of our team members will continue working from home where possible. Like all businesses, health and safety comes first along with meeting the needs of our team members, our customers, and the broader community. As part of businesses beginning to reopen, this pandemic has proven that remote work can be successful, and this will play a major part of a business’s ability to transition. If an organization is going to allow for workforce flexibility, they need to build a culture which embraces it to ensure their team is able to give their best, both personally and professionally. The key is to start with a strategy rooted in technology.

ike Sharun is President and General Manager at Dell Technologies Canada, leading the Canadian organization serving customers across the country. In this role he leads the Dell team delivering innovative and practical technology solutions to customers. He is responsible for strategy, driving growth and market leadership by delivering and supporting products, services and solutions to organizations in established and new markets throughout Canada

By leveraging technology, businesses can create stronger customer and team member experiences. This can be done by assessing your current technology footprint to see if it is helping or hindering employee work. Make sure the technology you provide meets the needs of your employees and considers the needs of a modern workplace – where work is not a place, but an activity. Provide the right technology – devices, peripherals, applications, security, connectivity – to enable your workers to collaborate regardless of where they are. And most of all, provide clarity and set the right expectations.

Previously, Sharun served as Country Manager, Canada for EMC Corporation, appointed to this role in January 2007 after overseeing Sales for Western Canada. In this role, he focused on expanding EMC’s presence throughout Canada driving coordination and teamwork among EMC’s business unit sales forces, as well as building and maintaining relationships with EMC’s largest global accounts, global alliance partners and global channel partners. Sharun began his career in 1980 and in addition to Dell Technologies also worked at Oracle and SAP.

How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months? The global pandemic has introduced challenges that many businesses, industries and people were not prepared for. Having to quickly adapt has triggered an accelerated adoption of new resources, technology and methods for working remotely. And even though we’re not out of the storm yet, the past 12 weeks of shutdowns have allowed businesses to adapt and now start to rethink what the future of work will look like for all stakeholders, postpandemic. CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

IT consumption is likely to increase during this transition. Avoid fatigue by prioritizing a workfrom-home footprint where there is flexibility and choice for team members. Deliver quicker, more efficient services using automation and self-service to provide a faster way for employees to consume IT. For example, modernize how you deliver hardware to your end users – maybe through selfservice or even factory direct delivery with the apps and settings pre-installed. Businesses need to provide the technology that their workers require that enables them to work flexibly. Most knowledge workers have powerful tools, data and applications, on their personal devices and expect the same kind of experience from their work environment, now more than ever.

What are the differences between business operations pre and post-COVID and what is

your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal? Similar to other surveys, Dell Technologies recently conducted a global study to determine how businesses are adapting in response to COVID-19, revealing that approximately 20 percent of respondents made up of small and medium sized businesses were operating remotely prior to the pandemic. This compared to the now 40 percent that say they expect their workforce to shift to a more robust workfrom-home environment in the future reveals a shift in the business landscape, to which we are considering the new normal. According to the research, this shift to remote work will vary across industries with the largest surges expected in education (up to 25 percent), banking and finance (up to 40 percent), professional services (up to 60 percent), healthcare (up to 30 percent) and government (up to 30 percent). Advice for small businesses navigating this new normal are rooted in these three principles: Partner across the organization when defining policies. People are the lifeblood of an organization and how you approach workforce flexibility needs to be rooted in the business and operational strategy of your organization. You must ensure the protocols, policies, processes and infrastructure exist for teams to have the tools they need to get their job done. Prepare leaders and listen to employees. Help your leaders be better equipped with information and coaching to support their teams and help them feel more connected. Listen to your employees – what’s working for them and what needs to be adjusted to enable them to be more productive or supported out of the office. Communicate, communicate, communicate. This includes guidance on setting up a home office, VPN, connectivity tools, platforms and equipment. Consider offering courses for organizing your remote workspace, building relationships virtually and communicating remotely. Simple things like virtual coffee chats or open office hours are also good ways to build relationships outside of projects and outside of the traditional office “water cooler.

EYE ON TECH Photo credit: Canva

CISCO DESIGNED FOR BUSINESS BUILT TO HELP WITH TODAY’S MOST PRESSING CHALLENGES By Lissa Ricci, VP of small business solutions, Cisco Canada

The world has changed dramatically over the last few months, with small businesses bearing the brunt of the impact. As the Canadian economy begins to reopen, small businesses are now facing new challenges – like enabling flexible work from home options, safeguarding against new security threats and managing stores – while also following safe socialdistancing guidelines. At Cisco, we’re working to do our part by using technology to help our small business customers through this next phase of recovery. The new Cisco Designed portfolio is focused on simplicity and security, bringing together machine learning, AI and cloud-driven solutions to make buying, installation and maintenance simple. Here are some of the most common IT challenges facing small businesses and how Cisco Designed solutions can help.

New hybrid work environments Despite many provinces having entered stage two of reopening, many workplaces are mulling a partial return to work – or none at all. A recent study from Angus Reid Institute revealed only one-third of Canadians working remotely expect to resume working from the office as they did pre-pandemic, and most anticipate splitting time between their workplace and home, creating a new hybrid workforce. With this newly distributed workforce, businesses need to look for permanent, secure solutions to meet and collaborate with each other and with customers. The Solution: Modern collaboration tools have become a must-have, enabling people to be productive from anywhere, keeping employees connected, and ensuring work continues to move forward. Webex Work is a complete cloud collaboration solution that combines calling, meeting and messaging services in a single subscription, with attractive flexible monthly pricing for small businesses. CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Cybercrime protection Businesses are now supporting and securing a variety of users (employees, vendors, contractors, etc.) that are often working from personal devices not on the corporate network. Cybercriminals are looking to take advantage of this shift to gain remote access to employees’ apps and data with stolen passwords, as well as exploit known vulnerabilities to target users, out-of-date devices, cloud applications and remote access software. With budgets already tight, hiring a dedicated IT security specialist may not always be possible. So how can you safeguard your employees and your business from identity theft, hackers and internet attacks? The Solution: With Endpoint and VPN security, you can protect yourself against threats from every device, no matter where users connect to your network. Cloud security, like Cisco Umbrella, also adds another layer of protection. Cisco Umbrella uses the Internet’s infrastructure to enforce security and stop malicious activity before a connection is made. And since there is no physical hardware to install or software to manually update, you can save time and reduce overhead when it comes to IT.

Always-on business More and more services and business practices are being moved to the cloud, meaning employees need a secure network to consistently access their most important data and applications. Your network needs to be designed with reliability and redundancy in mind. This provides the business continuity you’ll need to bounce back quickly from any unexpected surprises. The Solution: Cisco Business Switches are key to building a reliable, flexible and secure business environment, so employees can work without interruption at the office or at home. The new series of switches provide essential functionality along with advanced security options at an affordable price. Together with the Cisco Business Dashboard, you can simplify the job of managing a business network, by automating the deployment, monitoring and lifecycle management of the network.

The Solution: Cisco Webex Control Hub provides intelligent and actionable insights, enabling IT to manage all collaboration workloads on one screen, whether workers are at home or in the office. Through the hub, you can: •

Instantly deploy Webex Assistant, our voice assistant technology, to conference room devices to minimize the number of times the screen or touchpad is touched in shared spaces.

•

Tap into deep insights about meeting room usage to influence cleaning schedules, and how a company plans the future office layout.

•

Easily troubleshoot and support remote workers, so teams can remain productive.

A chance to win Cisco Designed gear Workplace monitoring As offices and stores start to see an uptick in foot traffic, businesses will increasingly need to enable physical distancing and real-time inventory monitoring to keep workers and customers safe, while also complying with any local regulations.

Could your business benefit from some free Cisco Designed technology? Tell us your small business story and you could win our Small Business Recovery Kit. For more information on how you can enter, visit our website. Learn more about Cisco Designed at https://www.cisco.com/c/en_ ca/solutions/small-business.html.

The Solution: With artificial intelligence cameras and smart surveillance, you can measure human density and alert workplace personnel as needed. Meraki cloud-managed smart cameras include high-quality video, wireless connectivity and built-in analytics, reducing costs involved with sending traffic to a data centre. One unit can cover an entire premise for a small business, offering a 360-degree view through a fisheye camera.

New office environments Workspaces will not be able to look or function the same as before. Small businesses owners need to consider how they can keep employees safe and productive, while still maintaining in a shared physical workspace.

Lissa Ricci

Vice President Of Small Business Solutions for Cisco Canada Lissa Ricci is vice president of small business solutions for Cisco Canada. She is passionate about technology and how it can help growing businesses achieve their goals. Sign up for Cisco Webex now at www.webex.com/pricing/index.html

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Cyber Security with

MYLA PILAO

Director for Technology Marketing at Trend Micro Myla Pilao leads security research communications at TrendLabs, Trend Micro’s Research and Development Center. She heads the division of the company that monitors the security threat landscape, including high-profile attacks like advanced persistent threats (APTs) and prevalent digital security threats like mobile, cloud and critical infrastructure. She oversees a team that monitors and manages critical incidents and developments in the threat landscape. Myla is a strategic communications expert with over 10 years of experience as a security spokesperson and evangelist. She has since handled numerous public and media engagements in Europe, Asia Pacific & the Middle East, where she shares awareness and insights on digital threats and its real-world impact, along with countermeasure strategies for the computing public. Myla is also an active supporter and advocate on the protection of children online and international movements of stopping the online commercial distribution of inappropriate images of children. Myla holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the National University in Singapore. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Arts and Letters, major in Communication Arts, from the University of Santo Tomas. Trend Micro recently released a report that reveals the most common trends of cybercriminals and how it’s impacting businesses. What would you say was the most surprising factor that the report revealed? While the underground market is home to banking credentials, exploit kits, and services, recently there have also been some new entrants. Cybercriminal’s methods of communication have changed with more activity increasing in the e-commerce and online markets too. Fraudsters have begun using automated and non-automated ways such as fake news, deep fake and propaganda to drive opinions. Furthermore, access-as-a service has evolved from remote desktop protocol (RDP) offerings to selling access to hacked devices and corporate networks. As Director for Technology Marketing at Trend Micro, what would you say is the most common cybersecurity threat that small business owners face and what initiatives can they implement to prevent their business from being at risk of a cyberattack? The next six months will be crucial. As organizations and employees navigate working from home, understanding that business will never be the same again is important. With limited mobility, comes increased security for business owners especially small businesses. There are two main challenges organizations are facing right now: •

Outsourcing IT operations: Most organizations do not have the bandwidth to establish an IT department within the company and often outsource this service. With an increase in remote working, there is an increased vulnerability threat as cybercriminals can access and intercept remote networks through various tools as well. Employers should conduct the research and really evaluate their options if they’re choosing an outsourcing partner or make investments in security solutions within the organization.

•

SIM-jacking: As businesses continue to operate digitally or over the phone, cybercriminals are monetizing hijacked SIM cards to gain access to a user’s enterprise email and then access to all kinds of corporate data. Business owners should consider options available to them for communicating – perhaps over secure email or video is better than phone in certain situations.

In your expert opinion, what is the biggest impact that a cyber-attack can have on a business? The biggest impact is always on brand reputation, both internally and externally. The erosion of trust can transform a business negatively. We advise any business to be forthright and transparent if ever victim of a cyber-attack, and then follow up with a detailed action plan to mitigate future risks. It is imperative for businesses to embrace stricter security measures to ensure this does not reoccur. Many businesses have suffered due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Would you say businesses are now more vulnerable and at risk of being victims of cyberattacks? Has there been an increase in cybercriminal activities since the beginning of the worldwide pandemic? While businesses are adapting to remote working during the COVID-19 pandemic, cybercriminals are also making use of the opportunity to identify different tactics. When COVID-19 first hit, fraudsters targeted government stimulus money with fake applications, sometimes using phished information from legitimate businesses. They then moved onto targeting healthcare organizations with ransomware as they battled to save lives. Now, cybercriminals have progressed to targeting teleworkers and this domain is only evolving. With remote environments not lending much security, they are constantly upping their search to identify VPN vulnerabilities and ways to compromise corporate networks via connected home devices. On a final note, what approach does Trend Micro suggest to business owners so that they can

better defend themselves against cyberattacks?

Understanding the current focus for cybercriminals

can help businesses prioritize risk and inform security strategies. At the same time, implementing a multi-layered strategy which encompasses people, process and technology is imperative to defend themselves against future attacks. Business owners can take the following steps to better defend themselves against cyberattacks: Educate: Organizations need to establish a culture of security by raising security awareness with their workforce and educating employees on how to spot social engineering techniques such as spam and phishing. Empower employees to know where to go for help, figure out next steps, where and how to report any malicious activity. Develop security policies: Businesses need to develop security policies to create awareness and empower employees to do the right thing. Scheduling security drills to gauge the reaction and confidence of the workforce is important. Establish a strict framework of what is accessible through a remote network. For instance, social networking websites, downloading applications, etc. Back up: To ensure a company’s data is protected it’s important back up files regularly. The best practice for backing up files and data is to follow the 3-2-1 rule -- 3 different copies stored in 3 different places, in 2 different formats with at least 1 copy stored offsite. Choose a solid security solution as opposite a free version is imperative to protect businesses, employees and customers. Especially now, it is imperative to invest in security solutions that have the capability to detect abnormality in the network, ability to collect, monitor and report and ultimately keep employee and business information safe. As fraudsters evolve to find new ways to identify vulnerabilities, it is crucial for law enforcement, governments, businesses, employees and the general public alike to also make the right decisions to protect their own security.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Five ways ways to Five to help help

small business business small

survive surviveand andthrive thrivein inthe thenew neweconomy economy

Photo credit: Canva

The prosperity of Canada’s small businesses will hinge on their ability to rapidly adapt to the new economy that hasguiding emerged in principle the wake of COVID “Too bigvirtual to fail" was the for 19, according to a new report from RBC Thought Leadership. policymakers as they shored up systemically important

banks, insurers and supply chains during the 2008-2009 That will mean a big pivot forcrisis. many of Canada’s million plus smaller enterprises, a significant number global financial of whom are without a website, or the ability to facilitate online payments.

But the challenge seizing dummy the sudden work-from-home, shop-from-anywhere, sell-to-everywhere Lorem Ipsum isofsimply text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem marketplace is also a critical opportunity for firms to reposition themselves to thrive in a business landscape that will be more digital, more virtual and more mobile than anything we’ve seen.

Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type

“This may seem ambitious, given the immediate challenges of survival that confront many business

specimen It has survived not“But only centuries,forbut alsodifferent the leap into owners and book. operators, ” said the report. to five be unprepared a very kind of recovery could be justtypesetting, as costly as theremaining unprecedented collapse.”unchanged. It was popularised in the electronic essentially The small businesses that areofcritical to thesheets Canadian economy - representing 42 per cent of GDP and 1960s with the release Letraset containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and

48 per recently cent of new jobsdesktop - have suffered severe software blows during this recession, recordingincluding almost double more with publishing like Aldus PageMaker the rate of job losses compared to mid- and large-sized firms.

versions of Lorem Ipsum.

RBC sets out a five-part plan to help them make the leap to a more virtual environment, arguing that

Lorem Ipsum is simplyondummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. “Canada’s rebuild depends small business’s rebound. ”

Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into

Rea d t h e f u l l rep o r t a t w w w. r b c . com /s m allb u s in es s p i vo t

Read the full report at www.rbc.com/smallbusinesspivot

Photo credit: RBC

Here are five ways to help small business survive and thrive in the new economy: 1

Streamlined and refreshed relief programs,

including a topped up Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) and modified Business Credit Availability Program (BCAP) with greater forgiveness to cover a protracted recovery and help owners retrofit facilities for social distancing. A modified Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) could allow for a sliding scale to be paid to those going back on payroll while a brief tax holiday for small businesses to spur the recovery of local shopping and tourism.

Investments in capacity for a safe reopening

where provincial governments invest in broad-based programs to help employers restart their businesses including a nationally-coordinated program to certify public-facing facilities as COVID-safe; and provinciallyled and funded coalitions of business groups and chambers to provide personal protective equipment to small companies.

The building of digital networks to help small companies to compete in a global platform economy.

A digital strategy could include: tax credits for small firms to invest in

Canadian designed software and hardware to enable digital growth; a national program to create virtual farmers’ markets and virtual Main Streets; and an acceleration of the Budget 2019 commitment to provide high-speed Internet to every Canadian and business by 2030.

New economic strategies to help scale

including coordinated procurement efforts to designate preferred small business suppliers with a special focus on PPE, testing and tracking technologies and health care; a Canada 2020-21 tourism campaign to spur domestic travel; and a renewed provincial commitment to lower interprovincial trade barriers for small firms in 2021.

A more strategic approach to globalization

including a “Go Global” program using trade accelerators to boost exports to countries more open to Canadian goods; a coalition of governments, banks and other institutions to form a “Brand Canada” platform for small firms; and expanded expat networks to connect knowledge-based industries with global Canadians. Rea d t h e f u l l rep o r t a t w w w. r b c . com /s m allb u s in e s s p ivot CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

One-On-One with

Thomas Gronnevik CEO and Co-Founder of Wasder

COVID-19 has had a huge impact on many businesses. What would you say has been the biggest impact it’s had on the company? What effect has it had on Wasder?

s CEO and co-founder of Wasder, Thomas Gronnevik leads the brands global growth and vision. As he puts it, Thomas’ main goal is to bring together top talent who have an undeniable passion for gaming and the future of Wasder.

Born and raised in Norway, Thomas’ career began in sales at the young age of 15, when he sold cell phone subscriptions after school. As a young entrepreneur, Gronnevik started his first company at the tender age of 18, where he helped gaming companies outsource their customer support services. In the pursuit of following his passion for gaming, Thomas became an integral part of the community team for Funcom’s MMO, Age of Conan, while working with athletes as a personal trainer after hours. His sales career flourished, eventually leading him to sales director and corporate sales coaching for iconic gaming giants like FunCom and Electronic Arts. Throughout the years, Thomas has used his expertise to personally build gaming communities with hundreds of active members and competed professionally in several games including Star Wars The Old Republic (SWTOR), Elder Scrolls Online (ESO), Guild Wars 2, and Dota. A man of many talents, Gronnevik has been an athlete most of his competing as a swimmer when he was younger, to getting a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and being an active cross fitter.

As CEO and Co-Founder of Wasder, what was the inspiration behind the founding of Wasder? What were you hoping to accomplish through it? Being a gamer myself, and having worked in the industry for years, my partner and I were frustrated at the lack of a space to talk about gaming without the stigma that comes with that label. We started discussing how both the industry as a whole, and gamers all over the world would benefit from having a place dedicated to their passion, where everyone could connect. Following that, we realized that we could bring functionality that makes people’s day to day life simpler and add value to it. Similar to what your smartphone does when it gives you easy access to your favorite functions & apps, Wasder would become a unique and essential asset for people who share the love of games. Going forward, we hope to accomplish exactly that, bringing gamers & the industry together in a joint space that creates real value for every single person, whether that’s a social need or a specific function to get something done. Wasder will always work towards giving people what they need in order to feel a part of a community where they are seen and heard. CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

COVID-19 has created a circumstance around the world that is absolutely catastrophic. The combination of people who are afraid for their jobs, health and ability to provide for their family, mixed with a lockdown where we have to physically separate ourselves from each other creates an environment that most of us are not prepared for. We need connection to other people, to talk about our passions, joys, ups and downs. Our goal was always to provide this for the 2 billion people around the world that shares a connection with games. With COVID-19 happening, we decided to take Wasder into open beta a little earlier, so that we would open our doors to people who needed this connection now more then ever, and it has been a tremendous success for us. Studies have shown that industry revenues in the gaming world have seen a significant increase of up to 35% compared to last year. Why do you believe that is? Do you believe this is due to people being forced to quarantine? The gaming industry is growing yearly on a massive scale, and a great example of that is Dota 2 – The International competition, where the prize pool is 25% of the revenues of a certain in game purchase (the Battle Pass). The prize pool of Dota 2 has grown from 16 Million $ in 2015, to 30 Million $ in 2019. I do believe that people will gravitate more towards gaming that is social in its nature, during a quarantine, and also towards streaming and social platforms. I believe that this is a great opportunity for us to showcase all the social benefits and possibilities of gaming. Where people can play together to overcome certain challenges or compete in a friendly game for fun now that we need it the most. Over at Wasder, we’ve even created a full match-making system where people can find other gamers to play with and create mini communities. We call it the LFG – Looking for Group, and there’s already hundreds of groups that have open invitations to people in various games using that function. Many organizations have implemented programs and resources to help people and businesses that have been impacted by COVID-19. What are some of the initiatives that Wasder is doing to help those affected by the COVID-19? What approach is it taking to help those in need during these challenging times? As a relatively new company, we try to do the most with limited resources. One of the things Wasder strongly believes in is a project called “Folding@Home”. We are currently working on an effort in spreading awareness around this project and will be doing our very best to inspire many of our users to download and run the software. Folding@Home allows gamers to allocate a portion of their computers resources to help assist doctors around the world in researching cures for various diseases. Right now, COVID-19 being a main focus. Spreading awareness around important topics that either affect gamers, or around areas where gamers can help society is rooted deeply within Wasder’s beliefs. Gamers are mothers, fathers, sons and daughters and we know the amazing capacity of embracing people and helping others. On a final note, what advice can you give to other entrepreneurs that can benefit them during these challenging times? My advice to other entrepreneurs would be to search for areas where you can bring value, to your surroundings, employees, partners and consumers. COVID-19 creates pressure on society on so many levels, but if companies look at ways to bring value to their surroundings, I believe strongly that we will get through this with our heads held high. Maybe see it as a learning process that makes the very pillars of our society and values better for it in the long term.

COVID-19 SCREENING One symptom consistent with COVID-19 is a body temperature above 38˚C. In order to reduce the risk of transmission, you need to have measures in place to detect this symptom when present. This is where the appropriate use of temperature screening can be crucial.

Are Temperature Checks An Issue?

Questionnaire

While temperature checks are controversial, given the current climate, and provided certain protocols are put in place, they are likely to be deemed reasonable if not necessary.

You should ask the following questions:

The Ontario Human Rights Commission has taken the position that screening processes used to verify or assess for COVID-19 may be permissible during the current pandemic. However, such assessments should be reasonable and consistent with the most recent advice from health officials. It is recommended that you use an infrared digital thermometer for screening purposes, as they are less invasive, relatively inexpensive and do not require physical contact.

How Do I Conduct Temperature Checks?

By Chris Justice Associate - MacDonald & Associates

hristopher

Associate

Lawyer

➢

• ➢ at

firm specializing in Canadian employment law for both employers and employees. Christopher received a J.D. from the University

• ➢ • ➢

➢

•

of Western Ontario and an Honours Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and Law & Society from York University. While attending Western University Christopher volunteered as a legal advisor at the University’s Pro Bono Clinic, advocating on behalf of clients in areas ranging from landlord tenant disputes to criminal charges. It was also while studying at Western where Christopher developed

• ➢

➢

Do you have the person’s consent to take their temperature?

Are you experiencing fever; chills; a new cough; shortness of breath; sore throat; difficulty swallowing; runny nose; stuffy or congested nose; loss of taste or smell; headache; muscle aches; or fatigue?

➢ 󠄀 ➢

Are you in any at-risk group?

󠄀

➢

Have you been in close physical contact with a person who is sick with a new cough, fever, or difficulty breathing; or returned from outside of Canada in the last 2 weeks?

➢

Have you travelling outside of Canada in the last 14 days?

Is there a lineup waiting to have their temperature taken? Ensure appropriate physical distancing.

Attestation

Has the individual conducting the test taken a temperature check of themselves?

➢

Ensure that the temperature checks are not used for any purpose outside the specific purpose for which they are being conducted.

➢

󠄀

Is PPE accessible where the temperature check is conducted?

The temperature checks should occur in a private or semi-private area.

•

Have you been in close physical contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19 within the last 14 days?

To the extent someone answers in the affirmative to any of the above questions, you can refer to Ontario’s self assessment tool when deciding the appropriate course of action.

•

his passion for oral advocacy and litigation through his participation in several moot competitions,

Is the person taking temperatures trained on how to do so?

Are you experiencing any of the following issues: severe difficulty breathing; severe chest pain; feeling confused; or losing consciousness?

󠄀

You need to ensure the following:

MacDonald & Associates, an employment law

including the Gale and Arnup Cups.

• ➢

• Has the thermometer maintained properly?

itself

been

You need to have those entering the workplace to sign an attestation every time they wish to enter, confirming the following:

➢

• They are not exhibiting any symptoms relating to COVID-19;

➢

󠄀

➢

󠄀

They have otherwise answered in the negative to the above-noted questions; and They do not have a temperature above 38˚C.

Temperature Checks Alone Are Not Enough An elevated body temperature may not, alone, signal COVID-19. As such, temperature checks should always be used with other controls, including a questionnaire and attestation. CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Photo credit: Lenovo

STARTUP FINANCING:

A PARTNERSHIP, NOT JUST A HANDOUT ENTREPRENEURS ON THE PROWL FOR STARTUP FUNDING NEED TO LOOK BEYOND THE MONEY AND FOCUS ON WHAT ADDITIONAL

VALUE INVESTORS CAN ADD TO THE BUSINESS.

here’s one basic equation that applies to virtually all startups: No money equals no business. That’s why securing financing is at the top of every entrepreneur’s to-do list. However, dollars and cents are not the only considerations at play. When it comes to ensuring the future success of your business, choosing the right financing source is as important as the money itself. In fact, it can be a crucial difference maker in the long-term success of your business.

“The best financing sources are people who are true believers in the entrepreneur’s vision,” says Joshua Troesh, a professor of business at El Camino College and the owner of an investment advisory firm in California. If you truly want your business to be a difference maker, then your search for financial partners must focus on finding those who support your vision of the impact you want your business to have on the world. But it’s important to keep in mind that, regardless of whether the financing you secure is in the form of debt or equity, the provider is going to be in a position to exert pressure on you in important ways. “This often comes as pressure to make decisions that favor short-term revenue at the expense of long-term profitability,” Troesh cautions.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

VCs often have valuable networks Finding the right source of financing is critical from a practical point of view, says Rob Kornblum, a former venture capitalist, Kauffman Fellow, and venture-backed CEO who now coaches startup founders on growth and fundraising. Good venture capitalists often add significant value through their networks of connections. “The best VCs have huge networks they bring to bear for their portfolio companies,” he says. Gaining access to the financier’s network of executives, partners, customers, and potential future acquirers can be the ultimate difference maker for some businesses. Look for a finance provider who is willing to interact with you more as a partner than as a financier, Troesh suggests. That can mean finding someone who brings technical expertise, access to major customers or distributors, manufacturing relationships, or other true business benefits. “Entrepreneurs should interview financiers in much the same way they would interview a potential partner or employee,” he says. Ask questions that reveal what kind of difference a relationship with this financial partner might make to your immediate and longer-term future.

The best financial partners are also able to provide strategic insight into the marketplace because they interact with so many different companies. They can act as a sounding board for founders when critical decisions have to be made, helping them avoid critical mistakes. Conversely, choosing the wrong capital partner can end up being a huge distraction and create unnecessary internal turmoil during a startup business’s most vulnerable period, Kornblum warns.

Get the details in writing It’s important to codify what you expect from your financial backers—and what they should expect from you—with the greatest detail possible in your written agreement. “It should include very specific rules, and an understanding around the roles and responsibilities of each party, especially what expertise and assistance the financier is expected to bring to the business relationship, along with the boundaries on influencing the decision-making process,” Troesh says. Most standard venture capital term sheets give VCs certain rights, including one or more seats

on the board of directors, rights of information about the financial and other details of business operations, and the ability to control the sale of the business or further equity. Over the long term, any one of those factors could be a difference maker for your business—and all of them together almost assuredly so. Most relationships between founders and VCs last at least five years, some even longer. “It’s more like a marriage than a business partnership, because it’s exceptionally difficult to unwind,” Kornblum says. That being the case, the relationship between the founder and the VC is critically important, so make sure there is a good personality fit when you are doing your due diligence. Just as compatibility can spell the difference between a happy marriage and a rocky one, it can be the most important ingredient in your relationship with a financial partner and your company’s future. Lenovo is dedicated to providing the technology, services, and support Small Businesses need on their journey to make a difference. For more information, click here

This content was co-produced by Lenovo and Inc., and originally appeared on inc.com

Photo credit: Deposit Photos

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

SPEND LOCAL TO HELP REVIVE CANADA. Local small businesses makes our communities run. They support community events and sponsor sports teams. They also provide nearly 70% of all private sector jobs in Canada. They have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, and we want to support their recovery in the same way they have supported our communities time and again. So, we are organizing a one-day event called the Big Spend. On July 25, be part of helping to revive the Canadian economy by making an intentional purchase at a local small business of your choice.

3 STEPS TO BE PART OF THE BIG SPEND 1. BUY LOCAL

On July 25, make an intentional purchase at a local small business of your choice.

2. REPORT YOUR SPEND

Add your name to our Big Spend list at thebigspend.com so we can map spending across Canada and track the economic impact we’re making together.

3. SHARE THE NEWS

Share a story or photo about where you made your Big Spend on Facebook or Instagram! Use hashtag #TheBigSpend or @TheBigSpend

HELP US GET THE WORD OUT! Go to www.thebigspend.com to get updates and a media package to tell your networks. Or find us @TheBigSpend on your social channels. CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Photo credit: Deposit Photos

Benefits of Diversity in the Workplace for Small Business CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

To say that diversity in the workplace “matters” would be an understatement. Diversity in the workplace has been a major reason behind increased Return on Investment for most companies, and the same goes for Canadian small businesses. Currently, most business owners in and around Canada have been finding ways for consistent cash flow and adequate working capital especially during the pandemic. While many companies would want to keep things common, others believe that diversity results in better productivity and bonding among team member. According to a recent Canadian survey, businesses that indulge in diversity have been able to secure 35% more financial returns than businesses that don’t include diversity. Canada has been one of the most tolerant countries globally, and the willingness to accept something new is worth the appreciation. According to reports by Deloitte that was conducted on over 1200 companies, the ones that emphasized diversity had the following advantages over those that didn’t: •

Better return on investment

•

Better retention of employees

•

Better competitive outcome

•

More prevalence over the international markets and the local ones,

•

Ready backup for any possible adversity.

•

Growth in hiring more employees.

•

Rapport building among customers

Statistical Scenario regarding the perks of diversity According to Deloitte, even after increasing awareness regarding workplace diversity, only 11% of small and large business owners in Canada have shown the courage to develop diversity. The survey also says that most

millennials (about 47%) are finding the diversity development to be the “new future” compared to 33% of vintage company owners - which means it IS the new business strategy of tomorrow. Workplace diversity is meant to create the new benchmark and with every passing date, the companies who do not develop this will find it hard to cope. But what is the final impact? Why this huge shout out for miscellany? Before the small-scale businessmen start following this trend blindly, it is incredibly important to list out the five different benefits.

Benefits of Diversity In The Workplace For Small Businesses •

Diversity Is the Birthplace for Innovation

Numerous studies have been able to affirm that the more diversity, the better the innovation in any working sphere. Small businesses in Canada cannot survive unless there is a scope for innovation and integrity. For example, your company comprises similar people with similar mindsets and experiences. Can you expect something new to come up from any discussion? Now consider the same discourse happening amidst people with different backgrounds and experiences. The result will come with numerous possibilities because of the various perspectives that the participants have to contribute. That, in turn can bring about a broad range of solutions for a single problem. Diversity is something that unleashes the sense of alteration and change for the better - what more could any small-scale business owner want? Talking about alteration, we feel that diversity is the causal agent for why most Canadian companies stand out among the crowd. With a robust cultural diversity among employers, brainstorming sessions reach optimum level and the business structure becomes unputdownable. Due to this innovation brought upon by diversity,

most companies have been able to touch the culmination point to success. After all, which sane company would say no to creative perspectives and out of the box business strategies? Let diversity work to build stronger sales strategies, engaging campaigns, and an engaging workplace culture.

•

Boost in Corporate Leadership

Diversity should not be incorporated in the enterprise structure itself, and the leaders should have diverse backgrounds as well. According to a recent report by the BCG, it is evident that diverse leaders putting their ideas together can bring better innovation to the company. The most important thing to talk about is of course, the gender balance in leadership. Smallscale businesses should focus more on the quality and skills of an individual rather than a biased calculation on the color or gender of that individual. Numerous companies have tasted success for instance Coca-Cola, who did not confine the leader selection to their country itself. Instead, while hiring for leadership designation, they approached people with brilliant innovative minds that lead to better profit. It is praiseworthy how the company Deutsche Telekom almost eliminated the gender gap in its management system, and with a current ratio of 60: 40, the company is running very smoothly. Breaking stereotypes is never easy, but it is high time for small-scale businesspeople to do it. It’s going to be a very challenging step beyond race, color or even country while hiring people, but the difference is magnanimous. When you have leaders with various mental frequencies, you already have the source of innovation! Different people will give different solutions to a single problem, so there will be more than one backup during adversity.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

•

Enhanced Work Distribution = Greater Performance

When any company, be it big or small, incorporates a team of individuals with various expertise, skills, and backgrounds, work distribution becomes invariably easy. That means a concise team will be able to solve problems faster than bigger teams with similar people. Also, there will be more people to indulge in something unconventional and give innovative ideas. According to the Harvard Business Review reports, diverse teams are always ahead of the competition compared to team of people with similar cognitive capabilities. Diversity in the working dimension creates a very comfortable ambiance for all team members. It is the place where nobody feels left out and can share their ideas freely. For example, in any company with about nine people from the same country and one from another nationality, the opinions of remnants remain unheard of. There was a possibility that the unheard opinion could be the only solution to the problem that the business was facing. When a single team comprises of a diverse group of people, the fear of being outnumbered gets eliminated and people start talking about their perspective in a free manner. That is not only good for the mental health of the individual but also the company’s financial health. •

Pulling Better Talent

When you are not ready to find people from other domains, how can you expect better talents? This is a question every company owner should ask themselves at least once. Real talents look for diversity in the working field and feel that it will give them a better platform for showcasing their talents. Talent should be diverse in any company to bring the desired productivity and forge something even better. The feeling of authenticity is what every employee deserves and it even helps to boost their confidence and in turn they try to do something great for the business to help with the expansion in the long run. According to the reputed Glassdoor reviews, 67% of talented individuals look for diversity in the workplace as that is where they would have a sense of belonging. This is a shout out for all the small-scale business stakeholders to bring those who are actually worth the designation. •

Enhanced customer service

A good business can only run when they have top-notch customer service. By having employees with diverse backgrounds, the solutions will also be diverse and that, in turn, will drive customer satisfaction more. In accordance with the study done by Walker, the importance of good customer service will amplify the brand and the brand priorities. Let’s suppose that you have a garment business online and you have an amazing collection with affordable prices. But will it be a satisfactory experience for the customers if the return and refund policy is not up to the mark? With every passing date, the customers will need more personalized solutions - and that is why it is imperative to have diverse people working on it. Also, there will be a huge bonding between the business and the customers because of the different tones in communication. When they see every trivial problem is being taken care of with individual care, brand loyalty will persist. To wrap it up, diversity in the workplace is the next level strategy to be implemented for every Canadian small businesses. It is impactful and a correct thing to do according to all the new-age entrepreneurs. According to the statistical data, about 57% of current employees of every company believe that there should be a boost in diversity. But 83% of all Millennials feel that diversity is an engaging factor in pulling immensely talented individuals in business. Finally, all this diversity will bring down racism - don’t you think? The malpractices like biased pay based on race and gender can be swiped off with this single strategy. Try out the acceptance in workforce diversity, and start seeing the difference in the financial gain and increase success of your business! Ref: https://www.jungohr.ca/blog/the-many-ways-diversity-benefits-business https://smallbusiness.chron.com/advantages-diverse-employees-15967.html http://www.argentus.com/deloitte-study-explores-the-diversity-advantage-ofcanadas-workforce/ https://www.hindawi.com/journals/usr/2012/385806/ Photo credit: Canva

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

HOW TO DRESS FOR A VIRTUAL

INTERVIEW COVID-19 has put pretty much the entire world in a state of lockdown and what that means for us is that unless you’re an essential worker like a doctor or police officer, you are either working from home or not working at all. While this isn’t ideal, it’s a much less significant problem than sheer the amount of death and suffering that the virus has caused. And if we try to take as positive of an outlook on it as we can, this is probably the best period in history to be in a lockdown. Of course, it would be an awful lot better if there weren’t people dying and life was able to continue as normal but because we have unlimited access to each other thanks to the internet, working remotely is possible for a huge number of jobs. Some people are facing unemployment for sure, but most of us have been able to maintain our jobs by working from home and it may be something that sticks around even after this is over. And what this also means, is that the process of job hunting doesn’t have to stop either. If you are interviewing for a job, you can do so through some video chat service such as Facetime, Skype or Zoom. Distance does not have to get in the way of you securing a job for yourself. But don’t let the fact that it’s not an in-person interview lead you believe that can take it less seriously. That’s not the case, you still need to think of it as a professional environment and treat it as such. This means that you do need to be meticulous about how you dress and make it clear that you’ve put some effort into that. Here are a few things to consider when dressing for a virtual interview:

 Your Top Half Must Be Professional They’re only going to see you from about the chest up, and so you should make sure that for what they can see you are dressed as if you were meeting them in person. So for men, wear a shirt and a blazer and don’t forget your necktie. For women, wear a professional blouse but also pay attention to your neckline. You are going to be much closer and if your neckline is too low it’s going to end up being pretty distracting so pick something that doesn’t show too much.

 Your Lower Half Matters Too I won’t try to tell you that what you’re wearing on your legs is equally as important because it isn’t, you can be seen below the waist, but while you might be tempted to just ignore that part of your attire I wouldn’t advise it. It’s all well and good to look like you’re in a professional setting, but you also need to feel like you’re in a professional setting. You need to be in the mindset that you are actually in an interview room in the office that you could potentially be working in. If you’re in a pair of sweatpants or even if you’re in your underwear you’re not going to feel this way at all. So wear slacks or a skirt, make the experience feel as real as possible so that you don’t slip out of the working mindset.

 Don’t Wear Too Much White This is something that you wouldn’t have to think too much about when you were going for an in person interview but you need to consider it for a virtual interview for sure. Colours look much brighter on screen. If you wear white it’s going to be a little bit dazzling, to the point where your face becomes out of focus and eye contact isn’t a possibility. So it’s better to wear mild colours. Mild greens, blues or navys would be good. Try not to go too dark either because that will actually end up having the same overpowering effect that the white has. So avoid black too.

 Don’t Overdo it With Jewellery If you wear too much you’re just going to give the impression that you’re trying to show off, but at the same time, a little bit of jewellery can heighten the sense of professionalism to your interview outfit. So for women, if you wanted to maybe wear a chain necklace that’s not too extravagant or maybe some small hoop earrings that should do the trick. And men should probably limit it to a watch. You don’t have to overspend on that for it to look professional. Outside of that you could probably wear cufflinks too but I wouldn’t go any further than that. While there are some very important things to think about, dressing for a virtual interview shouldn’t be too difficult. The goal is to make sure that you look and feel just as professional as you would for an in-person interview. CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

SMALL BUSINESS

CHAT WITH DAN KELLY Dan Kelly, President, CEO and Chair

Dan Kelly serves as President, Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the Board of Governors of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB). In this capacity, Dan is the lead spokesperson and advocate for the views of the Federation’s 110,000 small and medium-sized member businesses. Dan joined CFIB in 1994 as Policy Analyst for the Prairies and, soon after, became Director of Provincial Affairs for Manitoba. Dan led many files, including the call for balanced budget laws and workers’ compensation reform. In 1999, Dan moved to Calgary to become CFIB’s Western Vice-President and was named one of Alberta’s 50 most influential people while in that role. In Western Canada, Dan led the Federation’s work on the growing shortage of labour, training and immigration, publishing many influential studies on these files. In 2009, Dan took on the role of Senior Vice-President, Legislative Affairs, where he led CFIB’s successful campaign to establish a Code of Conduct for the credit and debit card industry. CFIB’s Board of Governors appointed Dan as President and CEO as of June 2012, and Chair in June 2014. In 2015, Dan was named one of the “Top 100 Most Powerful and Influential People in Government and Politics”, by Power & Influence magazine. Dan has served on dozens of provincial and federal committees and task forces and has represented Canada’s small businesses at the International Labour Organisation in Geneva. He currently serves on Finance Canada Payments Consultative Committee (FINPAY) and the Canadian International Trade Tribunal Advisory Committee. Dan is a regular speaker in Canada and around the world on topics like international trade, the payments industry, and skills and labour shortages. CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

What initiatives have CFIB put in place to help small business owners during these challenging times? The situation facing small businesses in Canada has been incredibly challenging and for us as a business association, we’ve been challenged tremendously as well. We’ve been doing a reasonably good job at serving small and mediumsized companies – our members, across Canada. The first big thing that we’re doing is advocating for small firms so that means advocating for the Federal and Provincial governments including some municipalities to provide small business relief programs to advocate for our members through the re-opening so that they can safely re-open their businesses and all sorts of issues from HR to other matters – those are at the top of our agenda. The CFIB has played a really big role in helping to deliver the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) program. We’ve also been a big force behind the continued expansion of the CEBA loan program Canada Emergency Business Account, and we’ve also been working hard to try to fix the commercial rent (CECRA) program. Those are the efforts we’ve been making on the advocacy side, the other big service we’ve provided to small business across Canada is direct one on one business counselling. Now, we always do this at CFIB – we typically take 50-100 calls a week but that has risen in many weeks to 1000 calls from business owners. Most of them of course are CFIB members, but many of them non-members to CFIB and these are companies that were contacting primarily by telephone and asking their questions. Most of those questions have been on some of the government support programs because there’s a confusing mess of rules that often need to be changed and business owners have not been able to figure them out to save their lives, so we’ve been working hard to provide good quality information. CFIB has provided a few other services to our members, we’ve created a get back to business kit that helps guide small firms through their re-opening face. We created a Facebook page called PPEs for SMEs; this is to help connect those small companies that are starting to create personal protective equipment with those companies that need to buy it. Finally, CFIB is now part of an initiative, together with a few other business associations that have created the POST-Promise and this is a commitment that small businesses make that they can then

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

advertise to their consumers of the steps that they have taken to allow them to safely re-open. What we’re hoping is that it’ll give consumers the confidence to return to small companies. So those are five things that CFIB has been doing throughout the pandemic.

Given the current situation, what was the biggest thing that has changed in the way you’ve operated your business that will stay post-COVID? More and more businesses are being allowed to open every week. Being allowed to open is of course step one. We’ve gone from about 20% of our members allowed that were open during the tightest part of the pandemic to now just over 50% of small firms that are open. We’ve created a get back to business kit to give small firms guidance to what they need to do, it includes posters and guidance for HR issues like “how to recall your workers back”. We’re also advocating for changes for some of the government support programs. The CERB program for example, that provides $2000-month benefits to individuals that have lost their jobs are serving in some cases to be a disincentive to get back to work. We are advocating changes for that program to allow a business owner to recall their workers and the CERB benefits would otherwise end unless they have a pressing reason to stay away from work. We’ve been working on all of that to make sure we can in an orderly way, allow workers to come back to small businesses with whom they were previously employed and continue to serve clients in new ways.

What has the government done that has been beneficial to businesses and consumers and what areas would you say needs some improvement? There’s been a host of programs that have been created by the government. Some of them very good ones and others that need further tweaking and others that are a really big mess. As I mentioned earlier, the biggest and most well-received program has been the wage subsidy, it allows businesses that have seen a 30% reduction in their gross revenues to get a 75% wage subsidy of their workers’ wages up to $847 a month per worker. That is a really good program that has helped a ton of businesses stay around, we’ve estimated somewhere between 50% and two-thirds of small firms will end up using the wage subsidy and we’ve been advocating for further expansion of that program

as we go and we’re pleased to report that the government announced that the program will be extended for June, July and August. We’re pushing hard to make sure the rules for July and August will allow more small businesses to participate. The second big program that has been well received by many small businesses is the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loan program. This provides a 40-thousanddollar loan to small businesses, its interestfree and delivered through their bank and up to 10-thousand dollars or 25% of that loan is forgivable. That’s important because many businesses have told us that their fixed cost has not gone away and they of course have little or no revenue to pay that so the 10-thousand dollar forgivable portion serves as a bit of a grant and that has helped a lot of small firms in the process. Unfortunately, it too has struggled because many businesses are excluded from the program. At first, it was tight payroll requirement of 50 thousand to a million and after some lobbying the federal government expanded that to 20 thousand to 1.5 million, but many businesses that pay themselves with dividends or that pay contact workers, don’t have a business bank account or are brand new firms have been excluded from the program. After weeks and weeks of lobbying, the government finally announced that they would be expanding the program to allow those groups to participate as well with certain conditions. And the first big stage of that expansion is expected in the next couple of days, with a further expansion that those newer businesses and those without a business bank account expected in the weeks ahead. The final program that isn’t working well is the rent support program – CECRA as its known. This program provides a potential 75% rent reduction to small firms for April, May and June. A really good program on the surface – unfortunately for the small business that is affected, they have to be entirely dependent on their landlord to participate. So, the small firm can’t get the subsidy directly. They have to depend on their landlord to apply to use the program and if the landlord chooses not to, there’s nothing they can do. We’ve been actively lobbying the federal and provincial governments that cost-share this, to allow small firms to get the subsidy directly and allow them to sort out the business with their landlord – unfortunately, that hasn’t happened, but we continue to push hard for that.

Are Temperature Checks An Issue?

Questionnaire

While temperature checks are controversial, given the current climate, and provided certain protocols are put in place, they are likely to be deemed reasonable if not necessary.

You should ask the following questions:

How Do I Conduct Temperature Checks?

By Chris Justice Associate - MacDonald & Associates

hristopher

Associate

Lawyer

➢

• ➢ at

firm specializing in Canadian employment law for both employers and employees. Christopher received a J.D. from the University

• ➢ • ➢

➢

•

• ➢

➢

Do you have the person’s consent to take their temperature?

➢ 󠄀 ➢

Are you in any at-risk group?

󠄀

➢

Have you been in close physical contact with a person who is sick with a new cough, fever, or difficulty breathing; or returned from outside of Canada in the last 2 weeks?

➢

Have you travelling outside of Canada in the last 14 days?

Is there a lineup waiting to have their temperature taken? Ensure appropriate physical distancing.

Attestation

Has the individual conducting the test taken a temperature check of themselves?

➢

Ensure that the temperature checks are not used for any purpose outside the specific purpose for which they are being conducted.

➢

󠄀

Is PPE accessible where the temperature check is conducted?

The temperature checks should occur in a private or semi-private area.

•

Have you been in close physical contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19 within the last 14 days?

To the extent someone answers in the affirmative to any of the above questions, you can refer to Ontario’s self assessment tool when deciding the appropriate course of action.

•

his passion for oral advocacy and litigation through his participation in several moot competitions,

Is the person taking temperatures trained on how to do so?

Are you experiencing any of the following issues: severe difficulty breathing; severe chest pain; feeling confused; or losing consciousness?

󠄀

You need to ensure the following:

MacDonald & Associates, an employment law

including the Gale and Arnup Cups.

• ➢

• Has the thermometer maintained properly?

itself

been

You need to have those entering the workplace to sign an attestation every time they wish to enter, confirming the following:

➢

• They are not exhibiting any symptoms relating to COVID-19;

➢

󠄀

➢

󠄀

They have otherwise answered in the negative to the above-noted questions; and They do not have a temperature above 38˚C.

ONTARIO BOX MYSTERY

Photo credit: Ontario Box

Emily Kate Grey, The founder of the Ontario box

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

ant to stop indulging in your mundane lifestyle and pamper yourself? Care to get a box filled with happiness? Ontario Box is the one to opt for! It is a warehouse of original edible and non-edible products all meant to land in every Canadian household. Cut the box open, and you will be beyond stupefied to find the array of products that lay inside! You could spend hours sorting out the items, and the specialties will seem incredible to you. With every single unboxing, there will be one new brand or product to look out for! You will feel the adrenaline rush while butting the box open because you never know - you might end up loving something that you never even knew existed till then! If a single box can be a one-stop solution for your daily needs, why not get it right away? This is not going to be a convincing call- in fact, we don’t even believe the premium contents of the box need convincing to initiate the sale- so why are we blabbering? Well, we want all potential buyers to know the why and how of things- and even more. We believe in crystal transparency so that the clients can understand what to expect. This initiative becomes a win-win situation for the local businesses in and around Ontario, and the customers can get every single product with no quality compromise. Sounds good, isn’t it?

Intricate detailing WHY did it start?- It might be a hovering question in the mind of many users. But now that you know what it is all about, don’t you think this is an incredible strategy to provide premium quality products for the provincial customers in lieu of the local businesses’ upliftment? An ideal example of a symbiotic relationship, isn’t it? WHO do we deal with?- Worried about the product source? Think no more! Just visit the official website and check out all the vendors. You can rest assured, for sure! WHAT do we provide?- nothing much! Just two different boxes for you to opt from- the monthly and specialty. Opt for any one and be ready for an exciting unboxing. WHERE do we deliver?- Stay anywhere in Canada and ask for us- we are ready to be your genie. WHEN can you get the box- Order 2 weeks prior to the desired date and get the package right on time! Every time you can expect something ‘outof-the-box’ product, right inside the box!

How are monthly and specialty boxes different? You deserve to know before you pay! In the monthly box, one can find specialty products from the local businesses, which will vary monthly. Mostly they comprise of products like the following: •

Beverages for a good start after you wake up

•

Household items to keep you going

•

Sauce (name it, we have it )

•

Sweet Treat (sweet tooth needs a pamper too!)

•

Seasonings (make your food yum!)

•

Let the other things be a surprise!

Specialty box contents cater to special events of every month, and a part of it goes to charity. In events like Father’s Day and Mother’s day, a part of the box goes to the needy. After all, business needs a feel-good factor toodon’t you think. The products are •

Bathroom essentials- to flush the stink

•

Dressings to garnish in the picture-perfect manner

•

Sauce, savories, sweets, just ask!

Who thought about it anyway? I did! Hi, I am Emily Kate Grey, the founder of the Ontario box, and the thought of something like this hammered me first. After graduating in Bachelor of International Business at Sprott School of Business, I wanted to touch both global and local ends, and the result is right before you. I have been yearning for local businesses to get the remuneration according to their premium potential and thought this would be a fun activity to start with. It gives me immense delight to deliver little boxes of happiness to every household and restore the smiles on the small business owners. To say thank you would be an understatement for all the love and support you have shown. Happy Shopping, Canadians! Hope to take this far!

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

HEALTH AND SAFETY

ADVICE FOR REOPENING

YOUR BUSINESS By: Hope McManus, Head of Health and Safety, Peninsula Hope McManus is the Head of Health and Safety at Peninsula, heading the company’s health and safety advisory team in delivering solutions for small and medium sized businesses.

As government restrictions loosen and workplaces reopen, health and safety should be a top priority for business owners. To ensure that workplaces are safe for staff and visitors, employers will have to implement new health and safety practices prior to reopening. Some businesses might experience work refusals and anxious staff when it comes to returning to work. With the right work processes in place, employers should be able to assure their workers that steps have been taken to protect their health and safety in accordance with government guidelines.

Physical Distancing and Capacity Limits Preventing the spread of COVID-19 entails reducing individuals’ exposure to others. Businesses should develop physical distancing measures and capacity limits to reduce the number of individuals that can be present in shared spaces at one time. Meeting rooms can be closed in favour of virtual meetings and capacity limits can be placed on other shared spaces like kitchens and break rooms. Staggering break times and work hours can also help reduce congestion in these areas and the workplace in general. For guidance on physical distancing, distancing markers should be posted in areas where line ups might form. Distancing rules should also apply to workstations, which should be separated to adhere to the 2-meter rule. One-way flow rules should also be implemented in narrow or high traffic areas to prevent overcrowding. Businesses should also consider a phased approach back to full capacity when reopening. Recalling only essential workers first will allow businesses to respect social distancing guidelines. A phased approach will also allow employers to re-evaluate operations and make any necessary changes before welcoming more employees back to work. Workplaces should CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

She has 10 years of health and safety experience, having worked for one of the world’s biggest airlines as a Health and Safety professional. In addition, she has worked with other consulting firms in developing health and safety plans for historic Canadian landmarks such as the parliament buildings in Ottawa. Hope’s focuses are in the area of her accreditations which include Risk Management training, Audit training, Root Cause analysis was well as Accident/Injury reporting. Hope also has seasoned experience in business logistics and operations, with safety and HR management as a forefront.

develop these plans based on provincial updates and should be prepared to regress back to more restricted phases should the government decide this is necessary.

Health and Safety Procedures At this time, cleaning protocols and staff training should be enhanced to ensure proper hygiene in the workplace. High touch point surfaces should be sanitized frequently throughout the workday and sharing equipment should be prohibited. Additionally, extra furniture and decor should be removed to prevent the virus from potentially settling on these surfaces. Employers should also support staff with guidance on COVID-19. For example, health screening questionnaires can help employees monitor for symptoms and updated Employee Handbooks can outline new procedures for operating during COVID-19 and what to do in case of an outbreak in the workplace. Staff should receive mandatory training on new health and safety practices prior to going back to work to ensure they understand their role in maintaining a safe workspace. When reopening, employers can also work with building operators to help facilitate a safer environment. Employers may want to consider what common areas workers could visit near their workplace and, if the business is located in a building, what health and safety measures need to be implemented there as well. Employers can work with building operations to establish cleaning protocols, elevator protocols, contractor and visitor screenings and discuss using enhanced HVAC systems to provide cleaner air for staff.

Supporting Employees and their Mental Health Returning to work during COVID-19 may be stressful for some workers This is the time when education and training matter the most. To help workers adjust to changes, employers should be transparent about safety in the workplace and keep an open conversation around this subject. Frontline workers may be more aware of hazards than management, so it is important to stay receptive to input from staff and address their concerns.

“

Demonstrating consideration for workers’ concerns will help them feel heard and valued, which is especially important for mental health during this time. Employers should also remind workers of support available to them, such as employee assistance programs, benefits in health plans and government resources.

About Peninsula Peninsula is a trusted HR and Health & Safety advisory, serving over 80,000 small businesses worldwide. Clients are supported with ongoing updates of their workplace documentation and policies as legislation changes. Additionally, clients benefit from 24/7 employer HR advice and are protected by legal insurance. Contact us today to learn more about how we help employers succeed: 1-833-247-3652 peninsula-ca.com

Photo credit: BagsAway

Q&A

IRINA ZUSMAN Co-founder & COO at BagsAway Irina Zusman is the co-founder and COO of BagsAway, an international marketplace for on-demand luggage storage. Before starting BagsAway with her co-founder Eugene, Irina guided product development, marketing, and operations for several successful Canadian tech startups, giving her the experience to pursue her own passions and ideas. As COO of BagsAway, she’s tackled business growth and scalability issues and grown the company’s strategic partnerships across the globe, including support from one of Canada’s top business accelerators, Ryerson’s Digital Media Zone.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

As avid and passionate travelers ourselves, we were inspired by our own experiences with luggage while exploring various global destinations. Our bags limited us more than we could have anticipated, killing our arrival and departure days, in practice cutting two whole days from our time at the destination. Many places had limited luggage storage options available and most had no options at all. Making special trips to leave the bags across town or at inconvenient locations, wasted both time and money. We also noticed we were not alone facing this dilemma. Traveling families, backpackers and corporate travelers were all hauling bags around and accepting the lug factor as the status quo. Additionally, as my co-founder listed his condo for rent on Airbnb and other vacation rental platforms, he was flooded with requests for luggage storage on arrival and departure days before check-in and after checkout, which further validated the scope of the luggage problem. Time is precious, especially when spent at a dream destination. When we couldn’t find a solution, we decided to create it ourselves.

What are some of the initiatives you’ve used that have contributed to the success of the company? What aspects have played a crucial role in the success of the company? Be quick to recognize what works and what doesn’t, and to then properly iterate and move resources as needed. For our first year of operation, we actually started out with a business model that focused on luggage pickup and delivery. Although it was successful and yielded good demand, we quickly understood that scaling it would be an operational nightmare. It was clear that the margins of operating a dedicated service in an on-demand model just didn’t make sense. By operating as a cohesive and agile team armed with real-time customer feedback coming from the front lines and trend research we were able to successfully pivot to the current model on on-demand luggage storage in convenient locations. Additionally, acting fast and getting the product out to market with the bare minimum features, rather than ensuring it was perfect and loaded with all the bells and whistles was critical. A business is a hypothesis. The faster you get it tested by your audience the sooner you will operate on real data rather than information

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

based on assumptions. This means you can quickly assess the business opportunity and spend less money doing it. Going through the process of validating the concept with real users will also help understand how to improve it going forward based on the way that your end-users are actually experiencing your service.

What’s been the biggest challenge you’ve encountered in expanding the company and introducing it to the global marketplace and how did you overcome these challenges? We knew the problem existed and that the scale of the issue was significant. However, building awareness and thus changing people’s behaviour was a challenge. We really had to research and understand the customer journey as they go through the travel booking process and ensure that we reach them in critical moments and through touchpoints over the course of their research surrounding the destination. We also had to set up local touchpoints to capture potential customers that were actively experiencing the problem BagsAway hopes to solve. Expanding into different markets requires that we understand how the travel journey changes from one type of destination to another and change our strategies in reaching our audiences accordingly.

COVID-19 has had a huge impact on many businesses. How has it impacted COVID-19 and what approach have you used to ensure the company remains successful during these challenging times? Indeed many industries are suffering as a result of Covid-19 and travel is one that has seen a complete standstill with border closures as countries took drastic measures to stop the spread of the virus. The recovery is underway and we are optimistic, but we also know that recovery won’t be a linear trajectory. However, this “pause” in the economy has granted us a rare opportunity to shift our focus entirely on product development and design. With so few people traveling, our team spends less time worrying about customer support and daily business operations. The success of our business model depends on reaching small business owners, and now is the perfect time to build those relationships. Our partnership program offers businesses access to additional customers and revenue, and this is exactly what business owners will need once the economy is switched back onto “play” mode.

During this cash-crunch, we had to cut some hours, but the core team remains hard at work. However, we are considering various methods to keep our staff compensated such as stockoptions and delayed pay for contractors. We are also making use of government programs, such as wage subsidy and emergency business loans to continue to fuel our business as we prepare for the return of our customers.

“

We believe that laser focus, great communication, and a strong vision will steer us through choppy waters and back to clear skies. In return, our customers will receive an enhanced product, improved service, and most importantly, an overall superior user experience in the future!

“

As Co-founder of BagsAway, what was the inspiration behind the founding of the company?

On a final note, what advice can you give to your fellow entrepreneurs when it comes to expansion? When you build a business, especially in the tech space, it’s all about scaling. There’s a lot of pressure to establish a global presence and grow, such that businesses might hurtle into expansion mode before they’re ready. This is especially true for marketplaces where landgrab is a race. That often proves to be a mistake that affects the overall customer experience and the quality of service or product delivered. If entrepreneurs are encumbered by limited resources at the early stages of the business, my advice is to perfect and dominate fewer markets at first. A business that thrives on a smaller scale will be more successful in the long run than a business that has no proper hold in any market. When you keep laser-focused on fewer markets, you can map out a proper expansion playbook to replicate that guides the way to penetrate other markets.

DRIVING INNOVATION IN CANADIAN SMES THROUGH TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP By Mostafa Sayyadi solve organizational problems. Moreover, transformational leaders inspire followers to rethink problems and challenge their current personal attitudes and values. Most importantly, transformational leaders transform SMEs by attempting to change the basic values, beliefs, and attitudes of followers so that they are willing to perform beyond their previous or originally level specified by the small and medium-sized enterprise in their job description. Transformational leaders have been posited to be visionary leaders that attempt to develop a shared and inspiring vision for the future. Transformational leaders play a critical role in shifting SMEs toward the creation of new services and products. These leaders contribute to new products and services to meet dynamic market needs, through higher expectations and stimulation for new and strategic opportunities to meet the needs of customers in the emerging marketplaces.

leaders, when used appropriately, represent

effective

leadership

and this leadership model can be effective to increase a knowledge-based workplace based

upon

developing

and

managing

intellectual capital within small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs). Building on the transformational leadership model, SMEs can attempt to continuously innovate and create new and valuable services or products through applying new ideas and knowledge. This article adopts a holistic approach to address the following research question: How can transformational leaders meet the need for innovative products and services? The answer to this question lies in a leader’s demonstration to facilitate the generation of new knowledge and ideas through motivating employees to more innovatively

“

This article suggests that the way for small- and medium-sized business owners to make the effective changes that are posited in the transformational leadership model. Furthermore, the recommendations of effective leadership are to focus on developing a strategic vision for their future strategic initiatives

“

he characteristics of transformational

Unfortunately, while the characteristics of transformational leaders are positively associated with organizational innovation, it is somewhat underutilized in SMEs worldwide. This is suspect and alarming because numerous empirical studies have found that there is a direct correlation between transformational leadership and organizational innovation. Many scholars highlighted transformational leadership as an enabler of innovation. Therefore, business leaders that may not be utilizing the transformational leadership model which has been posited as a managerial-based competency for SMEs operating in today’s innovative business environment can now explore the virtues of using this leadership model to improve organizational performance.

and organizational innovation. By accepting the challenge of transformational leadership, leaders may be capable to overcome their deficiencies and lead better in our hypercompetitive environment of today.

Two important dimensions that Canadian small- and medium-sized business owners can learn from this article are that the characteristics of transformational leaders can help followers to accomplish tasks that they would not ordinarily consider part of their competency. The question posited for Canadian executives and leaders in any and all SMEs is to accept the challenge of transformational leadership in order to address the current gaps in leadership effectiveness and improve their competitiveness in global markets.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

BERT BALAS & THE STRAW Bert Balas is a Barrie, Ontario resident who has created the globe’s top selling reusable straw. Bert’s passion has always been to help save the planet and keep people healthy/safe, and with The Straw, he does just that. The product allows restaurants and people to stop using wasteful plastics and instead have their own straw with them wherever they go, that only they have touched / cleaned! Plus, it’s the first reusable straw that has its carrying case that also doubles as a cleaning device with water or mouthwash. The company also recently partnered with PETA across North America to help save the planet one straw at a time!

Photo credit: Bert Balas

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

What was the inspiration behind the founding of The Straw? What are you hoping to accomplish through it? Respect and appreciation for nature is probably one of the biggest sources of inspiration. When you see so much litter in city streets, on beaches and nature trails, you just have to start somewhere. With 500 million single-use plastic straws used every day in America alone, we hope to provide a high quality alternative to people around the world. The ultimate goal is to inspire a sustainable future. Upgrading from single-use straws to our premium, portable, reusable straw will hopefully lead to other environmentally friendly choices and inspire others to follow suit. This is a personal everyday item that provides value and a sense of accomplishment when contributing to the solution rather than the pollution. There is no need to go back in time to 60 year old technology of single-use paper straws. They taste terrible, and become soggy when wet. This is one of the problems the single-use plastic straw solved in the first place. Paper straws also contribute to environmental pollution, with the need for continuous mass production to fulfill large demand on a daily basis. This requires resources such as paper from trees, manufacturing, packaging and transportation around the clock! Again, that’s 500 million single-use straws in a single day in just one part of the world. That is why we invite people to a more sophisticated, sustainable solution.

What strategies did you use that contributed towards the success of getting your product produced and now sold across Canada? Persistence and adaptability are at the heart of our strategies for success. “When the going gets tough, the tough get going!” Persevere through the challenging moment and be prepared to pivot at a moment’s notice when the strategy

isn’t working, plans change and challenges present themselves. Our strategy is much like our product and service, with continuous improvement by design as somewhat of a mantra, we are constantly changing and adapting to stay relevant, improve and provide value.

You have done some incredible partnerships so far, including one with PETA worldwide. Why is giving back so important to you? If you’re in business strictly to make money, 9 times out of 10 you will not succeed. To me, business is all about giving back and providing value to people in one way or another. Rick Rigsby, a best selling author had an inspiring speech on Youtube - The Wisdom of A 3rd Grade Dropout, where he says, “Make sure your servant’s towel is bigger than your ego.” This is a fantastic perspective to have when building a business. Give back, pay it forward, and together we can make the world a better place.

Can you tell us about some of the challenges you faced as an entrepreneur and what methods you used to overcome these challenges? One of the biggest challenges anyone will face as an entrepreneur is failure. When faced with failure, we must remember that we are one step closer to success. As mentioned before, this is when we persevere and adapt, leading into the next chapter for success. There will always be challenges and obstacles to overcome in life, these challenges, obstacles, setbacks and failures are not what define us. How we respond, move forward and overcome the challenges at these moments is what really defines who we are. With this understanding, any challenge can be overcome. Use every challenge as an opportunity to grow and become the best version of yourself.

What can you tell us about The Straw’s marketing strategy? How are you promoting the brand? Our marketing strategy is of course another aspect of continuous improvement by design. An important task for us being in the reusable straw market today, is educating people as to why they should use our product and how it can improve their lives and the world as a whole. To spread the word, we currently focus the majority of our marketing efforts in two places. 1. With an amazing public relations firm (ZTPR) who does a tremendous job at getting our story out to the media. 2. Advertising on social media platforms. If you own a business and you have not adapted to the new age of technology, I strongly urge you to reconsider this opportunity and start now. This form of advertising will definitely continue to change over time, but right now is an opportunity to advertise to the masses on these platforms at a reasonable price. This will not likely be true forever. It won’t be long before big corporations jump on the bandwagon and start throwing multi million dollar advertising budgets into the mix. This will surely increase customer acquisition costs.

What does the future of The Straw look like? Where do you see it heading 10 years from now? The Straw will be around for many years to come. As single-use plastic straws are banned across the globe and paper straws are offered at some restaurants, most who enjoy using a straw will adopt the evolution of a portable reusable straw. This is a personal, everyday item that many people will not leave home without. The Straw will be the household name of portable reusable straws like Kleenex is to tissues. Over the years we will continuously improve our product, based on reviews and needs of people. The straw has been a part of human history for thousands of years and is not going anywhere any time soon. With a population of nearly 8 billion people, we simply need to change the way in which we do it.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

IN WAKE OF PANDEMIC, CANADIAN ADVISORS CAN ADD

Canadian SMEs in the Wealth Management Industry can Harness Technology Solutions to Access Healthcare Data & Cost Analytics for Financial Plans

he COVID-19 pandemic has reminded us in a big way that life is precious, and unpredictable. Our families and communities shouldn’t be taken for granted, and neither should our health. We need to be prepared for extraordinary circumstances like the present crisis. Independent financial advisors have the opportunity to help Canadian families plan ahead, and ensure they have enough saved to cover healthcare expenses now and in the future.

offer self-directed workflows, whereby clients can securely enter healthcare, family, and location details on their platforms, and then utilize smart healthcare data and analytics to generate more precise projections of a client’s life expectancy and their estimated annual medical costs before and after retirement. Modern planning technology solutions can also enable advisors to work remotely with clients to show them the impact out-ofpocket medical costs will have on their overall financial picture and long-term goals.

Too many Canadians are under the impression that most or all of their healthcare expenses will be covered by their tax dollars—but that is not the case. The Sun Life Canadian Health Index finds that 44% of Canadians expect that they won’t have to pay anything for prescription drugs during retirement, but unless they have private health insurance, this is an unrealistic scenario. The BMO Wealth Institute estimates that the average Canadian can expect to spend $5,391 on outof-pocket medical expenses every year after age 65.

For Canadians, most out-of-pocket healthcare expenses are tax-deductible. Advisors can educate clients on which out-of-pocket costs can be deducted from taxes—and utilize analytics tools and run scenarios in financial planning software to show clients how these benefits can be harvested in ways which can increase their retirement savings or income, or help pay other expenses.

Small and medium-sized wealth management practices can differentiate themselves, and demonstrate significant value, by incorporating out-of-pocket healthcare costs into clients’ financial plans. Fortunately for advisors, modern financial planning technology solutions can enable integrations with providers of healthcare data and analysis, allowing them to estimate a client’s likely healthcare expenses over time.

Furthermore, government healthcare programs often cover only a small portion of the costs for nursing homes or specialized residential care facilities. Depending on the circumstances, government programs may not cover any of these long-term care expenses. Independent Canadian advisors can utilize planning technology and smart healthcare data/analytics to estimate how much clients would need to set aside for long-term care, and devise strategies for how to save enough to cover potential long-term care as well as accomplish what they want in retirement.

Some financial planning software options

Crucially, independent advisors can utilize

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

By: Tom Burmeister Tom Burmeister is Vice President of Financial Planning for Advicent, the financial planning technology provider of choice for more than 140,000 financial professionals across over 3,000 firms worldwide.

financial planning strategies to help clients create a reserve for emergency healthcare expenses that they can use whenever necessary—and run scenarios in planning technology solutions to show clients how they can ensure they have enough to pay for healthcare in situations where, for example, they are furloughed or laid off.

“

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the

people of every country hard, including Canada. In a world where individuals

and families want peace of mind more than ever, independent advisors and wealth managers can make use of holistic financial planning technology to help investors accurately predict how much they would need to cover healthcare costs today and in retirement—and devise strategies for how to get there.

“

VALUE BY HELPING CLIENTS CAN COVER HEALTHCARE EXPENSES IN RETIREMENT

ARE BUSINESSES

PREPARED FOR THE ‘RETURN TO WORK’

SECURITY RISKS? Why putting measures in place to keep data safe as employees rejoin their company’s network, should be a number one top priority. By Stephen Burke, Cyber Risk Aware CEO & Founder

s lockdown eases, many businesses are preparing for employees to return to work. But are their corporate networks ready, with adequate security measures in place, to ensure their systems are protected from the increased risk of a cyber attack owing to staff and their equipment working from home. Cyber criminals are well aware of employee environments, and will target cyber attacks in areas that have become vulnerable. We saw this with the spike of phishing attacks themed around working from home and it will continue to evolve as workforces change their work practice once again. When remote working descended upon the nation strong and fast earlier this year, some organisations were able to issue company standard devices with regularly patched antivirus security. However, for the majority, there was a frenzy to equip their staff with the required machines to enable a quick and adequate ‘working from home’ set up. As we now raise our heads above the parapet, we are seeing an abundance of employee hardware lacking necessary security and about to connect to their company’s corporate network, risking sensitive data being exposed to a cyber attack. Computers used for remote working are likely to have confidential company data stored, have been shared with family members possibly visiting insecure websites or installing insecure software for example, with no guarantee that they have been patched and maintained over these recent months. The big question is: can these external devices be trusted back on to the corporate network? Businesses need carry our risk assessments and put best practices in place before their networks are exposed. Firstly, staff need to share where

Stephen founded Cyber Risk Aware in 2016, after a career spanning over 20 years in technology and security specialising as a CISO. In that time he found that most if not all security incidents are caused by human error at all levels in an organisation, no matter how good the technical defences were. Stephen founded Cyber Risk aware with the mission of making a genuine difference and helping companies and users at home from being victims of cybercrime. Specialities: Security Education and Awareness Programs, Cyber Insurance, Network Security, Data Governance and Security, Malware Investigator and Incident Response, Risk Management, Security Behaviour Analytics. Security Architecture, Heuristic Security, Security Audit, Digital

company Forensics, Penetration Testing, Encryption, Wireless data has security, Security management, , Database as a Service, been saved Internal Cloud Design, SAN Design, RDBMS Virtualisation and under and Consolidation, Disaster Recovery. which accounts, work or private credentials. Was it a public cloud environment like google drive, one drive, dropbox? This all needs to be disclosed to minimise risk, ensure got ongoing support in terms of cybersecurity data is safe and GDPR compliance is maintained. awareness training. They are operating from Secondly, if employees have been sharing the within a company’s network on a daily basis, devices with their house members, have they sending and receiving data through a multitude given away their password? Is the password of access points. If left untrained, employees the same across work accounts and personal are a hackers haven, an easy access point to the accounts? What new software has been installed entire network, surpassing any technological or removed and by whom? Were there any measures in place to keep them out. If trained, security warnings such as viruses being detected employees are your greatest line of defence by anti-virus software? Has any confidential your Human Firewall. paperwork been printed at home and has it There are various types of cybersecurity been shredded or dropped in the bin? Where awareness available, but the ideal is to combine employees have access to sensitive information, interactive cybersecurity awareness training questions need to be answered before they content with a software solution that works hand rejoin an organisation’s network. in hand with your company’s IT infrastructure. If a company allows all machines back onto Cyber Risk Aware offers “real time” intervention their corporate network, they will need to rely training, which identifies where employees are on network monitoring and most critically, making mistakes and sends focused training they will need to monitor the activities of the material to help improve their behaviours, saving people within the network. It is the people who both money and time. Building a Human Firewall pose the greatest business risk if they have not is the biggest defence against cyber attacks. CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

HOW TO DRESS FOR A VIRTUAL

Congratulations to the winners of the Ontario Region CANIE Awards 2020

SUPPORT AWARD

GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARD

PRODUCT INNOVATION AWARD

SOCIAL INNOVATION AWARD

WINNER: INNOVATION GUELPH

WINNER: SAMPLER

WINNER: Deep Trekker

WINNER: Fill it Forward

Anne Toner Fung

Marie Chevrier

Sam MacDonald

Chief Executive Officer of Innovation Guelph

• 

Since incorporating in 2011, Innovation Guelph has supported over 1,130 highpotential startups, and small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to start, grow, and thrive, creating jobs and expanding trade opportunities for Ontario companies.

Founder and CEO, Sampler

• 

In the past four years, 130 businesses have received over $2.1 million in seed funding through its programs and entrepreneurs have received over 24,000 hours of oneon-one mentor and industry specialist support since 2011.

 •

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

SAMPLER is the leading Directto-Consumer product sampling platform helping brands like L’Oréal and Nestlé deliver samples online and gather the insights they need to build one-to-one relationships with consumers. Since its inception in 2013 in her home city Toronto, Marie Chevrier, Founder and CEO has worked tirelessly to develop the ultimate product sampling solution while building an inclusive and diverse workplace where more than half of their 26 full time employees are women. Sampler has skyrocketed by increasing revenue by 1,333% over the past three years, while working with over 300 CPG brands in 24 countries, and reaching over 50 million consumers.

Matt Wittek

President of Deep Trekker

• 

Deep Trekker, is one of the largest underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) manufacturers in the world – delivering high quality, robust and portable underwater robots. Their versatility and innovation has allowed them to work from several industries such as military and defense, search and rescue, and shipping.

• 

Founded in 2010 with a mission to create portable and affordable, robotic inspection tools, the company has grown exponentially.

 •

These leaders of the innovation landscape in the KitchenerWaterloo Region have sold over 1000 units in more than 80 countries and now have an office in Chile to serve their growing Latin American market.

Founder and CEOof Fill it Forward

• 

Fill it Forward is inspiring the world to reuse!

• 

By creating environmentally and socially responsible products and technology, this organization located in Guelph is empowering individuals and leading organizations to make worldwide changes.

• 

So far they have partnered with more than 300 organizations globally, funded over 200 clean water projects and diverted nearly 5 million single use plastic bottles and paper cups from our landfills, oceans, and waterways.

Congratulations to the winners of the Ontario Region CANIE Awards 2020

WOMAN ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

INDIGENOUS ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

YOUTH IMPACT ICON AWARD

ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD

WINNER:

Sharon Zohar

Mark MarsolaisNahwegahbow

Brooke Resendes

Ariel Mashiyev

Founder of Big Push

Co-Founder at Research Stream

CEO of iLobby

Founder of Birch Bark Coffee

• 

Sharon Zohar is a serial entrepreneur and investor with more than twenty years experience founding, investing, and operating technology and digital media companies.

• 

As founder and CEO of the Big Push, an all-women led business accelerator, Sharon has developed a unique “Service for Equity” business model dedicated to accelerating the growth of women-led start-ups and preparing them for Series A financing.

• 

Big Push’s flagship program Pitch and Pair, has resulted in millions of dollars in professional services being offered by 600 experts that have joined the network in exchange for equity.

• 

 •

Mark Marsolais-Nahwegahbow is Ojibwe and a Band Member of Whitefish River First Nation located on Birch Island, Ontario. He is the founder of the Innovative First Nations social enterprise, Birch Bark Coffee Company.

• 

Brooke Resendes is co-founder of Research Stream- a digital platform and service that connects participants with research opportunities.

• 

Research Stream makes it easier for researchers to find the participants they need to hit their recruitment goals, and for participants to discover research opportunities that can better their condition and give back to the community.

Mark is on a mission to change Indigenous lives across Canada one organic, Fair-Trade coffee bag at a time. Birch Bark Coffee Company believes that water is a Fundamental Human Right and their mission is to bring clean drinking water to every Indigenous home for free in Canada.

• 

They have conducted 26 pilot projects with researchers, connecting over 900 participants to research studies, and have a database of 1650 users and growing, including Queen’s University.

• 

As a serial entrepreneur, Ariel Mashiyev was CEO of FinTech company ISO Office, acquired in early 2020 by a $5B private equityowned company. Now, through iLobby, he has led the growth of an Enterprise Visitor Management platform that has attracted major government and Fortune 500 clients, with a customer retention of 98%.

• 

This global leader has become an integral part of day-to-day operations for thousands of clients worldwide and continues to scale at a rapid rate allowing the company to increasingly benefit its local community.

• 

In addition, the iLobby CaresTM initiative, gives the entire team the opportunity to volunteer their time to support important causes in the community, and it is in charge of donating a designated portion of revenue from sales to support a variety of non-profit organizations.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Congratulations to the winners of the Atlantic Region CANIE Awards 2020

SUPPORT AWARD

GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARD

PRODUCT INNOVATION AWARD

SOCIAL INNOVATION AWARD

WINNER: Planet Hatch

WINNER: SimplyCast

WINNER: Chinova Bioworks

WINNER: Ignite Atlantic

Adam Peabody

Saeed El-Darahali

Natasha Dhayagude

Director at Planet Hatch

 •

Planet Hatch, helps entrepreneurs and startups grow into highly competitive companies that will contribute to New Brunswick’s economic growth and community prosperity. This organization has supported the creation of more than 200 new startup companies and is responsible for over 400 new local jobs, since it opened its doors in 2013.

CEO @ SimplyCast

 •

SimplyCast is a leading provider of interactive and multichannel engagement software for organizations worldwide, currently serving over 100,000 users from 175 countries.

• 

They offer more than 20 communication tools and more than 15 marketing channels to help organizations maximize their efficiency.

 •

By partnering with over 250 fellow community and business stakeholders, Planet Hatch created StartUp Fredericton to encourage a strong and united entrepreneurial ecosystem and keeps making a big impact on their community of innovators.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

With a clients list that includes many of the most recognized brand names around the globe in retail, non-profit and hospitality industries, Simplycast has become a world-wide leader in marketing automation and interactive communication.

Doug Jones

CEO at Chinova Bioworks

• 

Co-founded by Natasha Dhayagude, David Brown, and Dr. Tanzina Huq, Chinova Bioworks has developed a natural preservative using mushroom chitosan, a healthy fiber used in food and cosmetics. Having started only three years ago, they have raised $2.5 million in investment from major food-tech venture capitalists and have formed strategic partnerships with global producers in the foodtech industry. Headquartered in Fredericton, the team consists of 90 percent women from STEM fields.

founder / CEO Ignite Labs

• 

IGNITE is Nova Scotia’s rural innovation hub where entrepreneurs, startups, small businesses and ecosystem partners work together.

• 

By providing structure, mentorship, and opportunities for startups to operate, grow, and create, IGNITE is encouraging everyone to explore entrepreneurship as a career path without restrictions.

• 

They have directly contributed to the development of over 27 startup tenant companies since its inception in 2018 in support with strategic partners such as Futurpreneur, Dalhousie University, IdeaHub, and Royal Bank of Canada.

Congratulations to the winners of the Atlantic Region CANIE Awards 2020

WOMAN ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

INDIGENOUS ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

YOUTH IMPACT ICON AWARD

ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD

WINNER:

Dallas Mercer

Keith McIntosh

President and Disability Management Consultant at (DMC) Dallas Mercer Consulting Inc.

• 

Her passion for employers advocacy led her to launch Dallas Mercer Consulting, a disability and safety management company, specializing in workplace injury, safety consulting and training, as well as industrial hygiene services. Founded in 2002, Dallas Mercer Consulting has positioned itself as a national leader in this sphere thanks to Dallas’ expertise in disability management, her perseverance, and her amazing team. With a client base of over 550 clients across Canada, and three offices in the Atlantic Region, Dallas and her team continue to scale up!

Ariel Gough

CEO and President, PLATO Testing

• 

The PLATO Testing approach is innovation in action! Their social impact model is solving complex problems and giving members of Indigenous communities across the country the opportunity for a long-term career in the technology sector. In the four years since they launched, PLATO Testing has hosted 15 classes, trained 176 First Nations, Métis, and Inuit software testers, and is making a lasting impact in more than 50 communities. The PLATO model is not only innovative in its outcomes but its structure as well. While each course costs approximately $300,000, none of its students are required to pay.

Karen Campbell

Social Entrepreneur | Policy Advisor | TEDx Speaker | Youth Leadership & Civic Engagement

• 

Ariel is a relentless entrepreneur and a fierce community builder.

• 

By blending both of her passions, she co-founded Bailly Cosmetics, which mission is to create transformational fragrances and make a positive impact on the world.

• 

At her young age, she has already become a role model to younger generations by demonstrating that great things can be achieved with ambition, commitment and perseverance.

President at Totally Raw Pet Food Inc.

• 

Karen Campbell transformed her passion for natural and healthy feeding into a business in 2003. Having started at a small rented farmhouse, Totally Raw Pet Food has become the largest producer and exporter of high quality, natural pet foods, treats, and supplements in Atlantic Canada.

• 

Totally Raw Pet products are available in more than a hundred specialty stores across Canada including four varieties of premium treats in 400 Canadian Tire locations.

• 

This enterprise has over twenty employees and has been recognized as Small Business of the Year 2019 by the Halifax Chamber of Commerce and Export Champion of the Year 2019 by NSBI.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Congratulations to the winners of the British Columbia Region CANIE Awards 2020

SUPPORT AWARD

GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARD

PRODUCT INNOVATION AWARD

SOCIAL INNOVATION AWARD

WINNER: DIVERSEcity

WINNER: Event Temple

WINNER: EnWave

WINNER: Intuitive AI

Brent Charleton

Hassan Murad

Florence Kao

Bob G

CCDP, Employment Specialist - Immigrant Entrepreneur Program at DIVERSEcity Community Resources Society

• 

 •

• 

For more than four decades, DIVERSEcity has empowered newcomers and other diverse communities to build the life and business they want in Canada by providing resources and information.

CEO At Event Temple

• 

Event Temple is a high-growth technology company focused on building software as a service to manage group and event bookings.

• 

Their disruptive software which aims to provide an all-in-one platform is currently used in over 15 countries by thousands of users including hotels and venues in North America and Europe such as Holiday Inn, Best Western, and Whyndham.

DIVERSEcity is one of the largest and first immigrantserving organizations in British Columbia and operates a vast portfolio of services for aspiring entrepreneurs. With over 10,000 clients over the past couple of years and more than 20 partnering organizations, DIVERSEcity is making an impact on the lives of immigrant entrepreneurs in the West Coast.

 •

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Proudly the #1 Hotel Event Management Software in the world on Hotel Tech Report, their goal is to be the world’s largest and most respected Hotel Sales CRM.

President and Chief Executive Officer, EnWave

• 

Located in Vancouver, EnWave Corporation makes the world’s leading dehydration technology for the food and cannabis sectors by providing manufacturers with the ability to produce shelf-stable food products with higher nutrient value. Their innovative REV™ technology currently has over 35 commercial licensed partners, and has installed over 100 machines in more than 16 countries. After only 7 years in the market, not only are they a leader in their industry but also have built their own all-natural, $30-million-a-year food brand, NutraDried Moon Cheese.

Co-Founder, Intuitive AI

• 

Imagine walking up to a garbage bin and knowing how to recycle correctly every single time. The Oscar Nudge by Intuitive AI makes this real!

 •

Since its launch in March 2018, the AI Intuitive Team has successfully installed over 30 Oscar locations in San Francisco, Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and London, U.K. All of Oscar’s manufacturing

 •

takes place within Canada and the distribution is handled directly by the company.

• 

Oscar, the retrofittable device that can be attached to any multistream recycling bins in a public facility has gained worldwide attention. Currently, they have over 120 customers on the waitlist including property management firms, universities, cities and waste management companies.

Congratulations to the winners of the British Columbia Region CANIE Awards 2020

WOMAN ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

INDIGENOUS ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

YOUTH IMPACT ICON AWARD

ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD

WINNER:

Kelly Ann Woods

Patrice Mousseau

Madison Guy

Ashley Freeborn

Activator at SheEO™

• 

Kelly Ann’s passion for the food and beverage industry led her to launch three companies, Gillespie’s Distillery, Boozewitch Brands, and her new venture, State B.

• 

This professional trained sommelier currently sells high-quality crafted beverages through Gillespie’s Distillery at more than 300 liquor stores in British Columbia and is planning to expand to the U.S. soon.

• 

For her commitment to the Squamish Community as the president of the Squamish Craft Beverage Association and for her success as a serial entrepreneur, Kelly was recognized with the 2019 RBC Canadian Woman of Influence award.

Founder at GrantMe

Founder of Satya Organics

• 

Ojibway entrepreneur and founder Patrice Mousseau started Satya Organic in her kitchen, with the idea of creating a natural and effective formula based on traditional medicines to relieve eczema and severely dry skin without steroids.

• 

Since going retail in 2014, Satya Organics products are sold in over 800 stores across Canada and to customers around the world through its online store.

• 

Patrice’s vision has led to an innovative company that is revolutionizing the sustainable skin care industry in Canada.

• 

Madison Guy is the founder and CEO of GrantMe, an organization that matches students to scholarship opportunities and supports them with their applications through a structured program.

• 

As a passionate supporter of youth entrepreneurship, Madison developed a system that removes the barriers to finding scholarships to aspiring undergrad students all the way through to Master students.

• 

Since GrantMe launched in 2017, the organization has tripled its revenue each year and has helped students win over $3.6 MM in scholarships.

Founder of Smash + Tess

• 

Born and raised in Vancouver, Ashley Freeborn co-founded Smash + Tess with her mother in 2016, driven by her passion for creating fashionable clothing for women that celebrates and encourages femininity, strength, and comfort.

• 

Thanks to Ashley’s vision and management, Smash + Tess has grown exponentially accomplishing $10 MM in revenue and selling their clothing in 240+ stores nationwide, including major retailers like Chapter Indigo and Well.ca

• 

Ashley is a 2020 Top Forty under 40 winner, a strong advocate for advancing women in leadership, and key player in the size inclusivity movement in fashion.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Congratulations the winners of the Prairies Region CANIE Awards 2020

SUPPORT AWARD

GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARD

PRODUCT INNOVATION AWARD

SOCIAL INNOVATION AWARD

WINNER: Saskatchewan Collaborates Inc.

WINNER: Nobal Technologies Inc

WINNER: Growing Greener

WINNER: Enable

Jordan Dutchak

Pieter Boekhoff

Founder & Executive Director at Co.Labs

• 

Saskatchewan Collaborates Inc., also known as Co.Labs is Saskatchewan’s first tech incubator. Its mission is to support local tech entrepreneurs by providing them with the essential tools necessary to accelerate their ventures, and by connecting them with world-class entrepreneurs for mentorship. Since its inception in 2017, Co.Labs has incubated over 85 startups, delivered over 2,200 hours of mentorship, and created over 160 jobs.

Connie Stacey

CEO - NOBAL Technologies Inc.

Owner at Growing Greener Innovations

• 

NOBAL Technologies believes in re-imagining and re-inventing the human experience through seamless and engaging technology such as the iMirror.

• 

Growing Greener is dedicated to giving their customers solutions for portable power and contributing to a cleaner environment.

• 

The iMirror re-engineers and enhances the in-store shopping experience by leveraging AI to provide the best of both physical and online shopping creating an immersive and unique experience!

• 

Through her company, Conney Stacey, provides greener and affordable alternatives to gas-powered generators and biomass burning with the company’s product, the Grengine.

The interactive mirror’s clients list include Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Kohl’s, and PUMA brick-and-mortars all over the world.

• 

By partnering with organizations such as Western Economic Diversification, the University of Saskatchewan and several major tech hubs across western Canada, Co.Labs is making a big impact on their community of innovators.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

This game-changing device with distributors and partners in more than 12 countries is allowing access to power in any environment by using any type of energy available.

Sue Crawford

Co-Founder, Executive Director, Enable

• 

ENABLE works to overcome the barriers to community access that people with disabilities and their families experience, by carefully matching them and support workers.

• 

These matches are based on shared interests and their time together focuses on preparing people with disabilities to reach their full potential and live as independently as possible.

• 

This Calgary-based company is already a game-changer in its community where they have completed nearly 20,000 hours of service with over 100 support workers in their database.

Congratulations the winners of the Prairies Region CANIE Awards 2020

WOMAN ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

INDIGENOUS ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

YOUTH IMPACT ICON AWARD

ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD

WINNER:

Kendal Netmaker

Nicolas Beique

James Boettcher

Lauryn Vaughn CEO/ Founder, The Upside

• 

Lauryn’s passion for the fashion industry led her to launch The Upside, an online luxury clothing and accessories reseller that expands the retail market allowing women to buy brands they love at affordable prices.

• 

Founded in 2015, The Upside has positioned itself as the largest online luxury resale retailer in Canada, with more than 10,000 users.

• 

With an inventory of over 200 luxury brands, The Upside is creating a movement of conscious luxury consumers by redefining the retail life cycle.

Founder & CEO, Helcim Inc.

Founder of Neechie Gear® + IndigiFund

• 

Kendal Netmaker from Sweetgrass First Nation, Saskatchewan, is one of Canada’s leading speakers, delivering Executive Leadership Coaching & Business Consulting through the Netmaker Academy. To date, this serial entrepreneur has founded and invested in 5 businesses. He is also the best-selling author of Driven To Succeed and has won over 25 business awards, including runner-up at the YBI Global Entrepreneur of the Year & one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40®. Kendal is on a mission to empower entrepreneurs and leaders around the globe by demonstrating that regardless of where you come from and what you have gone through in your life, you have the power to enact change. Become who you were born to be!

• 

Through his bootstrapped fintech startup Helcim, Nicolas is leading the way for Calgary’s emerging tech sector.

• 

This innovative organization solves a pain point that thousands of business owners face….credit card payments!, by making them simple, and affordable.

• 

In the last five years, the company has grown from two employees to more than 50, providing payment infrastructure for more than 6,500 businesses across the U.S. and Canada and processing more than $2.5 billion in payments.

Founder of Righteous Gelato

• 

From humble beginnings, James acquired a single gelato shop in the midst of a recession, with $1,800 in his pocket about 13 years ago.

• 

Under his leadership, Righteous Gelato, previously known as Fiasco Gelato, has built a strong culture of freedom and empowerment, backed by a relentless passion.

• 

By staying true to the mission of ‘Enriching people’s lives’ James has led his team to becoming the first and only Canadian ice cream company certified as a B Corporation and is available in more than 2800 retailers across Canada.

• 

A man of passion and enthusiasm, James is committed to building something that matters.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

Congratulations the winners of the Québec Region CANIE Awards 2020

SUPPORT AWARD

GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARD

PRODUCT INNOVATION AWARD

SOCIAL INNOVATION AWARD

WINNER: Centech

WINNER: Stay22

WINNER: Vital Tracer Ltd.

WINNER: The Green Stop

Richard Chénier

Andrew Lockhead

Azadeh Dastmalchi

Rachel Labbé-Bellas

Director General Of Centech

• 

Centech, is a leading Canadian Deep-tech incubator based in Montreal which supports innovators and entrepreneurs from across the country

• 

This organization that has been among the top 20 of the most efficient university incubators in the world according to UBI-Global has created and mentor more than 30 businesses that have attracted close to $ 150M in investment

• 

There is no doubt that Centech is a game changer in the Quebec and Canadian innovation landscape and it’s only the beginning!

CEO @ Stay22

• 

Thanks to Stay22 intuitive map, travelers are now able to identify the accommodations closest to the event, filtering according to their price preferences and type of accommodation.

• 

Through partnerships with hotel booking sites and Airbnb, the company has expanded its service offering in more than 56 countries

• 

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

around the world and has enabled more than 100,000 travelers to find accommodation near festivals, places, events and conferences. This past year, Stay22 signed more than 375 new agreements with events, festivals and other partners, optimizing the experience of individuals when traveling in Montreal and elsewhere in the world. 52

CEO & Co-Founder at VitalTracer

• 

Vital Tracer’s mission is to provide quality solutions that accurately capture vital signs to keep users alert and aware of their health. Their smartwatch aims to track customers’ health while they continue their daily activities.

• 

Their promising product has already been awarded with prestigious prizes such as the Ministry of Economy Innovation Award, the D3 Seed Fund , the McGill University X1-Accelerator fund and the Montreal Inc Foundation Prize.

• 

VitalTracer’s vision is to be the world-recognized innovator in combining health, technology and personalized medicine!

Founder of the Green Stop

• 

The Green Stop provides portable, affordable and self-operated water-refill stations for outdoor events eliminating the need for single-use plastic water bottles!

• 

This organization engages with large outdoor festivals and events to change the way they provide water. Massive events such as Osheaga Festival, Île Soniq and Piknic Électronik are in their list of clients.

• 

The Green Stop stations have prevented 134,000 plastic bottles of water from being used so far and will continue providing clean drinking water in a faster, smarter and more environmentally friendly manner.

Congratulations the winners of the Québec Region CANIE Awards 2020

WOMAN ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

INDIGENOUS ENTREPRENEUR AWARD

YOUTH IMPACT ICON AWARD

ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD

WINNER:

WINNER: AlayaCare

Audra Renyi

Francine Whiteduck

Raphael Christian-Roy

Adrian Schauer

Executive Director at World Wide Hearing Foundation International

• 

Audra Renyi is the executive director of the non-profit World Wide Hearing and the founder of earAccess Inc., a for-profit social enterprise. Through her leadership and passion, Audra is helping put hearing loss on the global agenda.

Founder, Whiteduck Resources

• 

Francine founded Whiteduck Resources in 1984 and since then the firm has managed and delivered research, evaluation, and organizational development projects on a wide range of indigenous issues.

• 

By leading micro-enterprise initiatives in the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum to increase indigenous women producers’ participation in trade, Francine has contributed significantly to indigenous communities business development.

By proposing a disruptive new business model for hearing aid worldwide, focusing on emerging markets, earAcess aims to combine the advances in technology with novel ways to distribute hearing aids. She is a winner of the 2017 Governor General of Canada’s Innovation Award, and was named a Heroine of Health at the World Health Assembly.

• 

Her service to her community doesn’t stop there! She has served as CEO of a network of 58 Aboriginal financial institutions across Canada and continues to impact first nations entrepreneurs every day.

National Managing Director of Front Row Ventures @ Real Ventures | Product Geek

• 

Raphael is the National Managing Director of Front Row Ventures, the first Canadian student-run venture capital fund managed by students that invests only in student-led startups.

• 

In its mission to build a nation where students are empowered to challenge the status quo through technology and entrepreneurship, this organization has successfully run a $600K Quebec-focused pilot fund over the past two years in partnership with Real Ventures.

• 

Front Row Ventures is currently raising a $10M in investable capital to expand its operations to more than 35 university campuses across Canada.

Founder AlayaCare

• 

Adrian Schauer is the founder and CEO of AlayaCare, an innovative software platform that enables home and community care providers to deliver best-in-class services and improve patient outcomes.

• 

AlayaCare is a Montrealbased company that now has over 360 employees in Canada, the US and Australia.

• 

In five years, this organization has grown from a small Canadian start-up to a global home health care disruptor facilitating over 10,000,000 visits.

• 

In 2011, Adrian and his wife established the Gillian and Adrian Schauer Foundation which provides grants to maternal health initiatives including the Madiro Fund.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY PARTNERS

Does your business need a dedicated I.T. team? Get our Nerds on it.

Not only can we optimize the security and efficiency of your technology, we can also help you save up to 25-35% on your overall tech costs.

Bring us in for a FREE 2-hour technology assessment. VISIT NERDSONSITE.COM OR CALL 1.877.696.3737

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JANUARY 2020 I

Technology can be the bridge to help your business through recovery. How are you using it to keep your business afloat? Tell us for a chance to win Cisco gear designed to keep you connected, protected and productive. Visit cisco.com/ca/smallbizcontest for details.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JULY 2020 I