CanadianSME June 2020 edition

ISSUE 18 - JUNE 2020

CANADIANSME Empowering Canadian Small & Medium Businesses PC PARTNER

BANKING PARTNER

IN CONVERSATION WITH

NATASHA KOIFMAN President - NKPR

#BlackLivesMatter

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Lenovo recommends Windows 10 Pro for business CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020 I

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TruShield Insurance is here for small business.

We are a proud partner of the Canadian Chamber’s Business Protection Program.

TruShield offers affordable small business insurance solutions: Commercial General Liability

Home-Based Business

Professional Liability

Business Interruption

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Commercial Property

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Commercial Auto

Special Offer for Chamber Members: When you purchase a Commercial General Liability policy with coverage of $2 million, your coverage will be increased to $5 million at no extra cost.

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Talk with a TruShield Advisor: 1.833.725.1341 Insure your small business online with just a few clicks:

TruShield.ca/BusinessProtection TruShield Insurance and TruShield Insurance logo are trademarks of Northbridge Financial Corporation, licensed by Northbridge General Insurance Corporation (insurer of TruShield Insurance policies). Terms, conditions and exclusions apply. Please see policy for details. All trademarks are used under license from their owners. We respect your privacy. Visit TruShield.ca/BusinessProtection to review our privacy commitment.

The Canadian Chamber’s Business Protection Program with TruShield Insurance is offered through Dion Insurance Program Management Inc.

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WELCOME June officially sets the halfway mark of the year. Although we are currently experiencing challenging times and the future of many small businesses seem uncertain, we must not lose hope. Supporting small businesses has become of utmost importance. Canadians are now more than ever supporting shopping from local businesses. Small businesses have a significant impact on Canada’s economy, and contributing to their success is crucial. With that in mind, CanadianSME is happy to provide resources and expert knowledge to help small businesses succeed during these uncertain times.

In this month’s issue, we’re proud to provide interviews from top executives who have shared some of their best tips on how to survive during the COVID-19 outbreak. To start, we have Paul Gasper from UPS Canada, Sue Hutchison who is the Senior VP of MasterCard, Roi Ross, VP of Marketing at Telus Business, Mark Vernon who is the General Manager at Gold-Vision CRM and Lori Darlington is the Vice President, Small Business, Strategy & Partnerships for Business Financial Services at RBC, just to name a few. On top of having interviews from some of Canada’s top leaders, we also have resourceful articles to help entrepreneurs succeed.

Adam Kirsh from Salesforce talks about the consumer factor in What Customers Will Need From Companies During (And After) COVID-19, Mostafa Sayyad talks about the new work environment in Why Do We Need A Flexible Corporate Structure In The Workplace, and Ryan Wozniak who is the Senior Vice President of Legal at Peninsula talks about work refusals in his article on Dealing with Work Refusals: Employer Obligations and Employee Rights. This issue has been put in place to help entrepreneurs survive during these unprecedented times. While these times seem uncertain, remember that CanadianSME is here to provide support and resources to help you.

We hope you enjoy this month’s issue and happy reading!

Thanks for your support!

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

Webmaster Ashraf

Consulting Editor Shiraz Siddique

Social Media Cmarketing Inc

Creative Designer Rakibul Islam

Cover Photography NKPR

Client Manager Sheliza Yacoob

Contributors Natasha Koifman Lori Darlington Andrea Stairs Duncan Sinclair Sameer Gulati Danielle Graham

Dino Infanti Mary NG Adam Kirsh Mostafa Sayyadi Tina Leckie Roi Ross

Mark Vernon Brett Colvin Paul Gaspar Jennifer Safruk Ryan Wozniak

For Advertisements: info@canadiansme.ca Cmarketing Inc 2800 Skymark Avenue, Suite 203 Mississauga, ON. Canada. L4W 5A6 +1 647 668 5785, 905 206 0055, 416 655 0205

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.

CONTENTS

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NATASHA KOIFMAN’S STRATEGIES TO BUILD AND MAINTAIN A SUCCESSFUL BRAND

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President of NKPR Inc.

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ADAPTING THE “NEW NORMAL” WITH LORI DARLINGTON Vice President, Small Business, Strategy & Partnerships for Business Financial Services at RBC.

STANDING WITH CANADIAN OWNERS AT A TIME OF DISTANCE Exclusive Chat with Roi Ross, VP of Marketing, TELUS Business

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MINISTER MARY NG SHARES HER ADVICE ON HOW TO SUCCEED PAST COVID-19

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COVID-19 SHIFTS BUSINESS FROM COMPETITION TO COLLABORATION

Business Strategist Shares How To Turn Pandemic Obstacles into Opportunities for Growth

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DISCUSSING CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES WITH PAUL GASPAR D i r e c t o r o f S m a l l B u s i n e s s, U P S ® C a n a d a

YOUR BIGGEST 22 PROTECTING ASSET: YOUR COMPANY’S DATA Why cybersecurity protection should be a key line item in your business budget.

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SAMSUNG POS AND THE NEW NORMAL Jennifer Safruk, VP Sales and Product Management, Samsung Electronics Canada

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AN EXCLUSIVE CHAT WITH DUNCAN SINCLAIR Chair Of Deloitte Canada And Chile

Q&A WITH ANDREA STAIRS

Chief Marketing Officer, eBay North America & President, eBay Canada Ltd.

EYE ON TECH

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STACEY CUMMINGS DISCUSSES HOW PUROLATOR IS HELPING SMALL BUSINESSES Head of Customer Solutions Marketing at Purolator

CHOOSING THE RIGHT REMOTE WORK AND VIDEO COLLABORATION SOLUTION FOR YOUR BUSINESS

By Lissa Ricci, VP of small business solutions, Cisco Canada

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DAN KELLY’S ADVICE ON REOPENING

President, CEO and Chair Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB)

Activities and concerns of Canadian youth during the COVID-19 pandemic Between March 29 and April 3, Statistics Canada collected information via a new web panel survey in the Canadian Perspectives Survey Series. More than 4,600 people in the 10 provinces responded to this survey.

40%

22%

About of respondents were youth aged 15 to 30 years.

of youth reported excellent or very good mental health.

Activities engaged in by youth aged 15 to 30 for their mental or physical health Communication with friends and family

Exercise indoors

Exercise outdoors

66.8%

62.3%

93.6%

Changing food choices

39.7%

Meditation

22.7%

Concerns of youth aged 15 to 30 about the impact of COVID-19

86.5% 85.9%

Health of vulnerable people Overloading the health system

65.4% 61.6%

Health of the world's population Health of the Canadian population

52.0% 47.3%

Health of a household member Civil disorder

37.8% 36.1% 36.1% 34.3%

Ability to cooperate during crisis Ability to cooperate and support one another after the crisis Family stress due to conďŹ nement Maintaining social ties My own health

21.0%

Source: Canadian Perspectives Survey Series, March/April 2020.

ISBN: 978-0-660-34972-5 | Catalogue number: 11-627-M

C

www.statcan.gc.ca

Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Industry, 2020

GOODLAWYER OFFERS FREE LEGAL ADVICE TO SMBS ACROSS CANADA SMBs now have online, on-demand access to lawyers across the country to help navigate legal questions related to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on their business Goodlawyer, which provides affordable, ondemand legal solutions for individuals and small businesses, has announced that it is offering free legal advice to Canadian businesses as they navigate the multitude of legal situations and implications as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Canadians can now virtually connect with a qualified lawyer to discuss issues related to rent and real estate, employee/employer relations, contract negotiations, access to government support and more, without the risk associated with visiting an office.

Goodlawyer’s main services are legal advice sessions and document review. Goodlaywer has waived the fee for legal advice sessions for any business affected by the shutdown. Interested clients can visit goodlawyer.ca/coronavirus, enter the promo code #washyourhands, and then select their province and legal area they would like advice. Clients are instantly matched with an appropriate lawyer and their availability.

On average, clients can apply in as little as five minutes and speak with a lawyer in less than 24 hours.

“

As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to impact small businesses in Canada, we’ve seen a significant increase in engagement with our platform as the need for legal support grows across the country. These companies have many questions, but few answers,” says Brett Colvin, CEO & Co-founder, Goodlawyer. “We want to give back to small businesses during this unprecedented time by offering free, no-strings-attached, legal advice from our network of lawyers to help them manage areas such as leases, employee relations, and various government support programs.

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Goodlawyer was founded in 2018 by Calgary-based lawyer Brett Colvin, who noticed early on in his career that it was challenging for people and businesses to access quality, affordable and transparent legal services. To change this, he pulled together a team to create an online platform to help find, connect and receive “micro” legal services from qualified and vetted lawyers across Canada - all from the convenience of a laptop or mobile device. Today, Goodlawyer has over 60 lawyers in its network who have helped hundreds of Canadian businesses and individuals with their legal questions at a fraction of the cost associated with retaining a firm.

Small businesses interested in learning more about Goodlawyer’s service offering, including free legal advice, can visit goodlawyer.ca/coronavirus.

About Goodlawyer Inc. | Affordable legal help at your fingertips.

Goodlawyer offers exclusive, micro legal services to support Canadians. Founded in 2018, Goodlawyer’s mission is to provide affordable, peace-of-mind legal solutions to individuals and small businesses by connecting clients with legal expertise quickly and efficiently.

Connect with us at https://www.goodlawyer.ca/

COVID-19 SHIFTS BUSINESS FROM COMPETITION TO COLLABORATION Business Strategist Shares How To Turn Pandemic Obstacles into Opportunities for Growth The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a total shutdown of social and economic activity in all corners of the world. No matter when the economy reopens, one thing is certain: All sectors of business face turbulence.

According to business strategist Greg Reid, the COVID-19 era calls for a new approach to business development. The key is capitalizing on collaboration (NOT) competition.

“

The best way for entrepreneurs and business owners to take advantage of this situation right now is to collaborate and work together, both with their employees as well as other businesses.

Reid is empowering business leaders and encouraging employees to have solution-based thinking during the COVID-19 crisis. He is sharing strategies and actionable advice for people at every level of business to stay profitable during the crisis and after the economy reopens.

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TALKING POINTS FOR INTERVIEWS & ARTICLES:

Why Capitalizing on Collaboration (NOT Competition) is Crucial for Business During COVID-19

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How Managers and Employers can Cultivate an Environment of Solutions-Based People COVID-19 Business Survival & Recovery Plan: Strategies to Stay Profitable & Afloat During the Crisis & After the Economy Reopens

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“ Entrepreneurs need to rise above the panic and instead ask *what am I not seeing?* Right now there are opportunities around us and we need to reset and see what is possible ”

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says Reid who is a top 10 keynote speaker who frequently presents to professional organizations about the power of perseverance and adaptability in the workplace. In the age of COVID-19, these strategies are now more pertinent than ever.

How Entrepreneurs Can Turn Pandemic Obstacles into Opportunities for Business Growth

•

These are trying times for people at all levels of business. Their livelihoods and their employees’ livelihoods are at stake. We are all going through this together and all businesses are scared and face serious problems. But with devastation comes opportunity. The key is how we respond and how we handle ourselves now. Business leaders need to use this time as an opportunity to think, review, and plan for future growth.

Reid’s expertise can be accessed in his bestselling book, Three Feet From Gold: Turn Your Obstacles Into Opportunities. Part of the Think & Grow Rich series, the Updated Anniversary Edition of Three Feet From Gold was just released in Spring 2020.

Why Relationship Building is Crucial & How to Use Downtime to Engage & Connect

•

“

says Reid. As a business strategist, consultant, and best-selling author covering wealth and the world’s top billionaires, Reid has seen COVID-19 foster unlikely business collaborations. Entrepreneurs that were once in fierce competition are finding themselves working together for a common cause. Even corporate powerhouses like Apple and Google have partnered on COVID-19 contact tracing technology.

Insight & Practical, Actionable Advice for Entrepreneurs & People at Every Level of Business.

Best-selling author, Dr. Greg Reid is a world-renowned speaker, filmmaker, and entrepreneur known for his giving spirit and knack for translating complicated situations into simple, digestible concepts. Published, coauthored, and featured in more than 100 books, 28 bestsellers in 45 countries, five motion pictures, and featured in countless magazines, Reid demonstrates that the most valuable lessons we learn are also the easiest ones to apply. He is the Founder and CEO of the - Secret Knock, an exclusive event and professional collaboration community focused on partnership, networking, and business development. Secret Knock is strictly invite-only and includes well-known executives, entrepreneurs, artists, and professional athletes.

It was named a “Can’t-Miss Conference for Entrepreneurs” by Forbes and Inc. Recently, Reid has been hand-selected by The Napoleon Hill Foundation to help carry on the teaching found in the bible of personal achievement: Think and Grow Rich.

For more information visit: http://www.gregreid.com/

NATASHA KOIFMAN’S

STRATEGIES

TO BUILD AND MAINTAIN A SUCCESSFUL BRAND President of NKPR Inc. President of NKPR Inc, Natasha Koifman sat down with CanadianSME to discuss how she got started with her company. Her advice to leverage social media, especially during times of crisis and effective strategies she recommends implementing into your business when marketing.

1. What was the inspiration behind the founding of NKPR Inc.? What are you hoping to accomplish through it?

The inspiration was originally storytelling. It was about working with clients that are doing amazing things that we can story tell. It was also marrying a lot of the same initiatives that our clients were doing with public relations and that inspired more organizations to give back, so it was a combination of the two. NKPR continues to pick and choose who we work with based on their strong value system, and that’s continued 18 years later from the beginning when I first started NKPR to where we are today.

2. Since it’s founding, NKPR has become one of North America’s top PR and digital agencies. What are some of the strategies you used that has contributed to the company’s success?

One strategy is to know when to pivot and how to be ahead of the changing curve. When I started NKPR, social media wasn’t in existence and email had just begun. From my standpoint, it was always about what’s next and not being afraid of change. I remember when we were early adopters of social media and a lot of my agency friends thought it was something that would go away, but I said, “you know what, let’s embrace it.” We didn’t know where it was going or what it was going to be, but I always look at that as an opportunity to be able to pivot.

We were the very first PR agency across North America that was verified both on Instagram and on Twitter. My goal was to show value to our

clients and not always be reliant on the media to deliver meaningful results. For example, in the digital world, we’re not always dependent upon the media to get us press coverage. When we’re doing a promotion in the fashion space, and we have 40k+ followers on our Instagram and GlobalStyle has 7800, we know we can take that piece of visibility that they are getting and convert potential sales.

3.Many small businesses are currently suffering due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

What advice can you give to entrepreneurs when it comes to leveraging their social media platform?

My advice is to be real and to be genuine. When you think about businesses today, you can’t be tone-deaf with what you’re proposing. It would be best if you considered the current circumstance before you find what you’re going to post. With our social feed, we were looking at it daily and considering what people might be feeling right now and what content we should provide to give comfort and inspiration all in one.

Businesses during this time need to realize that it’s less about them and more about the needs and wants of their customer base. A lot of businesses are adapting to that, especially brick and mortar that are now delivering, so consider how you’re going to pivot your business as quickly as possible. You also need to lead with empathy and authenticity. It’s not just jumping on the me-too bandwagon but how it’s authentic to your business and authentic to your target audience.

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Natasha created NKPR in 2002 to combine her two passions: sharing stories of substance and championing important causes.

Recognized as one of Canada’s most powerful and innovative women in public relations, Natasha has been honoured with awards from the Women’s Executive Network (WXN), Notable magazine, BizBash and others.

A sought after speaker and commentator on public relations, marketing, popular culture and fashion, Natasha writes a regular column for Huffington Post and is a frequent contributor to Entertainment Tonight Canada and Newstalk 1010 radio.

Believing strongly in giving back, Natasha is the President of the Board for Artists for Peace and Justice Canada and on the Board of Directors for APJ USA. She also supports various other charities working to improve the lives of others.

Natasha divides her time between Toronto and New York City.

Image credit: NKPR

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4. Many businesses are taking to social media to show their support towards helping those impacted by COVID-19. What is your advice to entrepreneurs when it comes to putting out a message towards their audience?

It goes back to leading with empathy. Those that are doing it with authenticity and are truly considering what is happening in the world, especially at this particular moment are the ones that are going to thrive. For the businesses that are jumping on the me-too bandwagon, I believe we can see through that. We have to demonstrate empathy and it’s not just a matter of saying it.

Depending on what your business is, you have to think about individual safety and what you’re providing to your customer base. Are you providing them with convenience and ease? And are you providing them with emotional support through your social channels? These are all areas that you have to consider and more importantly

if you’re demonstrating that. It’s not just about saying it, but what are you doing to show care to both your employee base and your customer base.

5. In your expert opinion, what are some of the strategies that entrepreneurs can implement to increase traffic towards their e-commerce site to help generate more profit?

Now more than ever, everyone is considering SEO. We now have more time to be on our computers, so as more people are searching the internet right now, a lot of companies would have had to adjust SEO during this time.

Also, word of mouth still so important. If you’re posting based on what is relevant and based on your target audience right now, that has the opportunity of going viral quickly. It’s less about hashtags and more about what people care about right now and how you ensure that you’re demonstrating that on a regular and consistent basis.

6. What would you say are the top three do’s and don’ts of marketing your small business right now?

I would say make engagement the goal over pushing sales. It’s about providing a sense of value to your community. It’s not about constantly talking about the pandemic. What we’ve learned is its thinking about how people are living their lives right now and the relevancy of that, as opposed to just talking about the pandemic. The reality is, we can hear and read about that in other places through certain feeds we’re following on our social media. Remain authentic and real and aim for positivity and calmness. The key is providing value to our community and in doing so, consider with every post if this would be of value to the people that are following us, as opposed to pushing out information because that’s what everybody else is doing. This is a time for us to consider what makes our brand unique and how we engage with our audience.

Image credit: NKPR

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As far as don’ts, I would say to not be insensitive.

We’re seeing a lot of that right now where brands are not pushing out real information but perceived information. The other thing to consider is being mindful of how you’re working with influencers. There’s an aspect of what’s happening in the digital space that is tonedeaf, and a lot of companies were relying on influencers to create and develop their content and they would give them too much free rein to do so.

We need to manage that process more based on brands. The other is don’t stop marketing altogether. What we saw with some brands is that they went quiet and now isn’t the time to go quiet.

We need to manage that process more based on brands. The other is don’t stop marketing altogether.

What we saw with some brands is that they went quiet and now isn’t the time to go quiet.

It’s the time to be thoughtful with the content that you’re putting out there for your audience to connect with.

7. On a final note, how has COVID-19 impacted NKPR Inc. and what are your plans to overcome challenges, if any?

I see COVID-19 as an opportunity. I think it’s unfortunate what’s happening in the world. As a company, this time has brought our team closer together. It’s given us the opportunity to pivot and how to work more creatively to bring that added value to our clients. I always look at these types of situations although this is completely unprecedented, as an opportunity to pivot. I look at how we can become stronger and better and provide our clients with value and insight to help make them become stronger and better as well.

Image credit: NKPR

EYE ON TECH Image credit: Canva

CHOOSING THE RIGHT REMOTE WORK AND VIDEO COLLABORATION SOLUTION FOR YOUR BUSINESS

By Lissa Ricci, VP of small business solutions, Cisco Canada

Security In the blink of an eye, remote work and video collaboration tools have become a lifeline for businesses and their people. Where previously working from home was an occasional perk, the current situation has made it a necessity. As restrictions meant to slow the spread of COVID-19 ease, discussions are now turning to the feasibility of a more permanent hybrid workplace and the tools needed to make this a reality.

Protecting the security and privacy of your organization should be your number one priority. This is particularly important for small businesses, many of whom are operating with small or nonexistent IT staff but are the target of nearly 50 per cent of all cyber attacks.

The issue for small businesses has been amplified by the pandemic as hackers have begun preying on remote workers. We’ve seen the emergence of thousands of websites focused on coronavirus, which are spreading misinformation, as well as new malware and phishing campaigns. Cyber criminals are also taking advantage of the increased demand for video conferencing.

While large companies have taken the lead in announcing workplace changes, the benefits – increased employee satisfaction, decrease in overhead costs etc. – have not gone unnoticed by small business owners.

If they haven’t already, all businesses considering permanently embracing remote work should be putting in place a viable remote work solution to Security should never be traded off for convenience and speed. Hackers help teams remain connected, productive and secure. and cyber criminals will take advantage of any vulnerability to gain remote That said, there are lots of different choices in the market today – so how access to your apps and data. However, businesses of any size can mount do you pick the right one for your business? Here are some things to keep a strong defense using the right combination of firewalls, endpoint security and cloud security. in mind:

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•

•

A few questions to ask yourself when considering a new security solution:

•

What data is collected? Do you have to opt-in, and will it be shared with a third party?

Does it offer end-to-end encryption for data in use, in transit and at rest?

Is it possible to put extra layers of security in place for meetings (and recordings), i.e. single sign-on (SSO) and multi-factor authentication (MFA)?

I recommend putting in place a zero-trust security strategy that ensures consistent, easy and secure access across all applications, devices and locations. You can start by using cloud-based security products that protect users regardless of what network they connect from, and a video collaboration solution like Cisco Webex that encrypts your data.

But don’t take my word for it. To help small businesses like yours, we’ve extended free licenses for four of Cisco’s security solutions designed to protect remote workers anywhere, anytime on any

Simplicity Last but not least, remember that a good remote work solution will help you boost team productivity — so don’t pick something that’s going to take your team hours to understand and use.

device: 1.Cisco Umbrella protects users from malicious Internet destinations whether they are on or off the network.

2.Duo Security verifies users’ identities and establishes device trust before granting access to applications.

3.Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client empowers employees to work from anywhere on company laptops or personal mobile devices.

4.Cisco Advanced Malware Protection (AMP) for Endpoints prevents breaches and blocks malware at the point of entry.

Give them a try now, at no cost (or risk) to your organization.

The right remote work and video collaboration solutions for your business should combine these three elements. Never sacrifice security for simplicity, scalability for security, or simplicity for scalability. Your employees and your clients will thank you.

Scalability With security sorted, your next consideration should be scalability.

Small businesses predicting growth over the next five years should think long-term. Onboarding your team to a new solution requires an investment of time and resources, so you really want to avoid having to switch this up every couple of years. Choose a remote work solution that can scale and meet the needs of the business as it develops.

Some things to consider when you’re reviewing your options: what kind of infrastructure investment do you need to make? Where are your teams based and how are you going to onboard them to the new platform? What’s the timeframe for rolling it out?

Our Webex Meetings and Teams solutions are delivered as a service over the web. All you need to access the software is a browser and an internet connection. This means minimal IT investment, a smaller workload for your operations team and a solution that is instantly scalable to your remote employees.

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

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Adapting to the “New Normal�

With Lori Darlington Vice President Small Business, Strategy & Partnerships Business Financial Services, RBC Royal Bank of Canada CanadianSME spoke to Lori Darlington and discussed financial advice that small and medium sized businesses can utilize short and long term as they re-open their business. She also talks about ways to effectively use digital means of staying connected to your customers and her advice to help businesses adapt to the new normal post-COVID.

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Image credit: RBC

Lori Darlington is the Vice President of Small Business, Business Financial Services Strategy and Partnerships. She is responsible for leading RBC’s Small Business segment and teams. In her role, Lori provides strategic oversight in delivering market-leading client experiences through innovative partnerships and differentiated, beyond banking solutions to help aspiring entrepreneurs and Canadian business owners start, manage and grow their ventures. She also leads the strategy development for RBC’s Business Financial Services portfolio, including its client experience, CRM (client relationship management) and data analytics strategies.

Lori has more than 20 years of experience within the financial services and technology sectors. In her previous roles, Lori has had a strong focus on sales, client acquisitions and national employee engagement across various product groups, branch networks, large operation centres and corporate head office environments.

Lori earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from University of Western Ontario and an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business.

How can businesses ensure a smooth transition toward the reopening of their business in the coming weeks or months?

First and foremost is proactively planning ways to protect the health and safety of you, your employees and your clients. It’s important that we all follow the guidance of government and public health officials to ensure that we safely re-open the economy while protecting the wellbeing of employees and customers.

Given physical distancing measures and ongoing health risks posed by COVID-19, you may want to think through things like a reflow of your merchandising to accommodate safely distanced foot traffic, store sanitization schedules, PPE availability, a phased approach to employee hours and transitions back to work, and even options to expand into online offerings for your customers to manage in-store volumes.

Logistically and financially plan for these things early so that when the restrictions lift, you’re ready to serve your customers safely.

Secondly, scenario plan your short and longterm cash position. Despite the economic uncertainties we face today, there’s still great value in planning for different scenarios so that you can be more objective and agile in making decisions when those scenarios play out. Take stock of your current cash flow, including any emergency business funds, credit facilities and government funding. Then, run some scenarios.

For example: What if you can only collect 25%, 50% or 75% of outstanding receivables?

•

What if you add 0%, 25%, 50% or 75% in new revenues in the next 4 months?

•

•

How will operational expenses like wages and overhead costs impact your cash flow if you’re operating at less-than-full capacity given physical distancing measures?

As you plan, you’ll want to make some assumptions as to the number of months your business may feel the impact of COVID-19 and the effect it will have on sales. Look for opportunities to improve operational efficiencies and preserve as much cash as possible during the re-emergence phase by identifying critical vs. nice-to-do marketing campaigns, and tightening up and streamlining your inventory. You may also want to explore new revenue opportunities through: additional product lines and/or sales channels such as online & social media. The key is to build resiliency during the crisis, while building a stronger foundation for your business longer term.

You can always speak with an RBC Advisor to help you with your scenario planning. RBC’s NOMI Insights for business dashboard in the RBC Mobile App is also a great way to get a realtime view of your cash flow position.

Finally, proactively explore ways to digitallyenable your business and customers.

It is important, now more than ever, for owners to explore digital solutions that will help their business stay nimble, connected and efficient.

Look for streamlined digital solutions to support your back-office activities like invoicing, payroll, cash management and virtual employee health services. Contactless, mobile and online payment solutions will continue to play a big role in supporting physical distancing measures, and exploring an eCommerce and digital marketing strategy may be a great way to complement your current business model. Digitally enabling your operation can help you save on expenses, while creating a potentially new revenue stream, and serve as a backup in the event of another disruption to your physical storefront. RBC offers many digital solutions that go beyond traditional banking to support businesses in this sense, and can be found at www.rbc.com/beyondbanking.

What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

It’s surreal how much the world has changed in a few short months. The current COVID-19 situation still remains very fluid, and the socio-economic impact of it will be longlasting. Building our resilience and successfully navigating this will be a marathon, not a sprint.

And I think that’s exactly how businesses should approach the way they think about their business strategy, recovery plan and financial planning going forward.

I think the biggest difference for businesses in a post-COVID world will be that embracing digital solutions will no longer be a nice-to-do, but a critical means to diversification, growth and success. During COVID, there’s been a profound shift in consumer behaviours, and as a result, we’ve seen a worldwide surge in digital adoption and eCommerce. We don’t see that trend regressing to pre-COVID levels. Brick-andmortar storefronts will certainly be an important channel, but COVID validated the increasing importance of investing in digital strategies and capabilities for businesses to stay nimble, flexible and operational to keep our economy running, especially during a crisis like this one.

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Image credit: Ebay Canada

& QA

ANDREA STAIRS

Chief Marketing Officer, eBay North America & President, eBay Canada Ltd. As the Chief Marketing Officer for eBay’s North American business, Andrea leads all facets of buyer marketing for one of the largest e-commerce players in the region. Andrea also oversees eBay’s Canadian operations as President of eBay Canada Ltd. Prior to her current role, Andrea was GM of eBay Canada & Latin America and was responsible for strategy and operations across more than 40 countries.

Andrea has received a BA from McGill University, as well as LLB and MBA degrees from the University of Toronto.

Andrea sits on a number of boards including Export Development Canada, FinDev Canada, Canada’s National Ballet School, and the Toronto Region Board of Trade. She is also the recipient of the Women’s Executive Network’s Canada’s Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Award, in the Corporate Executive category.

A native of Montreal, Andrea lives in with her husband and young son and daughter.

CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020 I Toronto 21

CanadianSME had the opportunity to speak with Andrea Stairs, the Chief Marketing Officer of eBay North America and President of eBay Canada. She discusses top marketing strategies that eBay uses and how they remain competitive among other major retailers. She also lends her advice to small businesses, as well as the ways eBay is helping SMEs through their many initiatives.

1. As Chief Marketing Officer for eBay North America, what are some of the marketing strategies that eBay uses that contribute to its success?

This is a special year for eBay. We’re celebrating our 25th anniversary and 20 years since launching eBay.ca.

Long before the Canadian site was live, we were engaging small businesses in Canada that were active on the marketplace and our marketing efforts continue to champion their success.

Today, a majority of eBay sales across North America are driven by small businesses.

Our marketing strategy includes a mix of digital and traditional media channels to support our unique position as an enabler of economic opportunity. Recently, we’ve ramped up efforts to encourage buyers to support local and shop small business. For example, our “Together” campaign highlights amazing Canadian retailers selling in-demand items as well as unique finds on eBay.ca.

2. With several online retailers such as Amazon, Alibaba and Etsy, how would you describe eBay’s approach to remain competitive in the global marketplace?

What’s eBay’s plan to remain on top?

Thankfully, our playbook has served us well for a quarter century and is as relevant today as it was at launch. Of course, we’ve evolved our technology and adapted to consumer trends, but our focus on connecting people – buyers and sellers – remains.

At the risk of sounding cliché, eBay is a human company. We’re a global marketplace that doesn’t own any inventory on the platform.

Instead of competing with small businesses for buyers, we partner with them – their success is our success.

In Canada, we’ve helped retailers access buyers all over the world, allowing them to stay local and sell global. Ninety-nine per cent of eBay enabled small businesses export compared to 5% of traditional small businesses, and they reach, on average, 18 foreign markets versus three.

These results continue to motivate the eBay Canada team.

platform and those that need help bringing their businesses online.

3. Many small business owners choose to sell their products through a variety of online retailers and use this as one of their marketing strategies. What are your thoughts on that?

We are also helping brick-and-mortar retailers quickly develop an e-commerce presence through the Up & Running program. In addition to onboarding resources, eBay is waiving seller fees and offering free storefronts – part of a $100 million commitment across North America.

Small businesses are the backbone of the Canadian economy, but they are being forced to adapt at lightning speed. Certainly, as physical distancing measures seem destined to persist for months, e-commerce offers one of the biggest bright spots for small business owners.

A multi-faceted omni-channel approach is key to reaching customers, both new and existing. As a global marketplace, eBay is unique as, in addition to reaching consumers at home, businesses gain access to 183 million active buyers in 190 countries. In light of COVID-19, we’ve launched “Up & Running”, an accelerator program specifically designed to support retailers without an e-commerce presence transition to selling online. The initiative will also help existing online businesses create a channel to tap into the millions of eBay customers worldwide.

4. COVID-19 has had a huge impact on small businesses across Canada and the world.

What is eBay doing to help SME owners during these challenging times?

Small businesses need our support today more than ever. eBay has introduced a variety of initiatives to help retailers manage through the pandemic, those that are active on the

For businesses on eBay, we have extended a mix of financial relief and special offers to assist with cash flow. We are also protecting their Seller Performance Standards, which means their performance ranking won’t be negatively impacted as a result of problems beyond their control like extended delivery timelines.

5. On a final note, what advice can you give to entrepreneurs that can help them during the COVID-19 outbreak?

This is an extraordinary time for Canadians, particularly small-and medium-sized business owners. Protecting the health and safety of their employees and customers is critical, and thankfully a variety of organizations are offering resources to help businesses adjust through the different phases of re-opening.

Entrepreneurs will benefit by learning about government assistance programs and accessing funds available to them. Now is also a time for small business owners to make smart bets -particularly those who have put off investing in e-commerce. Making their debut online may improve their trajectory over the coming months and even years.

Finally, I recommend they lean into community -- connect with fellow business owners, share learnings, challenges and celebrate wins. I’ve met so many of Canada’s small business leaders – they are nimble, supportive and not afraid to make bold moves. I’d love to see them reach new heights when this is over.

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Image credit: Lenovo

PROTECTING YOUR BIGGEST ASSET: YOUR COMPANY’S DATA Why cybersecurity protection should be a key line item in your business budget.

credit: freepik

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W

hen cybersecurity breaches hit major corporations, like Yahoo or Experian, it’s easy to wonder how secure your small business’s info really is as you reset yet another password. If you own or work for a small or midsize company, data protection is no less critical than it is for the big dogs. In fact, the majority of all cyberattacks are against small and midsize businesses. Threats like ransomware (Trojan viruses that lock down a computer until the user pays to release it) and business email compromises (think “Nigerian prince scheme,” but more sophisticated) cost companies millions each year in lost dollars, data, and downtime.

Here’s What You Need to Know About Locking Down Your Company’s Biggest Asset According to Michael Markulec, partner at Harbor Technology Group in Pennington, New Jersey, businesses of any size need three core technology protections to secure their data.

1.

A firewall

This separates your company’s data from the outside world. Markulec says the type of firewall you need and the protection it offers depend on the type of business you run and what you’re trying to protect.

2.

End-point protection

(formerly known as antivirus or malware protection). This software detects, stops, and cleans up after malicious intruders.

3.

Data backup

Companies need a data backup plan in case disaster strikes.

“

“Doing all three of those things, along with employee awareness training, will mean you’re better off than 90 percent of all small businesses out there,” says Markulec. “This is not a game about being the fastest cheetah; it’s about being safer than all of the other cheetahs.”

That employee awareness piece is a fourth cybersecurity element that’s even more crucial than the technology component. “People are vulnerable,” says Markulec. “Ninety percent of all cyberbreaches start with a human doing something wrong.” This makes employee training on cybersecurity a must.

Staff should know what to click on and what not to click on, and how to protect their passwords and data–what Markulec calls, “being a good Internet citizen.” Companies should also implement policies covering secure use of mobile phones, laptops, and tablets. Most manufacturers, like Lenovo, offer comprehensive end-to-end security offerings. Lenovo’s priority is protecting businesses with each product, from development through disposal. This level of commitment to a full portfolio of security offerings empowers companies to focus on their unique offerings without constant worry about security issues.

Cyber threats are such a constant in our technocentric culture that companies recently started adding chief security officers to their C-suite management teams. However, hiring a full-time security chief isn’t necessarily in the budget for a small or midsize company. Enter the executive-for-hire, who’s like an attorney who works on part-time basis. Cybersecurity firms, like Harbor Technology, provide CSO services to their clients, offering ongoing and as-needed support to smaller companies. “It becomes an extension of your management team, but on a fractional basis,” says Markulec.

While it’s tempting to think you can figure these things out on your own, it’s better to work with a cybersecurity firm to ensure you have the best safeguards in place. A good firm will learn about your company’s individual needs—what kind of data you have, how you’re currently protecting it, whether any regulations determine security protocols—and make recommendations based on those needs.

and short interactive training videos for staff.

Getting expert cybersecurity guidance frees up time to do the work you do best while knowing your data and equipment are safe from cyberattacks. Markulec likens a security breach to a natural disaster or a sales rep losing a laptop: “It doesn’t happen every day, but when it does, it can be catastrophic to your business.”

You don’t have time for catastrophes. You’re out there trying make a difference, to innovate, and to succeed. Securing your company’s data lets you focus on being a difference maker instead of spending precious time scrambling to recover from a breach.

credit: freepik

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.

Cybersecurity firms also offer employee training, featuring things like simulated phishing emails 23 - CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020

UNPREPARED EMPLOYEES PUT CYBERSECURITY AT RISK WHILE WORKING FROM HOME, EXPERTS WARN 62%

73%

use private devices for remote work

have not had proper security training when working from home, study finds

News research shows that working from home has created new cybersecurity risks for many people. A study by NordVPN revealed that 62% of employees are vulnerable to cyber attacks due to using personal computers for remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

These findings have alarmed cybersecurity experts. “Personal laptops might lack the necessary security software, such as an antivirus, a business VPN, and others. On top of that, people tend to be more relaxed when using personal computers. They may download games, browse shady websites, and click suspicious links,” says Daniel Markuson, a digital privacy expert at NordVPN. On top of that, a new report

by Kaspersky revealed that 51% of workers admit to watching adult content on devices they use for work purposes.

The Kaspersky research revealed additional concerns. Employees feel unprepared to face cybersecurity issues that may arise when working from home. Almost three-quarters (73%) of workers say they had no special IT security awareness training after they switched to working from home full-time. In addition to that, only half (53%) of workers say they are using a VPN to access their employer’s network when working from home.

“VPN gives employees secure access to their work-related documents and information. So the fact that nearly half of the surveyed people don’t use it raises serious concerns,” says Daniel Markuson, a digital privacy expert at NordVPN. Despite not taking security measures, most respondents are very organized when it comes to working from home. 74% have either a dedicated office or a desk for work, 11% use the kitchen 24 - CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020

table, 5% work from the sofa, and 3% have no set comfortable place and move around. Only 2% of all respondents work from their beds.

new apps should only be downloaded from secure and trusted sources.

However, according to the Kaspersky research, a third (32%) of employees say their current working conditions are less comfortable than their usual office environment. This is probably because they don’t have the proper office chairs and desks. The research also reveals that many people are suffering from back pain by resorting to using kitchen stools or slouching on their sofas.

In the end, 43% of respondents thought that they were more productive when working from home, compared to 36% who felt ambiguous about the situation. Only 19% claimed they were less productive.

When it comes to maintaining a proper worklife balance, people don’t feel like their worklife balance is suffering. 48% had no trouble separating their work from their free time, 33% had difficulty in balancing work and leisure, and 18% were undecided.

But daily server loads of NordVPN Teams, a product only used for work purposes, revealed that people are spending up to 3 hours longer logged in. That means the average workday is now approaching 11 hours. This enormous (37.5%) jump in working hours was chiefly recorded in the US, but the numbers have been rising all over the world. For example, the UK, Canada, France, Spain, and other European countries saw a hefty 2-hour increase.

People also seem to be careful when it comes to new apps — 54% of all respondents hadn’t downloaded any new apps since the lockdown began. 24% downloaded new apps deemed necessary by their employer, 12% chose apps for leisure (such as exercise, cooking, or gaming apps), and only 8% got new productivity apps.

“It’s a good idea to research and install apps that could make you more productive, help manage your day-to-day tasks, and keep you secure online. Using a password manager with a secure sharing function, such as NordPass, could be a good alternative to sending credentials via DM or email. People often forget that it can be unsafe to send passwords via a messaging platform or email. If you do, make sure you delete the message immediately after the password was saved somewhere else. Otherwise, you risk compromising the password in case of a data breach,” explains Daniel Markuson, adding that

This study was conducted over the last two weeks of March, 2020. In total, 5,000 people who were working from home due to social distancing were surveyed.

About NordVPN NordVPN is the world’s most advanced VPN service provider, used by over 12 million internet users worldwide. NordVPN provides double VPN encryption, malware blocking, and Onion Over VPN. The product is very user-friendly, offers one of the best prices on the market, has over 5,000 servers in 60 countries worldwide, and is P2P-friendly. One of the key features of NordVPN is its zero-log policy.

For more information: nordvpn.com.

THE CMA

EXTENDS FREE CAREER DEVELOPMENT PLATFORM TO ALL MARKETING PROFESSIONALS The Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) today released a cutting-edge version of CMA NXT, and extended it beyond students and young professionals. This innovation will help all marketers navigate the next steps in their careers.

COVID-19 changed our plans. We have broadened the platform to support not only university students and graduates, but also professionals in the early stages of their careers,” said John Wiltshire, president and CEO, CMA. “It will also benefit experienced marketers who are looking to recharge their careers because of the pandemic.

CMA NXT provides insights, advice and tips through engaging videos and blogs featuring current hiring managers, marketers and business experts. The new platform design features a contemporary user experience and an intuitive interface based on feedback from beta participants.

“The platform is intuitive. It recommends relevant content for your career growth and professional development journey so that you can navigate efficiently and effortlessly. You can discover information tailored to your interests and needs, including the skills you want to develop, what hiring managers are looking for, and how to stand out with your personal brand,” Wiltshire said.

•

Videos and blogs on the platform fall under three categories: Marketing Yourself, focused on building soft skills and showcasing your personal brand Roles in Marketing, describing diverse marketing roles and the landscape of the marketing industry

•

NXT Exclusives, featuring content from CMA events including panels, keynotes, Q&As, fireside chats and more

•

As Canada’s leading source for marketing and professional development, the CMA developed NXT content through its network of members across all major sectors of the economy, with participants from every discipline of marketing, including brands, agencies and research firms.

The platform is free for users thanks to the generous support of the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC).

“

“The platform will continue to evolve in the coming months with additional content and new features,” said Sheldon Rodrigues, the CMA’s associate vice-president, initiatives and strategy, who is spearheading this initiative.

Other features include a podcast, a YouTube show and a new video category on the platform called ‘What’s NXT’. These will provide additional insights from thought leaders and experts in the industry about how to effectively develop strategic career goals to thrive and keep up with technological advancements and a rapidly evolving work environment.

The beta version, which was aimed at post-secondary students and young professionals, was launched last year and was made available to students at a limited number of post-secondary institutions beginning in November 2019. The intention of CMA NXT has always been to create a community for individuals to develop as professionals, marketers, and business leaders with critical thinking skills. The CMA is excited to now offer the upgraded platform to a larger audience to help individuals across Canada upskill and enhance their professional journey.

JOHN WILTSHIRE, President and CEO of the CMA

About the Canadian Marketing Association The CMA is the voice of the marketing profession in Canada. We serve more than 400 corporate, not-for-profit, public and post-secondary members, including Canada’s most prestigious brands. Our community also includes creative, media, and PR agencies, research firms, management consulting firms, technology companies and other suppliers to the marketing community. We support activities related to thought-leadership, professional development, consumer protection, and commercial success. We act as the primary advocate for marketing with governments, regulators and other stakeholders. Our Chartered Marketer (CM) designation ensures that marketing professionals are highly qualified and up to date with best practices. We champion self-regulatory standards, including the mandatory Candian Marketing Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice.

SOURCE Canadian Marketing Association CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020 I

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AN EXCLUSIVE CHAT WITH

DUNCAN SINCLAIR Chair Of Deloitte Canada And Chile CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020 I

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D

uncan Sinclair is the Chair of Deloitte Canada and Chile, and member of the Deloitte Global Board. Throughout his 32-year career, Duncan’s professional activities include serving public and private global businesses in the mining, telecommunication, consumer business, manufacturing, real estate, and construction industries, as well as national and regional governments.

Duncan is passionate about developing those around him and building a better future for Canada and Chile. Duncan currently serves as Chair of the Long Term Investment Organization, and sits on The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation Board of Directors. He is a member of the advisory board of the Global Projects Centre at Stanford University, the Lazaridis Institute at Wilfred Laurier University, the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University, and the Junior Achievement of Central Ontario Board of Governors. Duncan believes in the impactful role business leaders play in shaping stronger, more prosperous communities.

When CanadianSME sat down with Duncan Sinclair, Chair of Deloitte Canada and Chile earlier this year to understand his role and his organization’s affinity for purpose-led, inclusive leadership, the global pandemic we face today was rife with unknowns. Its impact, now synonymous with our shared reality, seemed mysterious, unfathomable, near impossible. Yet here we stand. Several hard and uncertain weeks later, united as we work to respond to the crisis, while preparing for the recovery of our economy.

As Duncan and his Board of Directors, and Executive Leadership Team work diligently to oversee and manage the unprecedented challenges of today, the ethos of purpose-led, inclusive leadership continues to influence every decision. It sits at the core of who Deloitte Canada is for its leaders, its people, its clients and its communities. And it manifests in the actions of Duncan and the Board to work in close concert with firm Leadership to weather the storm and ensure it is positioned for continued long-term success. It is a challenge coupled with opportunity; one Duncan and his Board are equipped to tackle.

Together, we explore Duncan’s role leading the governance of the largest professional services firm in Canada, and his perspective on our new era ahead.

First, tell us about your position as Chair of Deloitte Canada and Chile.

What is the most critical part of your role?

I have the honour of serving as Chair of Deloitte Canada and Chile where I lead its Board of Directors. Together we engage in effective governance of our firm by overseeing its strategic direction, financial and operational performance, people and culture, and risk and reputation management. We always operate in the best, long-term interests of our people, our clients, and our communities.

While I enjoy working alongside my fellow Board

Members and in a separate yet united role with our Executive Team, a critical part of my position is to collaborate with my fellow partners to serve our clients, support the needs of our people, and contribute to the inclusive growth and prosperity of our two countries. A key part of the future success of Canada and Chile is helping entrepreneurs scale their businesses and create future global powerhouses that remain controlled and head officed in our countries.

Today, more than ever before, this remains a priority for me. As we respond, recover, and thrive in this time of crisis, the focus will be to rebuild a greater, more economically inclusive society in Canada and Chile. Such efforts will require businesses to invest in new and innovative products and services, ultimately supporting the ecosystem of future entrepreneurs to help them continue to grow in an inclusive society. Our ongoing collaboration with federal and provincial governments across the various programs they are creating to support small-medium enterprise is a critical part of how we will support our entrepreneurs through this crisis.

In this time of unprecedented disruption, what role does the Chair and Board play in the leadership of an organization?

As we live through this unique moment in history, a board’s focus on the long-term position of an organization as well as short-term crisis decisions that must be made is a critical factor in an organization’s ability to emerge from the crisis and push forward into a refreshed era of economic recovery and opportunity. I believe in this unprecedented time, that boards and Executive teams must collaborate to bring their organization successfully through this crisis.

lens to stay true to the organization’s purpose and shared values. This is how we are navigating the crisis in our firm—supporting management in near-term choices by thinking through what the mid- and long-term impacts will be on our brand. We are entrusted with this responsibility, and this crisis is a true test of ours and any board’s ability to govern with distinction.

You speak about the horizon, and the social contributions of your organization. As we head into the ‘next’ normal, how will Deloitte be part of the story?

I think the world and its citizens can collectively admit that none of us were ready for the rapid global impact of COVID-19, and the unprecedented challenges it has revealed in the capacity of our healthcare systems, the quality of our digital infrastructure across our two countries, and on a global supply chain. These are some of the public policy issues COVID-19 has brought to light regarding the long-term structure of our economies, and the investment choices we need to make to re-store consumer confidence and allow our economies to recover into the future. These are all issues Deloitte is already working on with organizations and governments to respond to the COVID-19 crisis, as well as recover and thrive in the months ahead as we engage with other business and government leaders to rebuild our countries’ economies.

I’m proud of the way that our people have pulled together to support each other working from home, taking on leadership roles in the support of their family members and friends, and continuing to engage with and support our clients and the broader community. It is a real test of our organization’s culture, and commitment to a long-term purpose and shared values to see how people respond in a crisis. I am confident in our ability to create a successful long-term future for our people in the years ahead.

Beyond the critical needs of ensuring that an organization’s people are healthy, safe, and able to support their families and loved ones, boards must also keep an eye on the horizon, balancing decision-making between what is right for the short- and long-term, and always leveraging this To date we have been freely sharing our thought CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020 I 27

leadership, including our live, AI-driven economic recovery dashboard, across a wide group of clients, governments, and community leaders to provide insights and strategies for how to navigate various aspects of the COVID-19 crisis, and help these groups recover.

Our readers are often members of the small and medium-sized business community. Tell us about some of the offerings Deloitte has in place to help business owners succeed. How will these offerings be adapted in light of COVID-19?

At Deloitte, our focus is to help solve our clients’ most complex problems. We form partnerships for the long-term. Over our global organization’s 175-year history, we’ve continued to listen to our clients’ needs to continuously evolve the services we offer. We’ve branched out well beyond the legacy of audit and tax services— while still important to both us and our clients today—to provide a suite of advisory offerings that serve clients big and small. This time in history is no different. As we assess and understand the critical needs of our clients today and in the future, we’ll reimagine how we can best support their businesses, future-proofing them for the road ahead.

Regardless of the size of the enterprise, all business is personal. Being able to create longterm, trust-based relationships with clients is essential for any business to thrive. Our firm does this by being strategic and thoughtful, supporting our clients as we work together to plan and implement new strategies. In the past and present, this can include finding and raising capital to grow their business, developing new and innovative programs, creating succession planning for their teams, or seeking the benefits of new technologies to enhance their digital platforms like cyber and AI. In the journey ahead, as the landscape of what our clients require continues to evolve, we’ll continue to adapt our offering, listening to our clients and deploying services that mirror their needs. This has been a critical facet of our 175-year history, and part of how we will remain relevant for 175 years more.

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Let’s talk about company culture.

Having had extensive experience in leadership roles, how can leaders positively contribute to the culture of an organization?

At Deloitte, we’ve done extensive research on the question of leadership and what it takes for leaders to be successful in organizations in Canada and Chile. A few years ago, Deloitte Canada released a publication that spoke to the need for greater courage by corporate leaders to create more long-term value. Two findings from that report stood out to me: one is that leadership starts with you, no matter the size of your team or the place in your organization.

Having the courage to speak up, offer new ideas, and challenge the status quo is critical for growth and success in any organization. Second, it’s critical for leaders to put a deep emphasis on creating a culture that unites its people across experiences and geographies, encouraging team members to be authentic and lead with purpose.

This will help ensure organizations thrive, propel its employees be successful, and elevate the overall community to become economically prosperous in an inclusive way.

Can you tell us about the strategies Deloitte uses to foster a culture of inclusion, and help people lead with purpose?

Making an impact that matters is our purpose and guiding star that unites Deloitte globally as a firm. It’s in our DNA to be purpose led as an organization, and instill our shared values in our people. When we truly live our shared values, we foster an environment where everyone feels included and inspired, and we build a collective mindset to work together, empowering each other to do our best work every day.

I want to share a recent thought: prior to our new remote environment and physical distancing, when I walked the halls of our offices in Canada and Chile and heard the variety of languages spoken and the openness with which different customs and cultures were celebrated, I felt

confident in the culture of inclusion we’ve built, and will continue to safeguard. I give our people full credit for being open and welcoming of each other’s diverse backgrounds and life experiences. While leadership can set the tone, it’s the people across the organization who do the real work of creating that successful and inclusive culture together. I have no doubt this inclusive workplace continues as our people shelter in place, working from the safety of their homes. They are connected in spirit and action.

In closing, as businesses face tough decisions in the weeks and months ahead, how can boards and leaders contribute to a strong company and societal culture?

At Deloitte, one of our shared values is simple: take care of each other. This rings true today more than ever. During this time of extraordinary challenges, governance and management teams are uniquely positioned to look out for one another, while reinforcing a culture of inclusive human concern for the physical and mental wellbeing of their people. The best laid strategies will only come to fruition if the people executing them feel like they are part of an organization led by purpose, with their best interests at mind, and trust at its core. Deloitte, like all organizations at this time, is putting its people, clients, and communities first. It’s a simple strategy, but effective, to contributing to a wider societal fabric, on the path to becoming the best countries in the world to live and work.

“WE HATE AGENCIES” IABC’S BOUTIQUE AGENCY OF THE YEAR KICKS-OFF 2020 WITH A SLEW OF NEW ACCOUNT WINS AND AWARDS, PROVING THAT BUSINESS IS BETTER WHEN THERE’S NO TITLE Typically under the radar and more concerned about promoting clients than itself, The PR Department is taking 2020 by storm with the renewal of all its past accounts, expanded roles on several major mandates, new account wins as well as the title of Boutique Agency of the Year for a second time in Canada Last week, the nineteen-year-old firm of big idea brokers were proud to be named Boutique Agency of the Year by IABC (Toronto) for a second time and to winadditional Awards for its 2019 Seven Days of Eggs for Tabasco and Egg Farmers of Ontario for social media and media relations, as well as a Gold Quill Award for the same campaign with IABC International.

Following unprecedented growth in 2019 marked by an increased demand from its clients to provide additional services, The PR Department is excited to announce a slew of new account wins including Travelpro, SIAL Canada, Elmhurst Milked and the Canadian Ophthalmology Society who join the company’s list of prestigious clients. In addition, the team is thrilled to see Maille (Unilever) come back after a year of absence and is celebrating the return of Clearly Canadian, a brand that they helped launch in 2014.

Founder of The PR Department Inc. “It also reinforces our unique positioning as a middle ground between freelancers and big agencies. The PR Department offers high quality results without the hefty price tag of the big agencies merged with the agility of freelancers. I always hated the format and the values of big agencies and our collaborative approach allows us to work hand-in-hand with clients to truly impact the bottom line no matter what channels we use to get there. It’s about doing more with budgets, providing great ROI, connecting brands together, giving great value to consumers and giving back… just like we were down the hall!”“All this is a clear testament to our creativity and strategic thinking,” explains Brigitte Foisy, President and “For us, business is personal. We pride ourselves for our transparency and for working on our clients’ business like it was our own,” continues Debora Marques, VP for the company. “We don’t count time because our clients don’t count theirs, there are no titles here, it’s about getting the job done right. Our mandates are done when we exceed our clients’ objectives… it’s simple really!”

DOING BUSINESS TO GIVE BACK The group’s new website showcases their strong dedication to giving back. In fact, the co-owners have always donated 10% of their sales after tax to charities but this year, they decided to focus all their charitable giving and volunteer hours towards Woodstock (Ontario). By targeting a small town with less resources, the team hopes to see a greater impact for their contribution. Several initiatives have already been completed including a holiday event for families of DASO (Domestic Abuse Services Oxford) and a smaller project for the city’s less fortunate. The team at The PR Department hopes to continue to rally clients, friends and industry colleagues to join them in making a notable difference. With moms and youth at heart, each special project will be posted on the company’s website and social media accounts.

ABOUT THE PR DEPARTMENT INC. Headed by Founding partner Brigitte Foisy and executive VP Debora Marques, The PR Department is a one-stop shop that harnesses the power of senior creatives with years of experience in designing and implementing a full range of marketingcommunications solutions. The award-winning team has racked-up awards over the past three years including Boutique Agency of the Year in Canada (IABC 2020 and 2018), Best media relations campaign of 2020, 2019 and 2018 (IABC), Best social media campaign of the Year (IABC 2020), Marketing-Communications campaign of the year (2017), Activation of the year (IABC International 2017, 2018) as well as several other accolades for best use of events including making BizBash’s list of top 250 professionals in events in Canada. With offices in Montreal and Toronto, the company prides itself in making business personal by treating every account like it was their own.

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BUSINESS CHAT WITH

SAMEER GULATI Sameer Gulati, President of Plastiq had a chat with CanadianSME to talk about how Pastiq can be the right solution for your business based on your specific business goals. Sameer also talks about the new data insights from Plastiq’s and the most surprising results, as well as initiatives that his organization has implemented to help entrepreneurs during this time.

As President and COO, Sameer is responsible for managing Plastiq’s product, sales, business development and marketing functions. He brings more than 20 years of experience driving growth for companies in the financial technology and payments industries. Previously he served as COO for LendingClub, where he oversaw strategy, product, mergers and acquisitions, and business operations. During his tenure, the company grew annual loan originations to more than $10 billion. Prior to LendingClub, Sameer was a Partner at McKinsey & Co., where he served a wide variety of clients globally in digital payments and consumer and small business banking.

1. As President and COO of Plastiq, what would you say sets the company apart from other similar organizations? Why should SME owners choose Plastiq for their payment solutions rather than other providers? a. Plastiq is the intelligent payments solutions provider enabling small and medium-sized businesses to pay or accept payment via a credit card for virtually any expense. Uniquely, we let you pay with a credit card even when the recipient does not accept credit cards. There are a number of other payment products out there, but if cash flow is important to you - and it is to savvy business owners - Plastiq tends to be the preferred option. It is also incredibly easy to use - no different than using a credit card online to make everyday purchases. With Plastiq, it’s easier for businesses to access working capital in ways that make the most sense for them, so they can maximize every business opportunity. b. Plastiq is filling a critical gap by bridging credit access and payables and is positioned to become the leading working capital solution for small businesses. Plastiq has revolutionized how its more than 1 million SME and other customers optimize working capital by enabling them to pay or accept payments for anything with a credit card, even where credit cards are not accepted. Plastiq empowers businesses to pay or be paid any way they want, including checks, wire transfers and ACH transfers. The intelligent platform provides real-time insights into SMEs’ payments, cash flow and working capital. These insights inform SMEs how and when to pay business expenses, allowing them to efficiently manage resources across any industry supply chain.

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2. Many organizations were greatly impacted by COVID-19. What would you say is the biggest impact that COVID-19 has had on Plastiq and how has the company reacted to it? a. COVID-19 has had a major impact on everyone, and most materially on SMEs across the world.

We feel thankful that we’ve been able to help even more SMEs during this time of business slowdown. COVID-19 and the associated stayat-home orders have caused a domino effect of late payments across the economy, with SMEs especially hard hit. As cash reserves run dry, many SMEs have been unable to pay suppliers, as they simply don’t have the cash on hand. This has left suppliers unable to pay their own bills due to these late or missed payments. b. Responding to our customers’ feedback, we accelerated the development of Plastiq’s Plastiq Accept card acceptance product in order to reduce cash flow burdens and unblock the flow of vital services and supplies. Plastiq Accept was fast-tracked to help SMEs collect payments faster, keep cash on hand and still meet inventory needs. SMEs who sign up for the waitlist will receive early access to Plastiq’s card acceptance product free of charge beginning May 24, with general availability this summer.

3. Plastiq just released new data insights on which SMB industries and segments were hit hardest by COVID-19. What would you say was the most surprising aspect of these results? What surprised you the most? With billions of dollars flowing through our system, we have a unique view into payment and business trends.

a. We were pleasantly surprised to see a spike in purchases of PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) and healthcare-related products by relatively well-established Healthcare providers and non-profits. The increase started in early April and has steadily increased throughout May to more than 3x the volume in February. We’re humbled to be able to help in this area. b. An even more counter-intuitive data-point was the increase in payment volume in the East Coast in the cars/boats/trucks/planes category (14% increase). We had expected these numbers to go down as sheltering in place reduced the amount of travel purchases being made overall. However, it appears that in the East Coast in particular, this hasn’t been the case. One hypothesis is that this could be due to the number of heavily concentrated, more public transit-reliant cities on the East Coast.

As people are less comfortable using public transportation due to the danger of COVID-19, we may be seeing more purchases of vehicles to get people around for necessary errands. In addition, many SMEs having to make a switch to a delivery model for the first time could be purchasing vehicles in order to stay afloat and meet changing customer needs.

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4. Results from the data insights revealed that 81% of Plastiq’s SMB users continued to leverage Plastiq during the COVID-19 pandemic. What does this represent for the company? a. We’re very encouraged by this statistic - it is a testament to the value customers receive from our products, and also indicative of the heightened need for retaining cash during these uncertain times.

Having cash is key for businesses to stay afloat and that is truer today than ever. Many of our customers have also applied for the government-provided loans and are using Plastiq as a way to bridge to those funds. .

5. What initiatives has Plastiq implemented that can help business owners during these challenging times? What resources and programs are the company putting in place to help entrepreneurs during the COVID-19 outbreak? a. Plastiq Accept, our new card acceptance product, enables SMEs to accept credit card payments for free, without having to pay the typical 2.5-4% fee that traditional payment services providers charge.

By offering a credit card payment option to their customers through Plastiq, SMEs get paid on time and more reliably, unblocking cash flow in the supply chain and getting businesses moving forward again.

At the same time, customers’ on-time payments through Plastiq helps keep the supply chain moving without delays. Plastiq’s card acceptance offerings include reporting integration and a custom payment page, giving SMEs the convenience of a standard merchant account without the traditional fee and integration hassles. Integration with accounts receivables is slated to roll out in the near future. b. Plastiq has been teaming up with SME influencers such as Gene Marks to conduct webinars on topics including managing cash flow and securing PPP loans. c. Plastiq also just teamed up with the non-profit Opportunity Fund, a provider of life-changing loans to underserved SMEs, to further help during this trying time. d. The company also opened a free resource center for SMEs, which includes real-time updates on the pending stimulus package as it relates to SMEs, links to other working capital sources, an online forum of business leaders and more.

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www.sblr.ca 2345 Yonge St., Suite 400 CANADIANSME I JUNE 2020 I 646 0550 32 2345 Yonge St., Suite 400, TorontoMAGAZINE www.sblr.ca T. 416 T. 416 646 0550 Toronto, ON M4P 2E5

The Atlantic Women’s Venture Fund Launches Its Inaugural Fund, Sandpiper Ventures, and Announces

DANIELLE GRAHAM as Investment Principal

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alifax, (NS) May 28, 2020 - The Atlantic Women’s Venture Fund announces the launch of its inaugural fund, Sandpiper Ventures, which will be committed to investing in female tech entrepreneurs across Canada as a proactive and profitable business decision. This coincides with the announcement of venture trailblazer and entrepreneur Danielle Graham who will join the team as Investment Principal on June 1st. The Sandpiper Ventures leadership team also includes leading businesswomen and entrepreneurs Cathy Bennett, Rhiannon Davies and Sarah Young.

Danielle Graham joins Sandpiper from Dream Maker Ventures. Dream Maker Ventures is the first Canadian Venture Capital Fund founded by persons of colour and women, focused on investing in underrepresented founders. Danielle has been active in the tech ecosystem, first as a consultant for Deloitte and then as the Women in Tech Manager for Communitech and Market Readiness Fund Manager for Ontario Centres of Excellence. Danielle founded the Fierce Founders programs, the first female-focused accelerator and bootcamp series in Canada, which continues to provide over $500K annually in seed funding to early stage female-led startups.

Danielle has played an important role in the growth of the angel community network, as a Venture Partner to the Adrenaline Fund, Archangel Network of Funds, Board Member for the Golden Triangle Angel Network (GTAN) and Alumni Investment Advisor to the Laurier Startup Fund. She is a champion and mentor for women entrepreneurs with Next AI, MaRS Women in Cleantech Challenge, ventureLab’s Tech Undivided, York Innovation’s Ella, Compass North, the Future of Good, and the Dovetail Summit.

“The Atlantic Women’s Venture Fund and I have been working in parallel on many of the same issues facing our Canadian tech ecosystem. This exceptional team of executives have the capital to support the next generation of women-led teams,” says Graham. “We are looking for outperforming teams and the Sandpiper network will be hugely valuable to our founders as we invest in their growth.”

“Sandpiper’s team offers a powerful combination of proven industry leadership, entrepreneurial experience, access to unique deal flow, access to network and access to national and international growth opportunities,” says Davies. “We are delighted to round out the team with such a passionate, respected professional as Danielle.”

By unlocking female capital and the potential of female entrepreneurs, Sandpiper Ventures is realizing the ideas, growing their companies, mentoring the future leaders, and ultimately, will see the Atlantic Region and Canada tackle challenges including our current pandemic. Innovation, technology and entrepreneurship are already expected to drive economic recovery— if women participate equally as both entrepreneurs and investors, the potential for a stronger recovery will be exponentially greater.

“As a fund, we have access to ambitious female founders and start-up builders,” comments Young, “We see talent coming up the ranks in the big tech platforms and women rising in the ranks of mature industries as change agents. This is an incredible resource of ideas and ambition which are systematically underinvested.”

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The Atlantic Women’s Venture Fund and Sandpiper Ventures founding partners and advisors include: Amy Risley, CEO Skinfix, Inc. Shannon MacDonald, Managing Director, Accenture Canada Cathy Bennett, Bennett Group of Companies, Corporate Director Nicole LeBlanc, Director, Investments & Partnerships, Sidewalk Labs Chere Chapman, CEO, DGI Clinical Rhiannon Davies, Former VP and Board Director, GrandVision N.V. Ozge Yeloglu, VP Enterprise Advanced Analytics, CIBC Karen Hutt, EVP Strategy and Business Development, Emera Sarah Young, Managing Partner, NATIONAL

About Sandpiper Ventures Sandpiper Ventures (www.sandpiper.vc) is the inaugural fund of the Atlantic Women’s Venture Fund. Sandpiper Ventures is committed to investing in women as a proactive and profitable business decision. Sandpipers management team and active advisors are proven business leaders with deep industry experience and network access, providing access to unique dealflow and the tools and networks to support portfolio companies to reach massive proportions. Sandpiper Ventures welcomes people of all genders to invest as limited partners in this opportunity.

About AWVF The Atlantic Women’s Venture Fund (AWVF) is an investment platform spearheaded by a group of trailblazing female leaders with roots in Atlantic Canada. The organization provides an infrastructure where female investors and female founders can radically disrupt the venture capital environment. The AWVF provides targeted support to structurally grow the innovation ecosystem and increase participation of investors and innovators, through research, training, mentorship and network development.

For more information or to request an interview, please contact: Tara Wickwire NATIONAL Public Relations twickwire@national.ca 902.403.6391

Q As National Leader in the Enterprise Tax practice at KPMG, what would you say has been the biggest impact that COVID-19 has had on Canadian businesses? a. The single greatest issue that Canadian businesses are facing is employment. I can’t stress that enough - employment, employment, employment. With the unemployment rate reaching 13 per cent in April, it’s clear that millions of Canadians have been affected.

Businesses have had to make very difficult decisions in terms of managing their workforce and dealing with the human aspect of the pandemic. This is in addition to dealing with the significant financial impact to their business.

Q What advice can you give to Canadian SMEs with regards to applying for the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS)? a. The wage subsidy features broad eligibility, making it helpful and accessible to thousands of businesses in Canada. It’s complex in certain respects, however. For example, determining qualifying revenue and in those cases where there are complicated business structures.

FINANCIAL TIPS AND ADVICE FROM DINO INFANTI TO LEVERAGE YOUR BUSINESS CanadianSME had the chance to chat with Dino Infanti, the National Leader of Enterprise Tax at KPMG. Dino talks about the employment issue that many Canadian businesses are facing and the best resources that the government provides to help struggling businesses get off the ground. He also gave his expert opinion on the foreseeable future about the state of the Canadian economy.

Dino Infanti Partner, National Leader – Enterprise Tax KPMG in Canada With over 15 years of experience, and KPMG’s Partner, National Leader KPMG Enterprise ™ Tax, Dino Infanti is well known for his insights and guidance on tax technical work in estate and succession planning, corporate restructuring, tax mitigation strategies and divestitures. Dino specializes in owner-managed enterprises primarily in the construction, real estate development, and holdings sectors, in addition to the entertainment sector.

The first step is to determine eligibility and then look at the drop in revenue test. This was originally applicable for the months of March, April and May and now the government has extended the wage subsidy program to August.

I would recommend starting with the eligible entity’s normal accounting reporting of arm’s length revenue from ordinary activities in Canada for the relevant month in 2020, and comparing it to the same month in 2019 or the average of January and February 2020. If an eligible entity has multiple entities, then I would suggest looking at other methods of computing revenue that are available for purposes of eligibility.

Once eligibility has been determined, then calculate eligible remuneration for individuals employed in Canada for the qualifying period.

This can be tricky since in many cases the entity’s payroll periods do not coincide with the qualifying periods.

To assist with this, KPMG Lighthouse has developed an employment remuneration calculator that can extract your payroll data to assist with the computation of eligible remuneration for each qualifying period. This value-added tool will provide your business with the documentation to support your CEWS claim when the Canada Revenue Agency reviews it, as well as for purposes of the 2020 T4 reporting.

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Q

In terms of eligibility for the wage subsidy, what options do businesses have to show a decline in revenue?

a. Determining qualifying revenue for purposes of the CEWS is quite complex. Depending on the structure of the business, there are various options for computing qualifying revenue. From a macro perspective, a business may record qualifying revenue in one of two ways. One is using accrual-based accounting, which is the method generally used by businesses. The other option is to use a cash basis. These two methods may deliver very different results for different businesses and sectors.

For example, in the real estate and technology sectors, businesses may wish to consider computing qualifying revenue on a cash basis.

The key is to start with the accrual-based accounting reporting and, if the business doesn’t meet the revenue drop test, at that point redo the analysis using cash basis accounting. I should point out that redoing the analysis on a cash basis will require additional work, if the business normally accounts under the accrual basis. That said, it could make the difference between qualifying for the wage subsidy or not.

Q In your opinion, do you believe that the federal government has provided enough resources to help businesses that have been and will continue to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic? a. The federal government has provided an unprecedented amount of stimulus to help Canadian businesses navigate through this pandemic. The wage subsidy is a generous program that may enable businesses to keep and even rehire employees who may have been laid off.

By extending the program to August, the government is continuing to encourage businesses to apply for the wage subsidy as a way to help reduce unemployment and support Canada’s economic recovery. In addition, the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) has been beneficial to thousands of small and medium-sized businesses needing loans to meet cash flow challenges.

Q

Many entrepreneurs are struggling to find solutions that can help them during this global pandemic. What advice can you give to SME owners that can be beneficial for them during this challenging time?

a. First, cash is key. It’s important to be laser focused on cash. Understand your current business cost structure and do financial CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020 I

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modeling of what the business will look like post-COVID. Some practical actions may be to assess liquidity management, look at fixed costs, review overhead structure, forecast cash flow and conduct scenario modeling. Further, look at identifying business and economic risks, and conduct a stakeholder analysis to make sure there is consistent communication with them.

The other point is to be fully aware of government programs and subsidies, some of which are evolving and expanding eligibility criteria to enable more businesses to qualify. For example, the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance program offers forgivable loans to commercial property owners to reduce the rent owed by qualifying tenants. The CEBA is a program that many SMEs have put in place with their financial institutions. This program provides loans of up to $40,000 to help businesses meet their working capital obligations. When the borrower has repaid the amount received by the deadline, up to 25 per cent of the loan could be forgiven.

Finally, take advantage of various tax deferrals that are available to business owners regarding income taxes that are owing, as well as indirect taxes.

Ultimately, the goal is to understand various inputs. We’re finding that a number of businesses have been forced to reevaluate their business and cost structure. Perhaps there’s unnecessary spend and areas where they can be far more efficient. It’s about addressing these issues and forecasting a sensitivity model, which is focused on how best to position the business to see through to recovery.

At KPMG Enterprise, we assist our clients with these requirements. This includes modelling and sensitivity analysis related to structuring and aligning the business to move forward.

Q

It’s no surprise that many businesses across the world will face bankruptcy due to COVID-19. How do you perceive the Canadian economy will be impacted and what can Canadian businesses and consumers do to reduce the COVID impact on the economy?

a. Time will tell in terms of what the true economic impact will be. Our economic recovery will be highly dependent on an improvement in public confidence overall. We are transitioning from reacting to the pandemic and embarking on the journey toward recovery and the reopening of society and our economy. As more businesses reopen, their leaders are thinking about how they can best protect employees and customers and help rebuild confidence amid this new reality.

To help with this process, KPMG has developed a Return to the Workplace guide which outlines the key considerations, stages and factors necessary to establish a robust action plan for your business. “ For the foreseeable future, businesses will need to be nimble and be prepared to react swiftly. I recommend including your lenders as part of your team and staying in regular contact with them. There should be consistent communication with them about the state of the business and a sense of working together. Ensure they are apprised of what’s going on so there are no surprises. Your financial institution is very much part of the equation.

No doubt there are many unknowns, but with the right strategy and support, businesses can make it through the current economic situation and keep moving forward. “

MINISTER MARY NG SHARES HER ADVICE ON HOW TO SUCCEED PAST COVID-19

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on. Mary Ng, Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion discusses the support and tools she’s providing for female business owners and her message as well as her best advice to female entrepreneurs.

The Honourable Mary Ng was first elected as the Member of Parliament for Markham—Thornhill in April 2017 and was appointed Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion in July 2018.

Throughout her 20 years of public service, Minister Ng has been a passionate community leader and advocate with a proven track record of results in the areas of education, women’s leadership, job creation, and entrepreneurship.

As Member of Parliament for Markham— Thornhill, Minister Ng helped to facilitate the Government’s commitment to invest in Canadian ideas and innovators in her riding by advocating for the inclusion of Markham’s tech-innovation hub, VentureLabs, in the Southern Ontario Supercluster. The Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster is expected to have a GDP impact of more than $13.5 billion in the next ten years and create more than 13,500 good, middle-class jobs in the region.

As part of her work on the Standing Committee of Industry, Science, and Technology, Minister Ng worked alongside her committee colleagues on intellectual property best practices. This work guided the Government’s launch of Canada’s first comprehensive intellectual property strategy, providing tools to support the growth of Canadian businesses domestically while ensuring their ideas are protected in the global marketplace.

Prior to serving as a Member of Parliament, Minister Ng worked as Director of Appointments in the Prime Minister’s Office. She also served as the Director of Policy in provincial education where she built relationships, negotiated with teachers’ unions, and served students while helping to improve Ontario’s education system.

CanadianSME had the opportunity to speak with the Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion, Mary Ng to discuss the different ways on how the small and medium sized business community can restore their business to reach close to the potential with the help from the resources and tools provided by the government.

Minister Ng also served in the President’s Office at Ryerson University, helping to shape new initiatives that connected students and their innovative ideas with businesses, creating quality jobs for young Canadians. She has been a speaker and panelist on topics ranging from business, innovation, women in leadership and Canada-China relations.

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1. COVID-19 has had a huge impact on Canadian small businesses.

Recently, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that he will be expanding the emergency loan program to allow more businesses to be eligible. How do you believe this will help small and mediumsized business owners?

In the face of COVID-19, we have been listening to small business owners and entrepreneurs across the country and responding to them. One of the things they’ve said to us is that they have bills to pay and they need help with operating costs during this difficult period. That’s why the Prime Minister announced that we’ve expanded the Canada Emergency Business Account Program. It is a $40-thousand interest-free loan, and $10-thousand or 25% of that is forgivable if you’re able to pay it back by 2022.

This is going to help businesses bridge through this period, get the cash flow that they need.

To give you an idea of how many businesses that this has helped, as of yesterday, over half a million businesses, small businesses, small business owners and entrepreneurs have been approved for loans under this program. I expect to see the numbers grow given the expanded category and expanded eligibility. It’s simple for businesses to get access to it, just go to your bank or credit union, they know these loans are guaranteed by the government of Canada and intended to help small businesses to get the cash flow needed through this difficult period.

2. You’ve partnered up with Finance Minister Bill Morneau to find new solutions that can benefit entrepreneurs during this difficult time. How will this collaboration help you in finding solutions for SME owners who have been impacted by COVID-19?

The finance minister has been ensuring that he led the effort to launch the largest economic package that we have seen in response to COVID-19 to make sure we are helping Canadians through this crisis. For me, working with Minister Morneau to help our Canadian businesses and small businesses through this difficult time we heard several things from businesses. We heard that they need help to keep their employees. We know that for employers that have employees in their small business they are as close can be, because you count on your team to create that CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020 I

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successful business. They needed to make sure they could keep the team together and that’s why we introduced the 75% emergency wage subsidy. This subsidy will cover the wages of employees up to $847 weekly and gives the employees the certainty of keeping their staff on the team even if they had to close their doors or significantly reduce their operations.

The other thing that we’ve heard from businesses is that it’s important to keep their costs low during this period. What we did right from the get-go was differ GST and HST and customs DG payment for businesses for 3 months, so this is going to help 3.2 business owners from across the country. We’ve also extended the tax filing deadline to June 1st and allowed businesses to defer any payments owed to August 31st.

We’ve also heard from businesses that they have a significant expense every month and for those that had to close their doors or reduce their operations, they still have to pay rent. So, we introduced the Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance, and this will cover rent for April, May and June and enable landlords to give their small business tenants 75% off on their rent. Why is this important? Because landlords are business owners as well and they depend on their tenants to be able to pay their rent. But when you’re a tenant and you see your revenue decline to over 70% then your ability to pay is severely hampered so that’s why we introduced this program to help landlords and to help small businesses as well. Between the Federal government and the provinces, we will be able to give landlords 50% of the forgivable loans, so this is a win-win for both the tenant and the landlord.

3. What is your advice to SME owners to help them through this challenging time?

I know that from speaking to so many businesses and entrepreneurs that they’ve given everything to their business and we’re going to do everything we possibly can to make sure we’re help and supporting them so that we can work hard to save Canadian jobs and Canadian businesses. What I would say to SMEs is to stay informed and stay a drift with what is going on.

The Prime Minister does daily press conferences to update the country on state of affairs as well as the health officials and deputy prime minister.

We, the government have partnered with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and they’ve created the Canadian Business Resilience Network. This is a one stop shop that we and other jurisdictions have put out to help Canadian Businesses looking for support, programs and information to help navigate through this time.

My advice is stay informed and be informed about the programs and support that’s available. Entrepreneurs and business owners are incredible, they are innovative, resilient and they can look at things and say, “okay I can make this work for me”. For example, a great female entrepreneur who’s from the Atlantic region has a bakery business with 5 staff members. The retail part of the business had to close because she was helping to plank the curve, but because of that she was able to get access to the wage subsidy. She’s keeping all 5 of her staff on board but the other side of her business is baking bread and people still have a high demand for that.

Even though the retail part is closed, the demand for bread is still there. She’s keeping her baker’s on staff and taking out the $40- thousand dollar loan and paying the 25% of salary to her staff so that they are paid just as they were pre-COVID. In the meantime, she’s also using some of that money in the loan and investing it in an online ordering system so that she has revenue coming in by keeping that side of her business open and creating that capability to have her customers order online. She as a business owner herself is not taking any salary because of her revenue and she’s taking advantage of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit because it gives her $2000 a month.

She’s looking at the different ways that the government has put support out and using it in a combination that’s helping her keep her business running and hopefully that pivot on the online side will help her expand her revenue there. This is the kind of things that businesses (SMEs) are doing and again my advice is stay informed and use your resilience and innovation because I’ve seen that from so many business owners.

4. In your expert opinion, what are some of the ways that Canadians can help small businesses succeed at this moment?

Canadian Business owners have been incredible.

I want to draw an example of the made in Canada initiative. We, as the government of Canada, are helping to procure and to buy Personal Protective Equipment for our frontline health workers that are working with the provinces and territories. But right now, it’s very competitive because other countries are looking for the same products so its incredible what Canada has done and what many of our companies have done.

Over 5000 businesses have stepped up in the call to action on the made in Canada initiative, whether it’s making ventilators, making masks, medical-grade gowns or sanitizer. This is what Canadian Businesses have stepped up in the

fight against COVID-19 and its extraordinary.

Again, it goes to the heart of how good Canadian businesses are.

I don’t think there is a one size fits all solution.

I think a lot of businesses have been thinking, how do I manage this period and how do I come out of this so I can continue to have a business in the restart that’s going to contribute and continue to strive. What Canadians can do is support their local businesses. Many of us may still need a range of products or so forth, so consider what you have around the corner like your local Canadian retailer or restaurants that have switched to take out only. Consider ordering from these retailers and giving them your business. Canadian’s looking around in their neighbourhood should support their local SMEs.

5. You recently mentioned that it’s crucial for entrepreneurs to look beyond the United States for new trading opportunities. Why do you believe it’s important and how can it be beneficial for SME owners during this time?

The US has always been the largest trading partner and will continue to be so important to so many of our businesses. There are so many opportunities and customers in the international marketplace. As the internal trade minister, what I have done during this pandemic is to stay

connected to my collogues and other parts of the G20 countries. Earlier this month I had a video conference with my G20 trade ministers where we talked about our commitment to making sure that during this global health crisis, we will support global trade and continue to support global investments and make sure that our supply chain continues to stay open so that we have groceries in our stores and the necessary medicine and medical supplies that can come into the country.

On the 25th of March, Canada joined counties like Australia, Chile, New Zealand, Singapore and others to release a joint statement on committing to keep supply chains open and removing existing trade-restrictive measures on essential goods, especially on medical supplies.

Just last evening, I met virtually with several the G20 trade ministers to reiterate the importance of keeping our supply chains open. Canada, along with 23 other world trade organizations members signed on to the joint statement to reinforce our cooperation on open trade and agriculture to make sure that Canadians and people around the world can have access to food and the products they need.

Why is it important for SMEs to look beyond the customers? Because Canada is a trading country and right now we have access to 1.5 billion customers in the global marketplace and trade agreements that cover access to 51 countries.

When Canadian companies grow, they create jobs and those jobs contribute to our economy.

That’s why it’s important to always continue to look beyond to make sure that we access those markets to help our Canadian companies grow.

6. On a final note, what do you believe will be the biggest impact that COVID-19 will have on small businesses?

I’m seeing it and we will continue to see that Canadians are innovative and resilient. Peculiarly for Canadian SMEs who are facing this challenge with resilience, it’s been inspiring to see them come together in new ways. Whether it’s entrepreneurs offering technical skills to find new ways of producing items that are of short supplies like medical supplies, to restaurant owners who’s decided to offer meals to front line staff, or to the innovative business leaders that are finding new ways of creating medical gear for health care workers, and thousands upon thousands of Canadians raising their hands to help their fellow citizens. I believe the biggest impact is going to be the resilience and the innovative nature of who we are as Canadians and stepping up, standing together and having a team Canada approach to getting past COVID-19.

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WHAT CUSTOMERS WILL NEED FROM COMPANIES DURING (AND AFTER) COVID-19

By Adam Kirsh Be A Voice Of Ongoing Reassurance Amid Uncertainty

A s Canada slowly reopens major parts of its economy, the most common question small and medium-sized enterprises ask their customers — “How may I help you?”

— is suddenly far more complex and difficult to answer.

Before the outbreak of COVID-19, helping customers was primarily about guiding them toward finding the products and services they wanted. More recently, as businesses became more geared toward developing stronger relationships with their customers, being helpful meant going a step further, and anticipating their needs.

Today, and for some time to come, the definition of “helpful” needs to transform once again.

Customers will be returning to the public sphere having had their normal routine disrupted in a way that would have been almost unimaginable beforehand. Even as businesses reopen, guidelines around physical distancing and new standards of hygiene will change the customer experiences they might have come to expect.

Although it’s no doubt a relief for many SMEs to go back to doing what they do best, this is a moment to consider how they could raise the bar and do even better — reimagining the customer experience based on the challenges that may continue amid recovery.

Some elements of these experiences will be unique to the SME in question, but here are a few ideas that will likely equal “helpful” to most customers:

Many firms put signs on their storefronts and notices on their websites that they were temporarily closed when the pandemic began.

Some sent out an email message early on pledging to “be there” for customers in some form or another. Now is the time to prove that you meant it.

It may not be possible to alleviate customers’ individual concerns or fears, but ensuring you are present and available to answer questions or provide support can do a lot to reinforce the strength of a relationship.

That means being active and responsive on whatever channels customers are most likely to use, from phone lines in contact centres to social media, email and text. “Omnichannel” was never meant to simply be about marketing and selling: it was supposed to be an approach that met customers wherever they are. That’s especially critical now.

Make The Return To Normalcy As Realistic As Possible As plexiglass screens and stickers on the floor asking people to line up two metres apart go up in some workplaces, “business as usual” may seem like an oxymoron. Customers will likely prove resilient and capable of adjusting to necessary changes, but SMEs can play a huge role in helping prepare them.

Long before the Coronavirus emerged, it was quickly becoming best practice to treat customer service as a way of getting ahead of problems, rather than operating in a reactive way. The technology is here today to let SMEs empower their customer service teams — even if they’re working remotely — to reach out to customers who may need to know about new or different ways they’ll search for, pay for and receive the products and services they want.

Put yourself in the customer’s shoes as early as possible to think through the places where

friction might have been introduced as part of the effort to create a safe environment or process. How can you inform them and make them comfortable in advance so that it feels as “normal” as possible?

Negotiate Short-Term Relief To Provide Financial Stability The near-universal impact of the pandemic on businesses in almost every sector has led many lenders to consider deferred payments or new terms and conditions to existing arrangements that will be in the long-term interests of all parties.

If you haven’t already, begin that conversation with your financial institution or other thirdparties, given that the recovery may have some bumps and take longer than we’d like

Engage With Empathy When workers were sheltering-in-place, many leaders realized they had to be connect with their team in a way that expressed the most humancentred approach to management possible.

Customers will need the same thing.

You may not be able to “check in” with customers to the same degree as your employees, or watch for cues like body language on a video conferencing call. You can, however, be ready to actively listen — not just to make a sale, but to remind customers that what’s happening is a shared experience. Doing so builds rapport, and can be the first step in turning conversations towards a more optimistic, positive outlook.

The phrase “We’re all in this together” has become a common refrain throughout the crisis, but customers probably associated it more with their friends and family than with companies.

The most successful SMEs, however, are always in the relationship business, and the way they respond now will help determine how well we get out of this together, too

Why Do We Need A Flexible Corporate Structure In The Workplace?

By Mostafa Sayyadi

Centralized versus decentralized decision making is also a topic that executives must deal with. Scholars found that more emphasis on formalized and mechanistic structures can negatively impact the executive’s ability to exert such changes. On the contrary, a more decentralized and flexible structure may improve departmental and managerial interactions. The mechanical or centralization at the commanding level of leadership impairs the opportunity to develop relationships among managers, business units, and departments.

Executives can reshape corporate structure to be more effective when the command center of organizations can disseminate information in a decentralized and organic way as opposed to the mechanical and centralized command center. Decentralized structures shift the power of decision-making to the lower levels and subsequently inspire organizational members to create new ideas and even implement them while centralized structures may negatively impact interdepartmental communications and inhibit knowledge exchange. Recent research in this area affirms that the there is a negative impact of centralization on various knowledge management processes such as knowledge acquiring, creating, and sharing among both managers and departmental units. On the contrary, a more decentralized and flexible

structure may enable executives in improving departmental and managerial interactions that can lead to identify best opportunities for investment that potentially leads to improve knowledge utilization process for companies.

Ergo, executives can positively contribute to organizational knowledge management through building more decentralized structures within organizations. Furthermore, Knowledge management can improve sales through increasing customer satisfaction, learning opportunities and innovation. Therefore, if corporate structure is not completely in favor of supporting knowledge management, executives cannot effectively manage organizational knowledge to improve sales and organizations may become obsolete or taken over.

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It is also evident that networking with external business partners, as a function of knowledge management, increases sales and profitability, thereby providing directions for executives to develop a more effective vision incorporating various concerns and values of external business partners.

Networking with other companies also contributes to the effectiveness of learning, which in turn enables executives by empowering human resource and creating new knowledge and solutions.

Accordingly, flexible structures can indirectly affect sales and profitability through propelling knowledge management activities that can play a crucial role in enhancing the quality of products and services.

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orporate structure can be reshaped by executives when they develop knowledge sharing and inspire employees to create new ideas for a better environment among business-units and departments.

The informal structure could facilitate new idea generation to build a more innovative climate within organizations. Executives can implement organizational changes that develop better collaboration among subordinates and managers.

In conclusion, sales and profitability can be, therefore, enhanced when executives reshape corporate structure to develop a more flexible corporate structure that provides open access to knowledge and information. I simply extended the current literature by showing how executives can contribute to organizational outcomes by reshaping corporate structure to propel knowledge management processes within companies.

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5 MINUTES FOR BUSINESS WITH THE

CANADIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

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owever, to better understand just how unusual business has now become, we partnered with Statistics Canada to launch the Canadian Survey on Business Conditions (CSBC) in April. As the first comprehensive view into how businesses are experiencing COVID-19, the survey data paints a stark picture of the economic costs of fighting the virus.

The survey found that over 80% of businesses have experienced a medium to high drop in demand for services or products. Nearly onethird of businesses reported Q1 revenues down by 40% or more from the same time last year.

Sadly, 27% of businesses have had to layoff half or more of their employees, with 10% of companies laying off their entire staff. This unprecedented drop in demand and resulting layoffs represents millions of Canadians who have lost their jobs in the last two months.

In response to this severe economic downturn, governments at all levels are making an effort to move quickly, be flexible and accept more risk.

Federal programs to provide wage subsidies and business liquidity are being implemented at previously unheard speeds in order to help as many businesses and their employees as possible get through the pandemic.

While these programs are helping to backstop many businesses, a protracted shutdown is financially unsustainable for businesses and governments. This is why jurisdictions around the world, as well as Canadian provinces and territories, are gradually lifting shutdown orders and reopening their economies.

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However, nothing is usual about how business is resuming. As long as COVID-19 continues to be a public health threat, businesses will need to adjust how they operate to protect employees and customers. The CSBC highlights that these changes are already taking place: 18% of businesses have already altered methods of production; 35% have altered products or services offered to customers; and 45% have added new ways to interact with or sell to customers.

More adjustments will need to happen as workplaces continue to reopen. The office lunchroom used to be a place where employees could chitchat while eating a sandwich and catching up on last weekend’s hockey game.

While we still may be able to do that, a recent picture of Hyundai’s offices showing Plexiglas dividers at the lunch tables gives us insight as to how.

Keeping with the theme of borders, it’ll be some time yet for aircraft to see their normal passenger loads as people are reluctant to return to the usually tight confinements of air travel. And good luck on large mass gatherings anytime soon.

So, welcome to the new business as usual — what it will look like is not how we used to know it.

Please note, this article was initially published through the Canadian Business Resilience Network (CBRN) by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. We encourage you to visit www.cbrn.ca to learn more about their initiative to help mitigate impacts of this pandemic on business and the economy.

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Additionally, global supply chains have become upended, and international borders will remain difficult to navigate.

Goods produced and shipped can require lead times of weeks or months. It is safe to say, cargo ships will not be moving full speed ahead immediately with complete cargo loads.

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Business as usual was a thing we used to hear people say.

HOW GOOGLE IS HELPING FIORENTINA RESTAURANT IN CONNECTING WITH THEIR CUSTOMERS DURING TIMES OF UNCERTAINTY The owner of Fiorentina, Tina Leckie, sat down with CanadianSME to talk about the ways Google has helped her restaurant with the features and services they provide. Tina also talks about the challenges that she has faced during COVID and the strategies and tips she recommends to other restaurant owners that could help save their business and retain customers.

Q&A with Tina Leckie, Owner of Fiorentina What would you say has been the biggest impact that COVID-19 has had on your business? What challenges have been raised?

Fiorentina has been around for 8 years, and we have strong community support. With COVID-19, we had to find an alternate way of doing business; shortly after in-house dining was prohibited, we launched an online store.

People can order and pay with ease and safety.

My husband and I work together as business owners. With childcare centres closed, it’s been challenging to balance running the business, while taking care of our young children. To accommodate, we’ve changed our business hours from being open 6 days a week, to only being open Tuesday-Thursday from noon to 7pm. We also had to let go of our wait staff.

What marketing strategies have you been using to help promote your business? What initiatives have you implemented that have benefited the restaurant?

The Google My Business updates have been helpful for us to let customers and anyone searching for us know our updated hours and menu offerings. We’ve added our new forms of dining, including no-contact delivery and curbside pickup.

In terms of offerings, we noticed many people are buying for the week; so we’ve added large family-size servings to our menu, such as a full lasagna. We’ve also added a pantry section, featuring broths, sauces, sourdough starter etc.

How has Google helped business during this time?

your

Our Google My Business profile has been instrumental in keeping our customers updated on the changes we’ve had to make during this time. We were easily able to update our profile with details of our website, new hours and features. It was easy to do, and helpful for our customers who are searching for us online.

We’ve also used Google My Business to share ongoing posts and seen great traction; it’s very user friendly.

What advice can you give to other restaurant owners during these challenging times to help them?

It’s an incredibly challenging time as a business owner, especially in the restaurant business. We have found our community wants to support us and businesses that they have relied on; so when the dust settles, we will all still be around.

Keeping them informed on how we’re operating, as well as having an easy, safe system in place (like the online store) has allowed them to do so.

Together we’ll get through this.

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CONNECT WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS THROUGH GOOGLE 1. Many local restaurants have been greatly impacted due to COVID-19.

In your expert opinion, what would you say is the biggest challenge that restaurant owners are facing at the moment?

4. What would you say is the biggest benefit that Google My Business has on local restaurants?

We know that Google Search and Google Maps is often the first place Canadians look when they are hungry and interested in ordering from a restaurant. Google My Business is the free platform that restaurants can use to update their information so that it shows up accurately across Google Search and Google Maps.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented challenges for restaurants across Canada. The government mandated closures have forced restaurants to shut down their in-restaurant dining experiences, so these businesses have had to pivot drastically to find ways to still connect with their customers.

At Google, we work with a lot of restaurants across Canada and while each situation varies, the number one challenge all restaurants are facing is how to best keep their customers informed about their evolving business operations.

When we look at Google search data, there are two things Canadians care about the most. The first is how they can still order from restaurants, with searches for “Takeout” skyrocketing +180% comparing April to January 2020, and the second is around health and safety. Search interest for “Is Takeout safe during coronavirus” is up 100% and a top rising search term this week, compared to last week.

It is imperative that restaurants are connecting with their customers to let them know how they are addressing these two areas that are clearly top of mind.

2. What are some of the initiatives that Google has put in place to help local restaurants?

As a way to help restaurants communicate how they’re shifting their business operations in the midst of COVID-19, we’re rolling out new updates to our Google My Business platform that specifically speak to the top concerns of Canadians at this time.

Restaurants can now easily update how they have pivoted their operations, including the ways customers can order from them (ex. takeout, delivery, or curbside pickup). By updating their Google My Business profile using these new features, this updated information will show on Google Search, and Google Maps, the place where most Canadians turn to first to get information about their favourite local restaurants CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020 I

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This is why these Google My Business updates are so important so that restaurants can let people know how they are still open for business at this time and how they’re keeping them safe.

Stephanie Wong Partner Lead, Food, Beverage & Restaurants at Google

Canadian SME sat with Stephanie Wong, Partner Lead, Food, Beverage & Restaurants at Google to discuss how Google business is helping restaurants in connecting with their customers.

We’ve also introduced COVID-19 posts where merchants can proactively inform their customers about how their operations and services have shifted. Updates can include safety precautions they’re taking, information about takeout or delivery options, changing menu offerings and hours of operations, and whether customers can expect delays.

3. What approach has Google taken to help restaurant owners during these challenging times?

The new features we are rolling out on Google My Business will help restaurants specifically address the top concerns of their customers.

There’s also our Google Small Business hub with tools and resources to help small businesses.

We’ve also launched free digital workshops for Canadian small businesses and our teams are continuing to think through more ways to help as the pandemic evolves and customer needs change. Canadians can find these workshops at https://events.withgoogle.com/ growonair/#content.

5. What can consumers do during this time to help local restaurants stay in business?

Order from your favourite local restaurant for your next meal! Many local restaurants are offering take-out and delivery options - positive community support can go a long way during this difficult time.

6. On a final note, what advice can you give to restaurant owners that can help them during the COVID-19 outbreak?

The COVID-19 outbreak has forced many restaurants to pivot their operations quickly, whether that is offering different ways of dining (takeout and delivery), changing their hours of operations or taking extra health and safety precautions to keep their customers safe. It is imperative for restaurant owners to proactively communicate these changes to make it as easy as possible for customers to stay informed. At the moment, Canadians cannot interact with restaurants in person like they used to, so using digital channels is a key way to keep lines of communication open.

If you’re looking for information on updating your Google My Business profile, or other questions, our Small Business Hub is free and offers step by step instructions for restaurants to let customers know how to reach them.

TELUS’ #STANDWITHOWNERS PROGRAM IS SUPPORTING CANADIAN SMALL BUSINESSES THROUGH THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC Social media campaign exceeded target in just four days TELUS is committing $500,000 in direct revenue, marketing, and expert advice to support, promote, and celebrate small business owners Last month, TELUS launched #StandWithOwners, a new initiative aimed at supporting Canadian small businesses and their owners through direct revenue, marketing, and expert advice during a time when they need it most.

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he COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be as much of a financial crisis as it is a health one, significantly affecting Canadian small businesses and threatening the livelihoods of owners, their families, and their employees.

Yet despite the challenges, countless owners have rallied and pivoted their businesses to survive against all odds.

TELUS was inspired to help and launched #StandWithOwners to support small business owners in several ways: To encourage others to join in and support owners, TELUS asked Canadians to create a new post on Twitter or Instagram highlighting a small business, and using the hashtag #StandWithOwners and tagging @TELUSBusiness. In return, nominators were eligible to receive a $25 digital gift card to use at the selected business on behalf of TELUS. In only four days, #StandWithOwners exceeded expectations, generating over 20,000 social posts, with #StandWithOwners trending at number one on Twitter at launch.

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TELUS is investing marketing funds to promote owners across social media, digital advertising and a new digital hub on telus.com/standwithowners to showcase their business and connect them with new customers and share their inspiring stories.

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TELUS is engaging industry experts and leading Canadian entrepreneurs like Arlene Dickinson for their support. In the coming weeks, TELUS will launch a series of interactive online discussions where small business owners can ask questions, share advice and discuss best practices on how to manage business uncertainty in a candid environment.

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The Canadian economy needs a thriving small business community to rise from the COVID-19 crisis” said Roi Ross, Vice-President of Marketing, TELUS Business. “Owners not only drive the economy forward, but their businesses are the heartbeat of our beloved neighbourhoods. The #StandWithOwners campaign celebrates and promotes this critical role that owners play in our local communities from coast-to-coast.

Additionally over the coming weeks, TELUS will profile business owners from across the country showcasing how they have adapted their business during the pandemic as they continue to support their customers.

Arlene Dickinson will also take part alongside TELUS executives showcasing their support for inspiring Canadian entrepreneurs and owners.

“Owners and Canadians at large are working to navigate through unchartered territory that has completely altered the way we live and do business.

This can be extremely stressful, scary and lonely at times,” said Arlene Dickinson, General Partner of District Ventures Capital. “Now more than ever is the time to stand together as owners and as a community.

This initiative by TELUS will help us to stay connected and support each other, and I’m looking forward to participating.”

For the latest information about TELUS’ support during the crisis, visit telus.com/en/business/small/covid-19/updates

About TELUS TELUS (TSX: T, NYSE: TU) is a dynamic, world-leading communications and information technology company with $14.8 billion in annual revenue and 15.3 million customer connections spanning wireless, data, IP, voice, television, entertainment, video and security.

We leverage our global-leading technology to enable remarkable human outcomes. Our longstanding commitment to putting our customers first fuels every aspect of our business, making us a distinct leader in customer service excellence and loyalty. TELUS Health is Canada’s largest healthcare IT provider, and TELUS International delivers the most innovative business process solutions to some of the world’s most established brands.

Driven by our passionate social purpose to connect all Canadians for good, our deeply meaningful and enduring philosophy to give where we live has inspired our team members and retirees to contribute more than $736 million and 1.4 million days of service since 2000. This unprecedented generosity and unparalleled volunteerism have made TELUS the most giving company in the world.

For more information about TELUS, please visit telus.com, follow us @TELUSNews on Twitter and @ Darren_Entwistle on Instagram.

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STANDING WITH CANADIAN OWNERS AT A TIME OF

DISTANCE Exclusive Chat with Roi Ross, VP of Marketing, TELUS Business

With more than 15 years of strategy consulting and industry leadership across telecommunications and technology, Roi’s global experience spans North American and Asian markets.

Known for building and leading highly-engaged entrepreneurial teams that consistently drive market growth, Roi is also passionate about how small business owners use innovative technology solutions to differentiate and scale their business.

Most recently, he was the executive sponsor of the TELUS Pitch, Canada’s largest small business contest, which is a powerful customer engagement platform designed to celebrate small business owners while investing and engaging in their future growth. Roi lives in toronto, on with his wife and two sons

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1. COVID-19 has had a huge impact on businesses, small and big. What’s been the biggest impact it’s had on Telus and what initiatives has Telus taken to overcome these challenges?

One of the biggest challenges facing businesses big and small is how to continue running your business and supporting customers with the majority of workforces now working remotely from home.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, TELUS had already empowered approximately 75% of employees to spend some portion of time working remotely, including inoffice workers, mobile employees and customer facing agents through the TELUS Work Styles program. The original intent of Work Styles was to create value for our team members by supporting a flexible work environment; supporting the consolidation and reduction of floor space; and reducing our environmental footprint through decreased greenhouse gas emissions.

In response to the public health crisis, TELUS has been able to use these investments in Work Styles to deal with the COVID-19 health crisis with 95% of all TELUS Business team members able to to work fully from home, including 99% of domestic call centre team members. Incredibly we were able to complete this shift within five business days while maintaining our focus on serving our customers and maintaining our network performance at a critical time.

2. Many large corporations have taken this opportunity to set out a clear message about how they are reacting to the worldwide pandemic and the different ways they are helping those impacted by COVID-19. What approach has Telus taken in regard to this?

As a technology company, connecting people is what we do. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, TELUS has committed $150 million to support Canadians with the services and resources they need. The two areas I’m most proud of are the support we were able to offer small businesses and our efforts to support virtual healthcare.

Supporting our small business customers:  We are supporting our small business customers

facing financial challenges as a result of the pandemic by offering flexible payment options. We didn’t want anyone to worry about not being able to pay their bill on time, and none of our customers will lose services if they are unable to pay.  Early on in the COVID-19 crisis as international

borders were closing and global travel was shutting down; many Canadian’s found themselves trapped overseas. In this situation, their TELUS smartphone became an essential lifeline to communicate with loved ones and a tool to coordinate their return to Canada. To assist, TELUS made the decision to waive international roaming fees for these customers. The peace of mind we were able to provide our customers during this very stressful time was a wonderful show of support

500,000 Canadians and their families through their employers. TELUS Health also announced it is enabling 26,000 Canadian family doctors to conduct virtual visits with their patients by seamlessly integrating this functionality into its electronic medical records (EMRs) offering.This app enables users to virtually connect with a health practitioner 24/7, 365 days a year, and can help further alleviate strain on our clinics and hospitals.

3. In your expert opinion, what is the biggest challenge that small business owners are facing at the moment? What initiatives has Telus taken to help small business owners during the COVID-19?

The COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be as much of a financial crisis as it is a health one, significantly impacting Canadian small businesses and threatening the livelihoods of owners and their families. Businesses have been forced to rally and pivot their businesses, relying on remote technologies and online connections to survive against all odds.

TELUS was inspired to help and launched #StandWithOwners, a new initiative aimed at supporting Canadian small businesses and their owners through direct revenue, marketing, and expert advice during a time when they need it most. 

TELUS wanted to encourage Canadians to join in and support owners by shining a spotlight on their favourite independent small business. Canadians were asked to create a post on Twitter or Instagram highlighting a small business, using the hashtag #StandWithOwners and tagging @TELUSBusiness. In return, nominators received a $25 digital gift card to use at the selected business on behalf of TELUS. Most notably, in its first four days in market, the campaign generated 20,000 social posts helping us to distribute our $500,000 committed to supporting small business owners.

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TELUS is investing marketing funds to promote owners across social media, digital

Supporting Canadian healthcare: 

To help keep Canadians safe and reduce exposure for themselves and others, we have expanded our virtual healthcare capabilities through Babylon

by TELUS Health, currently available for free to anyone in B.C., Alberta, and Ontario. This app gives users access to information via our sophisticated AI-powered Symptom Checker, and the ability to book appointments, virtually see a locally-licensed physician, and get prescriptions as well as referrals for diagnostic tests and specialist appointments.

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TELUS also offers the bilingual Akira virtual care app, which is available to more than

advertising and a new digital hub on telus.com/ standwithowners to showcase their business and connect them with new customers and share their inspiring stories. 

TELUS is engaging industry experts and past TELUS Pitch judges like Arlene Dickinson for their support. In the coming weeks, TELUS will launch a series of interactive online discussions where small business owners can ask questions, share advice and discuss best practices on how to manage business uncertainty in a candid environment.

4. On a final note, what advice can you give to entrepreneurs that can be beneficial for them during this worldwide pandemic?

We have been inspired by the outpouring of support for Canadian small business owners through the #StandWithOwners initiative. It’s clear that Canadians are very proud of their local small businesses and the owners that run them and are eager to support them in any way possible. My advice to entrepreneurs is look for ways to stay connected to your community - even if it’s remotely.

We have seen many owners that have used a variety of solutions to do this including social media, contactless payments, and video conferencing to continue interacting with their community during a time of distance.

While it can be an incredibly scary and difficult time for many, it has also been a time of strength, resilience and ingenuity. If you’re looking for examples of inspiration, we encourage you to follow along with our social channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. In the coming weeks, we’ll be launching a series of interactive online discussions specifically aimed at helping owners manage their business during the pandemic.

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ONE-ON-ONE WITH

MARK VERNON General Manager at Gold Vision CRM

1. As General Manager at Gold Vision CRM, can you tell us a little bit about your role and responsibilities to give our readers a better idea of what it is that you do?

I’ve held a position at Gold-Vision for a little over 16 years and have worked across many business functions. My primary responsibility over much of my career has been for the development of our flagship CRM product – focusing on delivering a solution that is powerful and scalable but can also be made simple and easy to use.

My responsibilities have also included delivering and supporting customer CRM projects. As a business, we boast a proven track record of successful implementation projects internationally, backed up by customer-focused teams.

More recently I have taken on the responsibility of developing our Northern American market. I’m working in a hands-on role in a small and growing team, managing business development and implementation of our products whilst focusing on the specific needs and challenges presented by a global market. Given the current pandemic we’re focusing on delivering successful best practice remote implementations.

2. You have 20 years of expertise in developing and implementing software. What would you say is the most challenging part of developing software that can help business owners?

The most challenging aspect of developing any software product is creating something that’s powerful enough to fulfil the user’s needs whilst remaining simple enough for them to learn and use easily. There are many offerings in the CRM market space at both end of the spectrum.

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implement. The challenge we face is developing the ‘goldilocks’ solution that sits perfectly in between.

When it comes to implementing software, the challenge is more focused around people. For a project to succeed it requires buy-in from the people who will be using it. It might sound simple but it’s easy to overlook. It’s important to identify individuals with enough authority to make decisions who also understand how their business operates.

The advice I can give to business owners when implementing CRM is to set clear goals, assign a project sponsor to bring together a team of key individuals, have a clear understanding of how your business operates, and consider what data is important to you. Most importantly, find a product and supplier that is right for you.

3. As General Manager, you’re focussed on global business development. Why is this important to you and how do you believe this will impact the success of the business?

Global business development is important to us and also something we’ve recognised as more common in our market sweet-spot.

Technology growth and improvement has given rise to more mid-market businesses expanding internationally.

In order to best support our customers and marketplace, we too are focusing on international development. We offer a product and service that add value to businesses with global teams across different time-zones.

Of course international objectives have presented interesting challenges to us. Our core goal is to have a global reach across multiple languages and time-zones, whilst maintaining the personal relationship and service with our customers.

We’ve opened an office in downtown Toronto

to support our growing interest in North America. Having offices across multiple time-zones allows us to better support our customer needs and tap into local experience.

4. Many entrepreneurs are currently suffering due to the impact that COVID-19 has had on their business.

What approach is GoldVision CRM taking in regard to this? What initiatives are they taking to help small businesses during these challenging times?

As you can imagine, our business marketing, sales, project delivery and customer support processes are fully embedded in our GoldVision cloud, integrated with our Quickbooks Online finance system. So with the addition of Microsoft Teams our colleagues have been able to continue efficiently from any location. We have ensured that all members of the business have strong and regular contact with each other and that they have quick and easy access to the information they need to be effective.

Our approach to helping small, and larger, businesses at this time is to offer our many years of expertise through a series of blogs, webinars and videos. For anyone reading this who is struggling during these times we have a dedicated program of webinars on remote working, managing teams remotely, and avoiding isolation. See our LinkedIn page or search for us on YouTube for these.

For our customers, we’re reaching out in an increased customer experience effort to ensure we understand the challenges they’re facing and how we can assist them during this time.

Additionally, we have continued to offer a fully operational support desk.

To support the people we work with, we’re continuing to foster a culture of trust and strong communication.

5. On a final note, what advice can you give to entrepreneurs that can help them during these unprecedent times?

The advice we would give to any business, small or large, is the same. In the middle of difficultly lies opportunity – the successful entrepreneurs during this time with be those who can make the most of their opportunities. Now is exactly the right time to fine tune and invest in your CRM system and business processes.

CANADIAN BUSINESS LEADERS AND THEIR THOUGHTS ON RE-OPENING Nunzio Presta Founder & CEO of BizON

Nunzio Presta is an ex pro hockey player turned entrepreneur! He is also the Founder & CEO of BizON, an online marketplace with over 10,000 active users looking to buy, sell and grow businesses or franchises every day.

1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

Patience and readiness, especially as a business owner, is the order of the day. Also, being a good citizen who respects rules and suggestions for the betterment of the community, especially for those who are vulnerable, should be taken seriously. The goal is to do good, survive and not tarnish any relationships on the path to reopening. Over the last month I’ve had many insightful conversations with business leaders and users of our marketplace, and being in a crouching ready position and prepared from the moment the lockdown began is how most were thinking. As business owners, we need to be very agile and open with our thinking, acknowledging that life at the moment with coronavirus can’t be riskfree, but we can minimize harm - mentally, physically & economically by implementing the right things. This requires thorough and diligent thinking on multiple facets of your business when reopening. For example, remote working, flex work and working from home may no longer be a perk, but rather something that is essential to attracting and retaining top talent.

We’re humans, we always find a way, we always evolve and we will always survive. As a business leader, manager or owner you need to be optimistic and embrace change and digital transformation. People are not motivated or energized by pessimists.

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

Physical distancing, the importance of mental wellness and digital transformation has accelerated and heightened. For most businesses this type of acceleration was probably on their 18 to 24-month roadmap, but COVID snapped that into 2 months. But to be totally transparent with everyone, things won’t go back to normal 100%. There will be a new normal, and that new normal is a work in progress that is evolving every day as we battle to contain this brutal virus. However, the new normal won’t be as drastic as people think. One of my mentors said it the best “every time I’ve thought there’s going to be massive change as a result of some hardship we’re going through it always falls short of the change that people have predicted.” So, my advice is, audit your business environment (social, economic, technology trends) and adapt! For example, the hardest hit spaces like restaurants and retail should be thinking about a model that is “pandemic proof” in a way. They should be digging deep on floor layouts, the elimination of buffets and scheduling one-on-one retail experiences.

Many businesses also have to acknowledge the uptick in services such as personal shopping (clothing/home decor), grocery/fresh produce delivery and meal kit services. If you looked at these players as a threat, I implore you to look at them now as partners.l

Dan Kelly

President, CEO and Chair Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB)

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.

1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

We can expect a messy recovery phase as businesses begin to reopen.

CFIB has prepared a Back to Business Kit that can be used be all small firms as they restart their operations. It includes answers to many questions and is customized to comply with the rules in each province. Small firms need to know how to recall workers, how to maximize the benefits of all the support programs and what safety procedures will be required along the way. In addition to our kit, we’ve made our one on one business counselling service available to all small business owners regardless of whether they are or are not a member of CFIB. They can be reached at 1888-234-2232.

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

Many small firms have had to innovate in a big hurry in order to respond to the COVID emergency. Some of these modifications will serve them well in the future. Almost a quarter of small firms have moved forward in adopting a digital presence, including e-commerce capacity. This will help. Others can expect more employees to look to continue to work from home – this can create new opportunities and costs savings, but can be complicated if not done right. Many firms can expect social distancing to continue to hurt their ability to operate for the medium-term. I’m hoping some of the innovations and investments small business owners are making will help them attract new customers along the way.

Rocco Rossi President & CEO of Ontario Chamber of Commerce

“A successful entrepreneur and business executive, champion fundraiser, and dedicated public servant, Rocco Rossi joined the Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) in 2018 as President and CEO. Prior to joining the OCC, Rossi most recently served as President and CEO of Prostate Cancer Canada where he helped to advance the research, advocacy, education and awareness of the most common cancer in men.

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1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

The key to a successful reopening - as long as we still don’t have a vaccine, is going to be building and maintaining consumer and employee confidence.

If your consumer or employee doesn’t feel safe doing business with you then you won’t have the success. There are some things you need to do like joining your voice with the Chamber of Commerce and other groups to push what government needs to do, which is more testing, more track and tracing, and availability of far more PPE for businesses, frontline workers and long-term healthcare. As you re-open, consumers and employees are going to expect there to be PPE. We are already seeing examples like Longo’s supermarket here in the GTA that requires customers to wear a mask to shop in their stores. That is both to protect other shoppers and to send a strong signal to their employees that they are going to do everything in their power to make the workplace as safe as possible.

What businesses need to do is take every step. The government has issued health and safety guidelines and re-opening guidelines in over 90 sectors.

You can visit Ontario.ca and download your sector and that provides you a base and some things we all know. We know that you have to ensure physical distancing, ensure that your employees are washing their hands or wearing masks if necessary, setting up plexiglass barriers where needed, move to cashless payments, and deep cleaning of the facilities. All of these are steps that will increase confidence in consumers and employees.

Businesses rightfully tell me that they’ve been shut down for 10-11 weeks and for some of us who aren’t allowed to re-open its going to be even longer. The money will be gone. We are pushing governments to set aside funds for re-opening because bigger companies are able to absorb that and its very difficult for the small companies to source materials and pay for it.

The test for you should be, have you done everything possible so that you would feel comfortable inviting your mother, your child, your spouse, your best friend, and either work for you or be your customer. If you can’t answer yes to that, then you haven’t done enough.

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

There’s no question that a big part of the difference - and this was a trend that was happening anyway but has been accelerated by COVID, that businesses where possible had been digitizing through e-commerce or through being able to answer questions and undertake sales call through zoom or Microsoft teams or other virtual platforms. Getting up to speed with that is going to crucial for most businesses and those that do it well are going to succeed. That unveils another big issue that across Canada we don’t have equal access to broad band internet and that is something that both the government and the private sector responding to a favorable environment need to build out significantly.

It is the new electrification, the new highways of the 21st century. If we want to succeed as a province and as a country and help our businesses and students succeed, we need Broadband Internet everywhere. Beyond digital is really what businesses will always have to do and that’s particularly important during COVID-19. Beyond is engaging in constant conversation with your customers to build and maintain confidence and deliver the value that’s going to make them choose you and keep choosing you in the future. Okay is no longer okay, everybody is going to have to up their game.

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Emiliano Introcaso Export Help Advisor at Export Development Canada (EDC)

Emiliano has close to two decades of experience working with manufacturers and exporters looking to increase their global growth by providing them with support and guidance in all things export.

1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

Businesses need to be informed via the government agencies in their respective provinces as they are preparing the implementation of different phases. Being ahead of the game, involving their employees as much as possible, and collaborating with ideas as to how new phases will affect the way the business must operate, it’s crucial. As phases are introduced, there are a number of considerations that are put in place for the safety of the employees working in the front lines, as well as the clients seeking the goods and services from those businesses. Even if your business is not considered an essential service at the moment, thinking ahead and in creative ways is what is going to allow your business to succeed and readapt to the new reality.

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

There is no doubt that business pre-COVID are going to be operating in the same way post-COVID. In many businesses where social distancing is not possible, your business might have to re-adapt in the way that it deals with employees working together. Some businesses might opt to have staff work from home, or shift work at different hours. Other business might consider the reduction of personnel in a temporary basis, as the different economic reopening phases are implemented. Reinventing your business during this time, can be one of those forced opportunities that during pre-COVID were never considered as options. I know it is easier said than done, but assistance is out there through the numerous federal and provincial programs that all levels of governments have implemented.

Many might require a business plan to support your applications. Using your organization’s downtime to plan for the next steps you should take, it is a way to safeguard your business and adapt it to the new normal.

Miki Velemirovich President of Cargo

Miki Velemirovich is the President of Cargo, a full-service marketing and advertising agency that specializes in helping big brands market to small businesses. Cargo is an expert in the Business to Small Business space coining the term B2SB Marketing®.

How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

First and foremost, if the businesses have not applied for all the relevant financial help available to them, they need to make this their priority. There are many great programs provided by the Canadian Government, and they are all designed to facilitate the recovery. As businesses re-open, they need to focus on keeping their employees safe. For those that can run their operations on a remote work model, they should keep the model running for as long as possible. For those businesses that cannot, business owners should roll out as many health and safety protocols as possible. Staff that feels safe and protected will be able to get to work quicker, making the transition a lot smoother.

In the very same way, businesses need to be focused on the changes to their consumers’ attitudes towards physical distance, health, and safety.

This does not require massive amendments of operations and business models; rather small pivots to fit the current consumer attitudes. Just remember, if you can reduce the consumer anxiety of doing business with you, you will ensure that your customers will stay. So, if your business was heavily reliant on “high touch”, like large gatherings and close human interaction, try to quickly move to virtual and remote settings. And if they heavily depended on the physical sales environment, quick pivots to digitalization of sales process via e-commerce platforms will keep the flow as the recovery continues.

Finally, business owners and leaders should always lean on their peers.

I have heard of so many great stories of resilience and creativity in the Canadian business community, businesses changing course quickly to adapt. And those stories are inspiration to many. And are just a chat away.

Small businesses form a community and they should lean on one another for inspiration.

What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

There will be many changes in the business landscape post COVID-19.

Until we get a proven vaccine out in substantial numbers, we are going to be living with this virus. The time it takes to get to a proven vaccine, may define what sticks and what does not. Some behaviours will surely be temporary, but some will simply become just how we do things from now on. I define this crisis as the Great Reinvention, where the innovation curve has just accelerated: remote work, tele and virtual everything, “low touch” or contact free economy, and a digital landscape that we never thought possible in such a short time. This just may be the beginning of a new era.

I don’t even see it as the new normal as normal means typical and there will be nothing typical about how we will conduct business post COVID-19.

Small business owners should enter this phase with an open mind, and desire for innovation. My advice for any business leader is to take a good look at the existing business model and see whether it will still fit the changes in consumer behaviour. That’s the starting point. Will I be able to serve my customers in the same way? Will my product or service still be relevant? If the answer is no, then it’s time to tweak or change the business model to suit the changing consumer behaviour aspects. If the broken supply chain was the culprit of much of the revenue loss during the initial days of the pandemic, the business leaders should take a good look at it. More balance, more local content and supplier choice will be the new requirement. And when it comes to business design, resilience and efficiency will provide the new post COVID-19 business models the speed and lightness they will need to better deal with any new crisis.

Founded in 2005, CMI Group of Companies has grown to become a preeminent provider of private mortgages and mortgage investment products.

The recent expansion of their mortgage administration and servicing capabilities has enabled CMI to offer full-cycle private mortgage solutions from origination to discharge. An award-winning mortgage company, CMI is the proud recipient of the 2019 Growth 500 Award as one of the fastest growing companies in Canada.

1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

I think most if not all businesses need to understand one sobering reality – the transition to the so-called new normal will be anything but a smooth one. As many pundits have stated since the start of the pandemic, we are creating a new rulebook for how we are to live and operate.

Until a vaccine is found for COVID-19, we will need to adjust and adapt operations. Preparation, creativity, and strong management will be the key to ensuring a smooth, as much as possible, transition.

There is no way to guarantee a smooth transition for businesses looking to reopen. Nevertheless, there are several fundamental tactics you can employ to make the transition.

First, there is no alternative to prior planning. Preparation is often the key to success, with everything, and this is no different. It is important to ensure your business and staff are ready for reopening. Reimagine operations in a way that is safe for employees, partners, and clients, whatever that may mean for your industry. If you are days or weeks away from opening, get your hands on all the information from your local or provincial government, industry association or business colleagues. You need to be able accommodate the rules and regulations put forward by public health officials, governments, and regulatory bodies, many of which are designed to safeguard the health and well-being of employees, customers, and the general population.

Second, ensure you convey transparency with your business and its policies and procedures while also making every effort possible to clearly communicate with your customers, employees, and suppliers. It is more critical than ever that we provide honest and proactive information to our stakeholders; this will in turn go a long way to putting their minds at ease.

Your transparency will give them the confidence and peace of mind that you have their best interests at the forefront of your business practices.

Third, be ready adapt on the fly. Things are moving and changing very rapidly, whether with the virus, government policies or human behaviour.

So, you must prepare for the expected and unexpected, alike, as well as be willing and nimble enough to evolve and adapt to the ever-changing environmental challenges that are in store. You must always be in tune with and acutely aware of these changes as well as be prepared to rapidly adapt and accommodate to them. Failure to adapt and evolve can result in extinction. We have seen this countless times throughout natural history.

Fourth, be creative. This is a time where the benefit of creative, out of the

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box thinking can not be overstated. Creativity can benefit a business and propel it forward, especially during tough times. Instead of focusing on challenges, try to use them to stimulate creative solutions to improve your business, enhance efficiency and offer value added products and services for your clients and partners. Creative thinking during these times can really set you apart on the road to success.

Lastly, in planning for a smooth reopening, take charge. Become a charismatic leader for your employees, partners, and clients. Lead and manage with confidence, make bold moves that will help set you apart from others. Now is not a time to be scared or meek but a time to rise to the challenge and steer your ship through the storm with great conviction.

Understand what you need to do, when and how and build these requirements into your day-to-day business procedures. Train staff where required on these new policies and ensure they know how to execute them. Most importantly, expect and plan for constant change as COVID-19 evolves in your community - your business will be required to evolve and change with it. Your ability to adapt will be your strongest asset through this transition!

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

I think businesses should expect and plan for a much more complicated work environment for the foreseeable future. Little will be static, and things will change often in response to public health directives and government decisions. It will be important for businesses to realize this and most importantly come to grips with this new reality. Status quo will be no more, and businesses must be willing and able to constantly adapt their practices.

In our estimation, the one thing businesses should not do right now is wait and hope for things to return to normal. Although many people fear change, our reality is one that is rapidly changing. This is something business owners must come to terms with.

Beyond this, there is another important aspect that businesses must now consider – the mental and emotional state of customers, employees, and suppliers. Much has been written about the level of anxiety and stress being endured right now as we collectively deal with the implications of the coronavirus.

Now more than ever business owners and leaders must stay in tune with the real and perceived thoughts and concerns of those whom we interact with regularly. We would recommend creating an open forum with these parties, asking them for their input and suggestions on what they need from us to feel more comfortable when interacting with our establishments.

This could take the form of both public and anonymous feedback, online and off. Encourage your customers to provide their feedback via email, social media and perhaps even in an anonymous may where feasible.

This goes back to the importance of communication and transparency in this age of COVID. Smart businesses will make this their mantra and do whatever they can to keep an open dialogue with their stakeholders, keeping them informed on all aspects of their business from product availability, to pricing, to changing company policies, and more.

In the end, being nimble, flexible, and adaptable in this challenging period will serve you well. Avoid the temptation to hold on to legacy practices and policies. Instead, focus on being responsive and chameleon-like. We believe this will serve you well and demonstrate to your stakeholders that you care, are there for them and have their best interests in mind.

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At CMI, we have been extremely fortunate to have been able to weather this storm, remaining open for business throughout the pandemic. This was because, as a financial institution, we are considered an essential service. We were also aided by the fact we have long since operated as a virtual or remote business, with all our employees working from home.

Nevertheless, many aspects of our business had to change. For example, the daily routines of our sales team had to pivot very quickly to adapt to the confines of COVID. Visiting client offices ended immediately once COVID-19 became a concern in Canada. We quickly shifted these inperson sessions to a digital format, where we created webinars to replace these tasks.

As well, all the sales conferences we were attending and were exhibitors at were either cancelled or postponed. This forced us to rely on telephone calls, email, social media, and other digital methods to stay in touch with our customers and business partners. Despite remaining open for business, we were not immune from the coronavirus fallout. None of changes were remotely easy but adapting was a necessity.

We continue to monitor government announcements, case numbers across the country and our business volumes as we slowly move to resume full operations in a very careful and measured manner, all the while keeping a close eye on the various economic and financial indicators.

We expect this new normal to last for some time and are fully committed to proactively managing this as best we can.

Sheri Somerville Chief Executive Officer of Atlantic Chamber of Commerce (ACC)

Sheri Somerville is Chief Executive Officer of Atlantic Chamber of Commerce (ACC), the largest accredited business association in Atlantic Canada representing more than 16,000 businesses through its network of 93 chambers and 25 corporate partners. Sheri is globally certified communication professional with more than 21-years of multi-sector business experience, and partners with her members to influence an environment in Atlantic Canada where business succeeds.

How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

The pandemic exposed areas of vulnerability and opportunity for businesses, and as we start to re-open we will need to think about and do things differently in the new post-COVID environment. The critical factor remains stopping the spread of the virus and that will create lasting effects to both social behaviour and economic activity. But for many provinces we’re approaching a turning point where we need operating businesses to provide jobs and income.

One of the key takeaways from the COVID experience is the importance of agility in business and the ability to transform processes and people rapidly. The faster a business can reconfigure and adapt to new conditions, the better their outcomes will be.

Business are at different stages within the lifecycle of this pandemic. While many businesses are still focussed on recovering revenue, others have started rebuilding their operations and are rethinking their organization.

Successful reopening will really depend on a business’ ability

to demonstrate conformity with public health orders so that employee and consumer confidence is regained. Recent studies have shown that confidence continues to be low, so we can expect our staff and customers to be wary and need reliable assurances of their safety until there is a vaccine.

attention turned to the security of supply chains, improving productivity and the acceleration of the digital economy and introduction of automation more rapidly than we would have seen before COVID. Ultimately this will lead to new products and services, new types of jobs, new employee roles and new customers in the future.

As they prepare to open, business owners must critically assess what measures and equipment are required to enforce social distancing and increased hygiene standards. Most provinces require a written post-COVID operational plan, which will be unique to the operations and physical space of each business. First and foremost, a business must determine if their province has an operational plan template to guide their approach.

Industry sector associations may also provide guidance and Chambers of Commerce are gathering and sharing instructive information and resources for business.

For businesses large and small the importance of agility and their ability to change and adapt processes and people rapidly will be an important prerequisite to resilience and success. The faster a business can make decisions, reconfigure and adapt to new conditions, the better their outcomes will be.

Second to operational readiness, communication and empathy will be key as business owners reintegrate their teams into the workplace. COVID shattered how we see the world and what we believe to be normal and predictable and many employees were impacted. Employers will need to communicate their new operational precautions openly and often, but also be empathetic to their employees’ concerns about personal safety and willingness to return to work in the same way they did before pandemic.

Economic success after COVID will take collaboration and teamwork.

Regaining the trust of customers and providing alternative access to products and services in order to re-establish cashflow should also be a priority for business. Our future will see the emergence of a contact-free economy and the continued use of online commerce. Communication and demonstration of protective measures to ensure consumer protection will be integral to the successful restoration of consumer confidence. But so will businesses’ ability to accelerate the adoption of digital solutions or advance digitization and automation.

In the wake of COVID-19, we’ve learned that much of what we do—in business, in government, in healthcare—can be done faster and more efficiently than we imagined possible. We mustn’t lose this momentum and knowledge, but rather harness and use it to ensure we optimize our resilience for what comes our way in the future.

What are the differences between business operations pre- and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

COVID-19 is one of the moments that mark a new direction in our history, similar to the introduction of computing. It reshapes our world view, what we believe is normal, and ultimately how we do things in response. The outbreak put livelihoods at stake, businesses in jeopardy, changed consumer behaviours, plunged governments deeper in debt, and effectively hit the reset button for citizens and economies the world over.

These effects will linger for some and will be socially and economically transformational.

Most importantly, business and governments must look at the lessons learned from this experience, change what needs to be changed and plan for any opportunities or challenges the future holds. Collectively, we now all see the world through a new lens and that triggers an opportunity do things differently, hopefully in new and exciting ways.

In the near-term, business will be focussed on revenue recovery and debt reduction to better their balance sheets as they rebuild operations, while simultaneously ensuring employee and consumer protection as they create contact-free operations with increased hygiene requirements.

Crisis has a way of accelerating change and innovation. With the collaboration and commitment of business and political leaders, we can transform through innovation, leverage exciting opportunities, and strengthen business and economic resilience.

Grace Nasralla

Owner of e-presence Consultants Inc, founder of OSBN® and HUDDLESPACE by OSBN®

Grace is the owner of e-presence Consultants Inc, founder of OSBN® and HUDDLESPACE by OSBN®. Grace holds a Bachelor degree in Communication Arts with the emphasis on Radio, TV and Film and an Honours Diploma in Business Administration and Accounting. She has been a Microsoft Certified Trainer since 2009 and is a member of Microsoft Partners Network.

How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

My approach is going to be increasing work hours slowly. I realize that businesses are going to prioritize their spending, so sales may not pickup very quickly; but it will be a good time for me to focus on marketing and getting the word out that we are open and back in business.

What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

I think due to the instability of the situation, businesses and people in general will definitely be more conscious about their spending. They will be more aware of the cleanliness of the place they go into, they will be more conscious to use hand sanitizers when they see it and they will be more distant even in their approach because they are aware of the social distancing aspect of our days. Businesses will have to put procedures in place to ensure compliance with the COVID-19 situation. Definitely, things have changed and we can see that when we go to major stores like SuperStore and Costco and we in turn, whether it be as consumers or as businesses have to realize that our compliance to these changes is key to our success in transitioning back into business.

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1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

Jeff Hao

President, The Logistics Factory Limited (TLF)

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Do tap into technology to hold regular meetings with your employees – engage them in your planning even if you have had to lay them off.

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Do keep customers and key accounts abreast of your status and decision-making.

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Do acknowledge that our situation is changing day to day, but that you are updating your own positioning as quickly as possible – and do so.

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Do reach out and share your policies and procedures for ensuring the safety of employees and customers.

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Do show empathy for the changes that have taken place in peoples’ lives.

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Do find ways to be kind and generous.

With years of experience in airline industry, logistics and distribution, and International Freight Forwarding in Canada and overseas, Jeff Hao started The Logistics Factory Limited (TLF) in 2013. Leading a great team he built up, TLF sits #51 of the Growth 500 in 2019, and was awarded as Small Business of the Year - TOP 1 – Up to 10 Employees, by Canada SME in 2019.

For business in general the most important issue going forward is communications with their employees and their customers. If this crisis has told us anything, people will absorb almost anything but they want accurate information. Governments that have done this well have risen in public opinion polling despite the change and upheaval around us. It is really no different for businesses. Here at Jesson, we have been working with our clients to do this. Developing coping strategies for them throughout this period of isolation and helping them to make recovery plans. Our job is to project what the new normal could look like for them and help them to implement initiatives so that as things begin to ease they are ready. These are just a few dos:

What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

For small business, this might be an opportunity to upgrade online operation system. On one hand it helps the business in similar situation when we have to work from home again. On the other hand, it helps business to improve efficiency.

Barbara Jesson President of Jesson + Company

Lufthansa, Glenfiddich, Hendrick’s, Lockheed Martin – under Barbara’s leadership, Jesson’s roster of great clients speaks for itself. Barbara has consulted to Canadian Tire, SMH International, ICI International, Air Canada/Air Ontario, Lever Ponds, Enbridge, the Ontario Government, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment and many others. A trusted resource for many of the world’s landmark brands, Barbara energizes and inspires the Jesson team to deliver stellar results. Before founding Jesson + Company, she worked client-side for industry leaders such as Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Abitibi-Consolidated, Allied Signal and Labatt Breweries. Barbara is a lateral thinker, recognized equally for her strategic insights, creative ideas and innovative problem solving. Barbara Jesson is the past president of the Empire Club of Canada, Director of the Theatre Museum Canada, and a board member for Hugh’s Room Live.

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First we still need to follow the protocol of hand washing, and sanitize all incoming mails/deliveries for some time. The company will try to provide hand sanitizer and face masks to our colleagues for them to stay safe.

Also, we will encourage employees practice social distance and work from home if possible.

How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

Jeff immigrant to Canada in year 2000, and he holds an MBA from Schulich School of Business, York University.

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

For us, it has been an interesting time. We have continued to work virtually and on some levels, we have been busier than ever. All of our clients are looking for coping strategies and creative ideas for survival. We are also, as I said, building recovery strategies. At the same time demand for services has changed somewhat. We are not advocating strong selling messaging now but more clients are turning to us for our crisis services.

As we begin to transition to the new normal, we are anticipating that this will shift again. Everyone will be looking for ways to position themselves to capture market share.

Many businesses pivoted during this period to provide goods and services for a COVID economy – masks, hand sanitizers – take-out food and other ways to keep their businesses relevant. For them, they will have to begin the conversion back to their core business. In the beverage sector, restaurant sales plummeted but consumer sales in liquor stores and other outlets has risen dramatically. They will have to find ways to help rebuild the out-of-home dining sector. Airlines and hotels have been particularly hard hit. The good ones have already begun preparation for a new kind of consumer experience – different configuration in aircraft, management of elevator use and other practicalities of the new normal. For businesses that have had to shut down completely, those that survive will have a big job to do in rehiring and training staff, finding ways to engage with their supply chains in new and as yet unforeseen ways. There are still bumps ahead of us.

The key in all of this is to be transparent about the challenges, open about your efforts to get things right and fair and empathetic communications with all of your stakeholders.

How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

Paul Downey, P.Eng CEO, Pliteq Inc.

I founded the engineering company, Pliteq in 2006 and have applied 25 years of engineering, manufacturing, R&D, and business development experience to ensure the success of our business based on recycled tire products.

I completed my Chemical Engineering thesis at the University of Western Ontario in 1991. I was one of the first researchers globally in the development and use of materials from recycled tires and was focused on engineering such products. I later moved to Toronto to help design and build one of the largest scrap tire recycling plants in the world.

1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

Businesses can implement protocols to enforce social distancing in the workplace. At Pliteq we have always been a distanced culture allowing our staff to have their own designated space and privacy in the office. In this way, we were already naturally distanced in our normal operations.

However, where we do need a plan is in the common areas such as boardrooms and lunchrooms to ensure the safety of our employees.

In addition, Pliteq and other businesses can incorporate a system of alternating staff to further encourage social distancing. This will reduce the number of employees in the office at any given day to fifty percent.

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal At Pliteq, we will strive to normalize everything as much as possible to our pre-COVID business operations as that is what people were happy with and are looking forward to. Therefore, the new normal is eventually going to be a lot like the old normal. Although there will be newly added safety standards for the practice of social distancing, proper hygiene, (washing hands regularly, avoid touching the face) sanitation of surfaces and wearing a mask.

As the spread of COVID-19 is reaching a plateau, manufacturers will need to transition from emergency responses to recovery initiatives. Within Canada’s collective recovery from COVID-19 lies new opportunity in manufacturing. How you can pivot your business, apply new capabilities, develop expertise or innovative solutions? Think about your front office (website), middle office or manufacturing floor, and back office (customer service, returns, maintenance). How can they be more digital?

Be inspired and inspire others by the mobilization of your business partners, the nation’s supply chain, and various government ministries.

Together, with a swift approach to fostering a collaborative ecosystem, Canadian manufacturing will develop resilience.

What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

Prior to COVID-19, approximately 17% of Canadian manufacturers had a plan for adopting Smart Manufacturing. Now, companies committed to digitization have the greatest chance to survive the impact of COVID-19.

We’ve seen companies who have already digitized their product and/or processes and they can pivot faster, easily collaborate with new partners, and react with innovation.

The new normal will require that companies become resilient to massive, unexpected, economic, & social forces. To build resilience as manufacturers adapt to the new normal, think about making manufacturing more flexible and vertically integrated.

Here are some places to start: 1. Design your products that offer digital features or services to increase revenue. The addition of a 3D printer can provide flexibility of tooling, easy to adjust to emergency demands.

2. Introduce smart manufacturing processes to reduce costs while creating a flexible workforce, such as implementing automation within physical distancing solutions.

3. Bring your hardware and software systems in sync with AI and leverage your data for new markets.

4. Grow your company with a global approach to supply chain management and sales that increase profit. Include plans for make versus buy scenarios within your supply chain.

Irene Sterian

5. Determine where digitization will create the most value with the biggest impact.

Founder, President, & CEO, ReMAP

As a strategic technology leader with over 30 years of experience in electronics, Irene has an entrepreneurial spirit and is a driving force in the future of manufacturing in Canada. Irene is a pioneer of environmentally safe, sustainable manufacturing technologies and holds a patent in high density, high performance memory circuit packaging.

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How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

David U.K. CEO, Cue Digital Media

A 27-year media veteran, David U.K. is the founder and CEO of Cue Digital Media. Cue Digital is the online media sales agency that audience-first publishers trust to deliver cool and cohesive experiences for brands and the consumers who adore them. Their consumer obsessed philosophy has led to the development of innovative in-house products and solutions from content creation to amplification and distribution that are transforming the future of digital advertising. Cue Digital reaches over 16 million unique Canadians across premium publishers each month, including more than 63% of millennials.

How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

“It is a company’s responsibility to be informed, on the latest federal and provincial regulations, as well as on what industry experts advise.

However, every employee has a different lifestyle with different challenges and varying levels of risk. I think it’s important for leaders to have a conversation with their employees to determine how they feel most comfortable and least at risk when transitioning back to work.”

What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

“This time can help teach small businesses to focus on the areas of their business that work best and remove those areas that no longer serve them effectively. We’ve seen many larger companies pivot their operations to suit their consumers’ needs during this time, and I believe small businesses can do the same. By leveraging different skills their employees may possess, small businesses can lead their companies in a new and successful direction.”

[EH]: For businesses reopening amidst all the changing variables of this pandemic, I continue to encourage you to keep communicating. Keep sharing with your customers/clients your plans, the changes you have made, what you need from them and what the reality of the ‘new norm’ means for you. One of the positives that have come out of these last few months is that individuals recognize the need to support the local SMBs they love. The more you can empower these customer champions to help you through these transitions, with the right information, the better support you will see. Having a both a strong internal communication plan & strategy for employees as well as a strong external communication plan & strategy for clients, partners, suppliers and the public will serve you well in these uncertain times.

What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

[EH]: The differences for small business pre- COVID and I’d say now, in COVID, are monumental. Working in the technology sector through this pandemic has been a wild journey. So many of our clients have scrambled to meet the demands of the market, launching new products, delivering virtual events, building educational content and partnering to innovative viable technical solutions to new problems. It feels as though we are rocketing at warp speed to meet these surmounting demands in this everchanging landscape.

To this end, it is critically important for businesses at this time to be highly malleable, adaptive and creative. These turbulent times call for untested, untraditional and unpredictable solutions. Our advice to our clients these days has been to be agile, open, authentic, innovative and maniacally client-focused. We also advise to look for uncommon solutions to challenges, such as partnerships. Working with some tirelessly dedicated entrepreneurs and leaders, we of course like to remind clients, to remember to take care of themselves and their families first, as when there is an imbalance in health, security and support at home, that usually shows up in the business too.

Christian Gualtieri Erica Hakonson

Gold-Vision CRM, Business Development Manager

Principal of Maven Collective Marketing and CMO of Orchestry

Erica Hakonson, Principal of Maven Collective Marketing and CMO of Orchestry, is an award-winning entrepreneur, named Female Entrepreneur of the Year (Silver Winner) from the Stevie Awards and Female Executive & Rising Star of the Year (2X Bronze Winner) from the Databird Business Journal. She has also lead Maven Collective Marketing agency to multiaward winning success, including MarCom Gold Award, 2X dotComm Gold Awards, Standard of Excellence WebAward, Summit Creative Bronze International Award and PRDaily Category Winner.

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Christian’s focus is to help spearhead the global expansion of Gold-Vision in the Canada/North America region. His drive is to thoroughly understand a client’s needs, challenges, and opportunities, working alongside them to uncover a CRM that captures their workflow.

How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

Businesses should stay informed on government developments and the initiatives they are putting forth with assisting companies in safety and comfortability for reopening strategies, such as large-scale testing for the broader population and access to PPE. The key to transitioning back to

business is making people feel as safe as possible in returning to a physical workplace. We are in an in-between situation of wanting and needing to restart the economy but balancing the risk of a second wave or spike in infections after all the measures and progress for flattening the curve have been made. This appears to be the case until vaccination is accessible for the population. And having a better understanding of the full universe of infection will enable better isolation efforts of infected cases, and help smooth a reopening transition of the economy.

From a digital standpoint, many companies may have taken the slower downtime to reassess their digital tools. It is important that with the reopening phase of their business they ingrain these processes so they endure moving forward. Having time to experiment with these new processes is critical to see what works and does not work as they ramp up their activities.

What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an insightful experience for organizations to see whether they have the operations in place for internal collaboration, building trust among their teams, having effective processes that successfully captures their business workflow, and if they have a complete and thorough historical record and understanding of their client interactions.

One enduring change coming out of this pandemic is companies are having a rethink about the digital resources within their organization. No longer can companies rely solely on spreadsheets and their Microsoft Outlook for managing customer interactions and status updates on sales, account management, and customer support. It may have worked in the past, but not being able to physically interact with co-workers has poked holes in disparate knowledge management and uncoordinated internal communications.

The other change that may be coming is more companies may adopt flexible remote working policies after this pandemic. This could be as a revamped work benefits perk while other organizations may make the entire shift to it because it worked for them. In a post-pandemic recession, companies may look at commercial real estate for an office as an overhead they can do without.

Our advice is to ensure you organize your digital resources for both the front and back end of your business. Ask yourself if you really have a grasp of who your clients are and the history of their relationship with you. If not, it is important to think about investing in those resources. I personally have spoken to some businesses over the past couple of months who realize their digital strategy is nowhere near where it needs to be for them to remain competitive in their respective industries. They see the holes in not being able to log tickets properly for post-sale servicing or not having an up-to-date history of all the products and services they have sold their end-user customers. Having a CRM that provides a holistic 360-degree view of your clients and prospects is paramount for a company moving forward. Furthermore, an organized system in place builds a transparent culture in your company, rooted in trust, that allows for teams to collaborate and communicate status updates and the vital information for serving your customers to the best of your ability.

Lynda Murray Chief Marketing Officer @ShipperBee “Eco-Friendly Shipping”

A seasoned marketing strategist with a passion for brand transformations that thrives in a challenging growth oriented environment.

How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

The past few months have been transformational for all businesses. While it can all feel very overwhelming, it’s important to stay focussed on your consumer and how you can enhance your relationship and better serve them given all the changes. It’s businesses that are innovative and seeking new ways to deepen consumer relationships that will emerge stronger.

What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

Going forward, everything matters. Now is the time to look at all your costs and examine potential ways to enhance your margins, it can be as simple as switching up your packaging supplier or looking at your shipping costs. If you’re new to selling online, consider offering free shipping. You may want have an incentive like “spend $50 and receive free shipping.”

Studies show that getting something for free has a huge psychological impact on making a purchase and it can actually increase your average order value. In addition, in a recent survey of 1,400 shoppers, a staggering 91% of consumers indicated that free shipping would make them a repeat customer and 67% indicated they would add more items to their cart to receive free shipping. To offer free shipping select lower cost shipping partners, factor shipping costs into your pricing or do both to keep your pricing and business competitive.

Alba Manaj Founder, Albaslist

Alba Manaj started her first business as Chartered Accountant in her native country Albania in 2000. 80% of the clients were construction companies.

In 2005 she and her family immigrated to Canada In 2010 she took over the construction business left to her by her husband who had died which she continued for the next several years. During that time she experienced firsthand many of the problems that other construction contractors, investors and homeowners were faced.

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As Head of Customer Solutions Marketing at Purolator, what can you tell us about some of your responsibilities and your role within the company?

Well I may be biased, but I believe I get to work with the best team at Purolator! My team is responsible for marketing, end to end, across the customer journey, including acquisition, retention, content marketing, events and vertical marketing.

This includes everything related to the very important segment – small business customers.

How would you best describe Purolator’s marketing strategy?

We use three simple ways to describe our strategy: competency, capability and care. We are the best at what we do as a company, so it’s really conveying those messages in all of our marketing tactics. We don’t need to overpromise, exaggerate or make extreme claims, we are true to ourselves and we want people to trust that.

What are some of the initiatives that Purolator has implemented that has benefited small businesses?

We have worked diligently to really understand our customers’ needs. From research, to focus groups, to email correspondence – yes we actually respond – we try to get better every day at being in our customers’ shoes. This has led to better and better resources for the small businesses we work with, such as content and advice, partnerships that bring value to small business owners, exposure for SMB businesses through our channels and improved services, such as shipment pickup at their locations and easy billing solutions.

Stacey Cummings

Head of Customer Solutions Marketing at Purolator Image credit: Purolator

STACEY CUMMINGS

DISCUSSES

HOW PUROLATOR IS HELPING

SMALL BUSINESSES CanadianSME discussed competency, capability and care, Purolator's core strategy with Stacey Cummings, and she also talked about how Purolator is helping small businesses.

The current COVID-19 worldwide pandemic has affected many small businesses. What are some of the measurements that Purolator has put in place to help small businesses during this time?

Early on in the situation, we kept in very close contact with the customers we have relationships with – we wanted to know what was happening in their businesses and what we could do to help. We compiled some of their common questions, such as how they could become quickly e-commerce enabled, how could they protect their customers and still deliver safely to the door and what other resources are available to them. This led to the creation of a new resource section of our website at https://www.purolator.com/en/resources-small-businessesduring-covid-19, where we have included the answers to these questions and more advice our customers would give to other small business owners.

On a final note, what advice can you give to SME owners that can help them during the COVID-19 outbreak?

I know first-hand that this time has been extraordinarily challenging, as I have watched my husband guide his small business through unique ups and downs throughout the last few months. The best advice I can give is to reflect on the fact that there are no right or wrong answers right now – this is completely new territory for everyone. Every question is a good question and ask many, help is out there.

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JEFF DAWLEY PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER OF CYBERSECURITY COMPLIANCE CORP.

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n 2018, Jeff co-founded Cybersecurity Compliance Corp. to address a communication gap in the cybersecurity space. The Cybersecurity Pulse™ solution provides board members and nonIT executives with a complete view of their cybersecurity environment, while equipping IT professionals with a frameworkbased assessment and roadmap for future improvements.

credit: freepik

1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

Create a plan and be ready to adapt to changes. We have all seen how fluid things can be with respect to regulations and best practices. Spend the time now to research requirements, create a plan that fits your business and its particular risks and be ready to adjust the plan as necessary. Above all, make sure you are already in regular communication with your internal resources and external stakeholders

Before devoting his career to helping SMEs better understand their cybersecurity environment Jeff worked in finance and technology across a broad spectrum of Canadian and international

and keep them informed throughout the process, inviting input to improve buy-in from everyone.

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

I think the biggest difference for small businesses after COVID will be the buying/selling process.

Many people still believe that you need to shake hands, break bread or look someone in the eye

organizations. Over 25 years Jeff has benefited from exploring many industries including financial services, mining, information processing, manufacturing and professional services. His career has seen him operate as a CFO for 10 years with both publicly listed and private companies, as well as 5 years as a CTO/ CIO, responsible for all aspects of information management and technology.

Jeff holds a Chartered Professional Accountant designation from Ontario, Canada, a Certified Public Accountant designation from Illinois, USA and a Chartered Global Management Accountant designation, recognized in the UK and USA.

before you do business with them. This is especially true for most investors and new customer/supplier relationships. The second largest issue will most likely center around corporate culture and team building. With limits on the concentration of people in one location and the introduction of other social distancing measures, organizations will need to come up with new ways to engage with their teams.

We will all need to be creative in making sure that team members are connected with one another in a meaningful way.

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My advice in adapting to the new normal is:

There is a point where we will reopen. The way we work will differ. We have to educate ourselves to get used to the new rules. Using digital technology will help in getting things done in a safer way.

•

Change our mind regarding to the way we work.

•

Waiting and doing nothing has finished, we have to act, and work as per the new rules.

Much more needs to be done to respond to the new changes. We have to invest in software to respond to market changes. For example: The two parties that Albaslist connects used to meet more in person before, now they do not. We have to customize the software to accommodate clients’ new needs.

The most important aspect is mentally adapting. We have to convince ourselves that we have to change the way we work.

Some of the other rules would be: Reduce density, by having less people working at the same space.

Be flexible with working schedules, not everybody have to work, traditional 9-5; have some afternoon and evening shifts.

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Evaluate employees by performance rather than by amount of hours they spent. Everybody will be encouraged to bring their best, in their own way.

•

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Communicate more often, encourage everybody to participate; they will not feel isolated and ignored.

In our economy approximately: 30% of the work force can work from home

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70% of the work force has jobs that can’t be done from home.

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There are other rules that apply to the 70% such as keeping distance, washing hands, wearing masks etc.

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Pre COVID • Meeting in person had no limitations.

There was no need to wear gloves, masks, sanitize etc.

•

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is our advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

We were more effective before, when we went shopping, at banks etc, we got in promptly.

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Many businesses in the entertainment industry operated normally.

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Post COVID Use of digital technology to communicate, instead of meeting in person.

We have to wear gloves, masks, sanitize more often etc.

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Plan to spend more time, when we go shopping, at bank, other places, keep distance, wait in line

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Unfortunately, we have to give up some of our leisure activities.

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•

The infrastructure already exists. Employees can work remotely by using VPN and other tools. Most of the documents can be saved in clouds, Google drive etc. Employees can work from every location, once they have internet access and computer or other hardware. Face to face discussion can be replaced by communication through Skype, Zoom and conference calls. Screen sharing is also a useful tool to convey information.

1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening again in the coming weeks or months?

Invest in businesses by implementing new technologies to respond to market needs.

Margarita Simkin Co-founder of INKAS® Group of Companies

Margarita Simkin is the co-founder of INKAS® Group of Companies. For over 20 years, Ms. Simkin has been building successful businesses and brands from scratch, and providing strategic direction to all companies under the INKAS® brand.

What started as a local single-truck armored courier business in 1995, has grown into a group of industry-leading organizations across various sectors.

Today, INKAS® is a leader in security, civilian safety, logistics, financial aid, environmental protection, metal fabrication and manufacturing.

1. How can businesses smooth the transition of reopening their business in the coming weeks or months?

I believe that it’s up to business leaders to ensure a smooth transition when opening their doors after COVID-19, and the success and efficiency of the transition is in direct correlation with how well returning staff is welcomed back to the workplace. Depending on the type of business, it may be a few core teams who are returning to work, it may be the entire operation – or somewhere in between. It’s very important to make sure that first and foremost, the employees that are returning to their respective command posts are heard, accommodated and motivated in order to create a positive environment built on trust, confidence and safety. Only then, will this understanding of the “new normal” be successfully communicated and applied both internally within the company as well as externally to its clients..

2. What are the differences between business operations pre and postCOVID and what is your advice to small businesses adapting to the new normal?

Over the past couple of months, we have gone through many challenges trying to adjust and work despite the huge disruptions created by the pandemic. Operating businesses in the traditional way might not be feasible in this new environment. However, the current situation presents us with an opportunity to think differently, find new ways to grow and thrive, as well as reimagine the business processes that have been heavily affected by COVID-19.

Developing exceptional customer relationships should be the number one priority for any business, at any time, however, right now it is more important than ever to focus on a customer-oriented approach. Businesses have to determine the best way to serve their local community and leverage opportunities to make shifts towards a more digital environment.

Quickly adapting and adjusting new strategies to the current environment will allow businesses navigate through these uncertain times.

LENDING A HELPING HAND WITH

BRETT COLVIN Co-Founder and CEO of Goodlawyer

few are taking advantage of all of the support available. I can’t stress this enough: know your options and talk to an expert if you’re not 100% sure. The CECRA is far from perfect and has received some justified criticism, but the most important thing for entrepreneurs to worry about is what their options are. We have limited ability to influence the policy makers but entrepreneurs have 100% control of ensuring they obtain all of the support they’re entitled to.

1. As CEO and Co-Founder, what sets Goodlawyer apart from other law firms?

What makes it stand out?

a.

For starters, Goodlawyer is not a law firm.

We’re more like Uber if you think of law firms like taxi providers. Goodlawyer is an online legal services marketplace that acts as the conduit between the client and the lawyer. We facilitate a fast connection to legal help for clients that has never existed before. Our specialty is our exclusive “micro” legal services: $39 legal advice sessions with qualified lawyers and $25 per page document or contract reviews. These bite-sized portions of legal help are unique to Goodlawyer because law firms simply can’t sell them economically on their own. Our platform provides an incredibly affordable alternative to the traditional method of procuring legal help to the tune of thousands of dollars in savings.

We are able to offer this by stripping away most of the administrative and client acquisition burden that takes up a shocking amount of most lawyer’s average week and is consequently felt by clients through high hourly rates.

2. Many small businesses have been greatly impacted by COVID-19. What was the decision behind deciding to provide free legal advice to SMBs across Canada? a. No business ever sets out with the goal of offering their services for free but we found ourselves in an incredibly unique position when small businesses began shutting down in March.

With such an unprecedented situation, many businesses found themselves struggling to navigate employment law, commercial tenancy issues and government programs like CECRA and CEWS. We knew that our Canada-wide network of lawyers could answer their questions quickly and that we were in a position to help many Canadians through this unimaginably difficult period. With limited resources it wasn’t an easy decision, but it was, without question, the right one and I’m proud of the investment Goodlawyer has made in helping Canadian entrepreneurs get back on their feet.

3. In your expert opinion, what do you believe are the biggest challenges that entrepreneurs are facing at the moment in terms of legal issues that are impacting their business?

4. What advice can you give them to help them overcome these challenges? What are some of the initiatives they can take to reduce the impact of COVID-19 on their business?

a. Forced shutdowns have led to so many tough legal questions for entrepreneurs, including how to deal with their employees and landlords, as well as how to navigate the seemingly everchanging government support programs.

a. First and foremost equip your business with knowledge. The flow of information has been constant and everchanging and can be hard 5. The federal government of Canada has to stay on top of every provided many resources and programs update as businesses to help small businesses during these struggle with all facets of challenging times. Do you believe they’ve their operations.

done a good job in helping Canadian SMEs or is there something that you believe they can do better?

b. Talk to a professional if you’re not 100% certain. Every situation is different and the road a. Their stated goal with programs like to recovery is not even.

CECRA and CEWS was speed of delivery Getting professional over accuracy. We feel they have achieved advice doesn’t have to this goal and commend them for their be scary or expensive swift action. We feel the next challenge is b. The unprecedented and understanding your bringing clarity and confidence to the many wave of layoffs options can offer peace entrepreneurs who did not fit nicely within has created a huge of mind and clarity. the “square box” of the many government challenge for SMB’s as At a minimum, we support programs, who undoubtedly fit they emerge from the encourage entrepreneurs within their spirit. Programs such as the shutdowns, for many, to take advantage of $250M invested into IRAP to help fill this recalling employees Goodlawyer’s free offer void is a good start, but far from a complete is not feasible yet as and get the answers they solution. simply re-opening need in a short phone call for business does with a qualified lawyer not equal revenue. We are approaching the 13 who you can be assured is keeping up with all of week threshold for temporary layoffs in June the changes. (some provinces have extended) and this will create a new host of issues for employers as 6. On a final note, what approach do you they are forced to either pay severance or recall believe other law firms should be taking to employees they don’t have the revenue to pay. help SMEs during the COVID-19 outbreak?

c. Commercial leases have also come under increasing scrutiny, with many business owners struggling to pay rent. Several small businesses have been somewhat comforted by government programs like CECRA as their lifeline, but too

a. Listen, be patient and give back. Be generous with your time. Don’t bill every phone call.

Clients everywhere are struggling and this is an opportunity to show, as lawyers, that we empathize with them and we’re here to help .

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5 WAYS TO TAKE YOUR

SMALL BUSINESS TO THE NEXT LEVEL

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s an entrepreneur, it’s important to always be one step ahead.

Thinking about the bigger picture and how you can take your business to the next level is a great way to keep you motivated and finding new and better ways of working. With that in mind, our article on 5 Ways to Take Your Small Business to the Next Level includes important tips and resources on how you can implement new initiatives and ways of working that will contribute to the success of your business in the long run.

1. Embrace Technology It’s no surprise that technology is the way of the future. With new and innovative discoveries being made in the tech world, it’s crucial for you and the success of your business to be aware of new technologies. Not only will it keep your business current and competitive in the market place, but it can also help you in the daily management of your business. Maybe there’s a new tech program or tool that can help you be more productive in your day.

By staying current with new discoveries in the tech industry and embracing technology, you’re contributing to the success of your business and ensuring that you’re always one step ahead of the competition.

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2. Make Customer Service Your Priority Without customers, you don’t have a business.

Therefore, it’s crucial that your number one priority at all times is exceptional customer service. With that in mind, take the time to read your reviews that your customers are putting online. Maybe send them a quick survey after they purchase a product or service to get their feedback. Find ways on how you can improve and make the customer experience even better. By investing in your customers satisfaction, you’re gaining loyalty and referrals which will ensure the success of your business.

3. Never Stop Learning The worst thing any entrepreneur can do for their business is to stop learning. A successful entrepreneur knows that there is always room for improvement and more to learn. There are new discoveries in every industry on a constant matter. Therefore, it’s important to stay current and to keep learning. When an entrepreneur stops learning, their business suffers as it stays stuck in the past and is no longer current.

By constantly learning, whether it’s by attending conferences or listening to webinars and online trainings, you are ensuring that your business is current and up to date with the latest discoveries.

4. Don’t be Afraid to Delegate It’s never a good idea when an entrepreneur decides to do everything themselves. When an entrepreneur has to much on their plate, they don’t have time to concentrate on what they do best and the business suffers. There’s nothing wrong with delegating.

Whether it’s outsourcing certain tasks or hiring employees to help out, by delegating some of your work, you have more time to focus and ensure your products and services are in excellent quality. It can also be the difference between taking your business to the next level, or crashing under the pressure of having too much and little time.

5. Have a Safety Plan in the Event of an Emergency Having a safety plan is crucial for your business.

Many entrepreneurs often don’t think of how their business will survive in the event of an emergency and unfortunately, when that happens, their business suffers significantly and is in serious risk of shutting down. With the current COVID-19 situation, many entrepreneurs are now rushing to see how they can make ends meet. Therefore, it’s important to have a safety plan, especially with our current situation.

Having a strong online presence, emergency funds set aside, and a good marketing strategy to connect with your audience are important aspects when it comes to having a safety plan. Make sure to have one set as it can help your business in the event of a crisis.

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4. Many businesses are taking to social media to show their support towards helping those impacted by COVID-19. What is your advice to entrepreneurs when it comes to putting out a message towards their audience?

It goes back to leading with empathy. Those that are doing it with authenticity and are truly considering what is happening in the world, especially at this particular moment are the ones that are going to thrive. For the businesses that are jumping on the me-too bandwagon, I believe we can see through that. We have to demonstrate empathy and it’s not just a matter of saying it.

Depending on what your business is, you have to think about individual safety and what you’re providing to your customer base. Are you providing them with convenience and ease? And are you providing them with emotional support through your social channels? These are all areas that you have to consider and more importantly

if you’re demonstrating that. It’s not just about saying it, but what are you doing to show care to both your employee base and your customer base.

5. In your expert opinion, what are some of the strategies that entrepreneurs can implement to increase traffic towards their e-commerce site to help generate more profit?

Now more than ever, everyone is considering SEO. We now have more time to be on our computers, so as more people are searching the internet right now, a lot of companies would have had to adjust SEO during this time.

Also, word of mouth still so important. If you’re posting based on what is relevant and based on your target audience right now, that has the opportunity of going viral quickly. It’s less about hashtags and more about what people care about right now and how you ensure that you’re demonstrating that on a regular and consistent basis.

6. What would you say are the top three do’s and don’ts of marketing your small business right now?

I would say make engagement the goal over pushing sales. It’s about providing a sense of value to your community. It’s not about constantly talking about the pandemic. What we’ve learned is its thinking about how people are living their lives right now and the relevancy of that, as opposed to just talking about the pandemic. The reality is, we can hear and read about that in other places through certain feeds we’re following on our social media. Remain authentic and real and aim for positivity and calmness. The key is providing value to our community and in doing so, consider with every post if this would be of value to the people that are following us, as opposed to pushing out information because that’s what everybody else is doing. This is a time for us to consider what makes our brand unique and how we engage with our audience.

Image credit: NKPR

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MASTERCARD - PROVIDING

CANADIAN SMALL BUSINESSES WITH FREE CYBERSECURITY ASSESSMENTS

CanadianSME had the chance to chat with Sue Hutchison, and discussed about Mastercard new support to Canadian Small Businesses.

Cybersecurity has always been an important aspect when it comes to protecting the safety of small businesses. Why is it crucial for small businesses to implement safety measures when it comes to protecting their systems?

Canadian small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy and it’s vital they are protected.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, many small businesses quickly moved their activities online to adapt to social distancing requirements. This pivot also means that many small businesses now face greater exposure to cyber threats, so having a secure system is more important than ever.

How has COVID-19 impacted cyberattacks? Has there been a significant increase?

The COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped business and daily life in ways we couldn’t have imagined, and fraudsters are taking advantage of the dramatic increase in online activity.

Generally, we are seeing a focus on quality over quantity. High-volume basic attacks are giving way to high quality, human-like attacks – such as faking human typing patterns – to reduce the chances of being caught by bot-detection tools.

But it isn’t all a battle of the bots; fraudsters are also hiring human workers to manually deploy attacks.

Without factoring in the surge we’ve seen during the pandemic, these types of sophisticated attacks have grown 430%, and human account takeover attacks (the use of someone else’s credentials) have grown by 330%, globally.

Meanwhile, fewer than 2% of attacks in 2019 used spoofing (the modification of a device’s

information such as browser), compared to 60% in 2018. (2019: Fraud risk at a glance report from NuData Security, a Mastercard company.)

Mastercard recently announced that it would be providing free to assessments cybersecurity Canadian small businesses until the end of 2020. How will this help small businesses? What impact will it have on their business?

The cyberhealth assessment from RiskRecon, a Mastercard company, helps small businesses identify and address potential vulnerabilities in their systems. By monitoring and catching vulnerabilities early, it enables small businesses to stay ahead of cyber criminals so they can focus on growing their business, instead of fighting costly cyber-attacks. With free access to RiskRecon’s ‘My Cyber Risk’ service and portal, small business owners can receive ongoing cyberhealth assessments along with actionable recommendations for how to strengthen their cybersecurity posture.

RiskRecon also helps businesses better understand and act on their cybersecurity health by continuously discovering their digital footprint and non-invasively assessing their security risk posture across 40 security criteria spanning thousands of security checks.

What measurements should entrepreneurs implement to ensure the safety and protection of their data and business?

Sue Hutchison,

Senior Vice President of Product, Digital and New Payments for Mastercard in Canada

could seriously damage their business, so taking the necessary actions – and taking them early – is vital.

To understand their cybersecurity health, entrepreneurs and small businesses should regularly assess and monitor their digital footprint and system so they can readily act upon any risks. This may include using readily available technology to assess web encryption, email security, defensibility and data loss.

These security assessments are included in the free cybersecurity offer that RiskRecon, a Mastercard company, is providing to Canadian small businesses through December 31, 2020.

But it’s not just the initial set-up of tools that’s important. Staying up to date with the latest software and technology will better help mitigate any risks. The same goes for establishing a regular cadence of scheduled backups to ensure any and all information is stored safely. These steps can help protect the overall health of a business.

On a final note, what other initiatives is Mastercard putting in place to help small businesses during these challenging times?

Mastercard has a proud history of supporting small businesses in Canada. In addition to free access to the resources they need to safeguard their systems, Mastercard also enabled higher contactless limits across Canada. This is part our global effort to ensure consumers and businesses have the resources to safely pay, receive payment, and maintain operations during this challenging time.

There are a few measures entrepreneurs and small business owners can take to help protect their digital ecosystems. Compared to a large enterprise, one breach for these organizations CANADIANSME MAGAZINE I JUNE 2020 I

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DISCUSSING CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES WITH

PAUL GASPAR Director of small business for UPS Canada, Paul Gaspar had a chat with CanadianSME to share his insights on choosing the right delivery service for Canadian business owners. He also talks about the challenges business owners may face to keep commerce flowing and the steps UPS is taking to enforce social distancing.

Paul Gaspar was appointed director of small business for UPS Canada in 2011. He is responsible for educating and informing small businesses about the customized services, technologies and innovations available to them at UPS. He works with a team of small business ambassadors who help communicate how to better leverage UPS tools to help them grow and expand both domestically and internationally.

Paul’s 29-year career with UPS began in 1991 in operations. Through several roles and responsibilities Paul’s appetite for working with small businesses and educating them on the opportunities available in other markets grew. He soon realized that through his growing network of entrepreneurs, and the focused learnings of SME global supply chains, that he had a wealth of knowledge he can share to improve the success rate of businesses looking to scale and go global.

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Competitive rates.

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A global network of convenient drop-off and pick-up locations like our UPS Access Point network.

Specialized help like our UPS Small Business Ambassadors to assist small businesses navigate their supply chain as their needs or the markets change.

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One that offers a fulfillment solution for businesses that are growing and need additional space. With no minimums, so that no business is too small to leverage this solution.

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For businesses looking to grow outside of Canada, cross-border logistics and supply chain management across a smart global logistics network.

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Brokerage and customs expertise and services.

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Technology for visibility and website optimization to improve customer service.

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2. What are some of the strategies that UPS uses when it comes to finding solutions and developing products and services that can be beneficial for Canadian small businesses?

We work with organizations like Startup Canada, Mompreneurs and many Boards of Trade and Chambers of Commerce to get direct feedback on the needs of businesses in Canada. With this feedback, we can develop needed services and programs to help them succeed. This also allows us to provide them with the networks and resources required to scale as we provide

When it comes to SMEs it can be grouped into two key areas – first, elevating the importance of a robust logistics strategy early in a business’s life cycle and second, letting the 1.2M small businesses in Canada know that UPS is here to help.

Startups and even scaling businesses going through growth and changes in their business model sometimes don’t consider the impact of their supply chain until it’s too late. This often causes unnecessary pain for a new business. Also, we find that many small businesses in Canada don’t initially think that UPS is approachable or even an option for their startup needs. They are pleasantly surprised when they learn about our dedicated programs and solutions for all businesses, including those just starting out.

UPS has so much to offer businesses of any size.

To overcome these challenges, we are working with the organizations like Startup Canada, Mompreneurs and many other associations and member-based groups across the country.

These partnerships/associations provide us with a platform to educate businesses as a thought leader in our industry. It also allows us to showcase the customized solutions and programs we have available for them.

4. COVID-19 has had a huge impact on Canadian SMEs. What are some of the initiatives that UPS has implemented to help entrepreneurs that have been affected by this global pandemic?

Many businesses are adapting how they operate and serve their customers. Those with retail locations are now focused on their e-commerce platforms and some are just beginning or paying more attention to it. While businesses of all sizes

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Fulfillment challenges due to business closures and self-isolation of employees.

Inventory delays and shortages.

A shift to e-commerce due to social distancing and location closures

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An increased focus on cost savings from reduced cash flow

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These are just some of the areas where UPS can directly support small and medium-sized businesses. We have also just started a new discount offer and put together our key services to help them get back to normal business levels on ups.com/comebackstrong.

5. How has COVID-19 impacted UPS Canada?

UPS has been designated by the governments of countries around the world as a “Critical Infrastructure Business” and an “essential service” in parts of Canada. We have both a privilege and a responsibility to continue safely working during this challenging period. People are counting on UPS more than ever and we are grateful for the hard work and dedication of all our employees around the world. We are adapting our normal processes to enforce social distancing while we keep commerce flowing for businesses and consumers. This includes no longer collecting signatures upon delivery and ensuring all import fees are paid in advance.

6. On a final note, what advice can you give to entrepreneurs that can help them during these unprecedented times?

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3. What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced as Senior Executive at UPS Canada and what methods did you use to overcome these challenges?

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Look for the opportunities. If you are store front, and have not focused on your online business, now is the time.

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Plan for international shipping. Understand what global markets your product or service may benefit and be ready to make that sale.

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Look for 3rd party fulfillment options to help with an isolated staff and new growth.

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Ask Research, research, research. questions, look for organizations that are there to help you network and teach new things.

Support and scalable solutions that meet the needs of a small business whether they are a startup or a growing business.

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Also, as an organization that’s been in business for almost 113 years, with 45 of those years in Canada, and ships 3% of global GDP on a daily basis, we work with businesses of all sizes and know their needs. Finally, we use reliable market research, like our UPS Pulse of the Online Shopper, to guide best practices for their success.

are feeling the impact, many small to mediumsize businesses may need the most help in trying to adapt and navigate at this time. We have identified some key challenges that UPS can help with, these include

Small businesses drive economic growth contributing to a country’s exports, innovative advancements and domestic product. The rise of technology has connected shoppers to a global online marketplace, providing access to markets that would otherwise be too costly for small Canadian businesses to enter. Below are just some of the services that should be available when choosing a delivery provider:

consulting services to help guide them through opportunities and barriers.

1. As Senior Executive at UPS Canada, what do you believe is the most important aspect that Canadian SMEs should consider when it comes to selecting the right delivery provider?

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SAMSUNG POS AND THE

NEW NORMAL Jennifer Saf ruk, VP Sales and Product Management, Samsung Electronics Canada As Vice President of Mobile Sales and Product Management for Samsung Canada’s mobile division, Jennifer Saf ruk is a veteran technology and mobile communications executive with extensive experience at some of the world’s largest technology companies.

Jennifer is responsible for overseeing the mobile sales and product management teams for Samsung Canada, including the company’s integral relationships with carriers and retailers.

Prior to joining Samsung, she spent more than three years as Vice President at HTC working in Canada and the U.S., oversaw North American Sales for Symphony Teleca, and was instrumental to launch of Palm’s WebOS. Jennifer began her mobile career with Openwave in Canada in the early days of the industry, where she helped launch the first WAP gateway and location-based services in Canada.

Jennifer earned a Master’s degree in Political Science f rom McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, and holds a Bachelor of Arts from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario.

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CanadianSME had the chance to speak with Jennifer Saf ruk on behalf of Samsung Canada to discuss the Samsung POS in Canada and how it is helping the Canadian small businesses during this unprecedented times. She talks about the difference of what sets Samsung apart from the competition as well as how Samsung can help when it comes to payment solutions.

It’s been over six months since Samsung Electronics Canada announced the launch of Samsung POS (Point of Sale).

What was the inspiration behind Samsung POS and how do you believe this will impact the small business industry?

Samsung POS was inspired by the needs of small businesses and entrepreneurs to provide simple and convenient payment solutions to their customers. In an increasingly digital landscape, consumers are moving away from cash and prefer the simplicity and convenience of debit or credit transactions.

That shift has been expedited because of the increased demand for contactless payments as a standard practice of safe physical distancing. Though provinces have begun to reopen some non-essential services, small and micro businesses might not be set up to offer their customers contactless payments. Samsung POS offers an easy solution. Small business owners can begin using the service within minutes -- it has a very simple setup process and requires no additional hardware. The service also benefits consumers allowing them to purchase more of what they need with the security, speed and touch-free experience of contactless payments at more merchants across Canada.

Samsung POS was first launched in Canada. Why do you believe Canada was the ideal marketplace to launch this new initiative?

At Samsung, we recognize the strong appetite in the Canadian and global market to advance Mobile Payment Solutions for small business owners and entrepreneurs. We had previously established a Samsung Pay Digital wallet for consumers and wanted to deliver the same level of convenience for merchants.

What sets Samsung POS apart from other similar apps? What makes it stand out?

Unlike competitors, Samsung POS there are no monthly or hidden fees associated with service, just a low per-transaction rate. In addition, it integrates seamlessly with users’ existing mobile devices.

Merchants and small business owners don’t need to invest in additional hardware and they can use the application after a simple in-app account set up.

In addition to Samsung POS, Samsung offers a wide range of stand out solutions to support small business during this time. Samsung DeX, available on all Galaxy Note devices as of Galaxy Note8, and most recently on Galaxy Tab devices with the launch of Galaxy Tab S6, helps ensure important documents are easily accessible. Instead of having to rely on a computer to access files, businesses can store important documents remotely via their mobile device and access them in a desktop-like environment. This is particularly helpful given the current work-from-home landscape. Knowing that keeping sensitive data safe is one of the most important details to keep in mind while working out of the office, Samsung DeX is protected by the Samsung Knox security platform which allows users to isolate, encrypt, and secure data for added peace of mind.

Many businesses have been impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. How has Samsung been impacted and what steps has the company taken to remain successful during these unprecedented times?

As our daily lives shift to working and learning from home, Samsung continues to provide Canadians with products and services that allow them to keep life moving and stay connected to loved ones.

We have also facilitated many timely initiatives in response to our “new normal.” From extending warranties on non-commercial products to instituting additional sanitization procedures and providing door-to-door repair services, Samsung continues to support Canadians’ needs during this time.

In your expert opinion, what is the biggest challenge that small business owners face when it comes to payment solutions and how can Samsung help them?

Finding a convenient mobile payment solution is one of the biggest challenges small businesses face, so convenience was a key consideration in the design and launch of Samsung POS. It requires no additional hardware, and merchants don’t need to worry about set-up costs, high or hidden transaction rates, or waiting an extended period of time for deposits.

experiences across our devices.. We’ve also created convenient Home Office Bundles to help people ease into their new home office setup. They feature the latest in Samsung technology and help maintain productivity.

On a final note, what advice can you give to entrepreneurs that can be beneficial to them during these challenging times?

Entrepreneurs have a variety of different challenges right now, and while our unique situation today is unprecedented, it’s always beneficial when businesses are flexible about shifting consumer and employee needs.

Where possible, businesses should empower their employees to find productivity in whatever their new normal looks like -- whether it means revising schedules to accommodate having young children at home or incorporating innovative technologies such as Samsung POS and Samsung DeX that allow them to work from anywhere.

From a consumer perspective, it’s important to put processes in place that enable social distancing, such as contactless payment. Additionally, businesses need to be transparent and maintain open lines of communication with their customers.

Many Canadians now work remotely and we recognize how important it is for them to access trustworthy business tools that optimize workflow.

Having immediate access to Microsoft Office for example, can play a big role in a productive work environment which is why we have partnered with Microsoft to bring seamless productivity

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DEALING WITH WORK REFUSALS: Employer Obligations and Employee Rights Ryan Wozniak, Senior Vice President of Legal, Peninsula Ryan graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 2005 and was called to the Ontario Bar in 2006.

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Prior to joining Peninsula, Ryan practiced litigation for 14 years with a particular emphasis on employment law. Ryan has appeared as lead counsel before all levels of court throughout Canada, including the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, the Court of Appeal for Ontario, the Commercial List court, the Ontario Labour Relations Board, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, the British Columbia Supreme Court, the Tax Court of Canada and the Supreme Court of Canada, as well as before federal labour arbitrators

anadian businesses will soon start reopening and recalling employees back to work. However, what should employers do if an employee refuses to return due to health and safety concerns related to COVID-19? When it comes to work refusals, employers must fulfil certain health and safety obligations under their provincial Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) legislation. The outcome of the work refusal will depend on the nature of the refusal and what the employer will do to resolve the employee’s concerns.

Under applicable federal or provincial OHS legislation, workers in Canada have the right to refuse work they have reason to believe is unsafe.

Workers cannot de disciplined or terminated for exercising this right in good faith. However, the reason why an employee might refuse to work is important in determining whether the refusal is justified.

An employee might refuse to work if their workplace is subject to a lockdown order and cannot legally operate. If recalled, the employee could make a viable argument that going back to work would constitute a breach of provincial order. In this case, the employer would likely not have cause to discipline or terminate the employee for obeying the law.

Businesses that are legally permitted to reopen and resume operations may have employees that refuse to come into work due to concerns about their health and safety. For the employee’s claim to be justified, there must be evidence that the employee’s working conditions present a risk their health and safety.

If the employee is refusing work based on general anxieties about leaving their house, travelling and being at work during the pandemic, they might have a hard time demonstrating a special risk specific to their work duties. In these circumstances, however, the employer may have a duty to inquire as to whether the anxieties are related to any underlying physical or mental disability, which may then trigger the employer’s duty to accommodate the employee under human rights legislation.

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A work refusal for the purpose of OHS legislation may be justified if it is based on valid concerns about a lack of protective measures being implemented in the workplace by the employer.

For example, to protect workers from the risk of contracting COVID-19, employers might make use of distance markers and protective barriers, provide personal protective equipment, and follow protocols limiting how many individuals can be inside the work location at a given time.

If none of these measures are in place and employees will be working in close contact with other employees or customers, the employee might have a reasonable basis to claim that the employer did not take sufficient reasonable precautions to protect their safety.

The employer must investigate the claim, involving the workplace health and safety representative (if any), and report back to the employee with a finding either that the employee’s complaint is unsubstantiated and that no steps need to be taken, or that the employee’s concern is entirely or partially substantiated and the employer will take reasonable steps to address the hazards that put the employee at risk. Employers are obligated to take every reasonable action to protect the safety of their employees under applicable OHS legislation.

If the employee is still unsatisfied with the protective measures put in place and the matter cannot be resolved within the business, the employer must contact the applicable OHS regulatory body. The OHS body will send an officer to investigate and determine whether the employee’s concern is substantiated, in which case the officer may point out further steps the employer can take to mitigate hazards for the employee.

If the officer deems that all hazards were dealt with appropriately or that there was not enough evidence to suggest danger to the employee, the officer may decide that this refusal is not reasonable and order the employee back to work. If the employee still does not return to work, the employer might be able to discipline

the employee.

However, employers must be careful when considering disciplinary action against employees who refuse to work because they fall into the high-risk category due to pre-existing health concerns, such as a compromised immune system or a mental disability, such as anxiety, that has become harder for the employee to manage due to the pandemic. In this case, the employee might be able to claim that they have a disability protected under applicable human rights legislation, which the employer would be required to accommodate to the point of undue hardship. This might involve letting the employee use vacation days or take unpaid time off work until it is safe for the employee, or until the employee is otherwise medically fit, to return to work.

To summarize, employers should assure employees of their safety when reopening the workplace by taking a phased approach during recall to full capacity, implementing preventative measures in the workplace in line with government recommendations, and keeping employees protected with appropriate health and safety practices such as frequent workplace cleaning, training, and providing personal protective equipment. Employers should attempt to resolve work refusals internally while keeping their OHS and human rights obligations in mind. Continued refusal to work after a return to work order has been issued from an OHS officer may, in certain circumstances, be treated as a disciplinary concern

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.

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