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Rental renaissance?

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Condos still rule, but real estate experts say a new surge in apartment construction could be just around the corner > PAGES 12-13

April 13, 2015 Vol. 18, NO. 11

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Working concept Shopify employees launch new website designed to make job hunting a little easier for both applicants and employers. > PAGE 4

Leading the way The success of local firms such as Mitel comes down to sound business models and a strong vision, Jeffrey Dale says. > PAGE 8 Canada Post Publications Mail: Agreement No. 41639025

The new Whole Foods store at Lansdowne Park generated plenty of controversy after it opened on Good Friday in defiance of provincial law. PHOTO BY COLE BURSTON

Holiday hours an open-and-shut case Whole Foods’ bid to do business on Good Friday sparks new debate over retail laws U.S.-based chain’s decision could be first step in effort to lobby city, province for holiday ban to be lifted, analyst says > PAGES 6-7

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THE ESSENTIAL EMAIL UPDATE FOR OTTAWA BUSINESS LEADERS

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Buying or selling a business is less daunting with the right legal advice Paul Salvatore on getting the best deal “

ocal and cross-border transactions are part of the business landscape in Ottawa and there is no sign that mergers and acquisitions (M & A) activity is slowing,” states Paul Salvatore, Head of Low Murchison Radnoff’s Business Law Group. Entering the world of M & A is daunting. Many of the fundamentals are the same regardless of the complexity of the deal. If you’re a business owner perhaps you’ve decided to retire or move on to other opportunities and the stars are aligned to sell to your employees, a strategic partner or even a competitor. Salvatore says business owners wishing to sell need to have their proverbial house in order. “Make sure everything is well-kept so when somebody comes in there are no issues that a buyer would be concerned about later on.” Whichever side of the process you’re on, Salvatore says one of the first details to address is whether a sale of shares or assets is on the table. Tax considerations are key when structuring the deal, he adds, noting that in a share sale, sellers may benefit from capital gains exemptions.

Skeletons in the closet

If you are a buyer, a share sale means purchasing the whole company as-is and there can be “skeletons in the closet” that you didn’t know you were buying, Salvatore notes. On an asset purchase, you know specifically what you are buying and can exclude unwanted assets and liabilities.

“The buyer wants to do an examination of the company. The seller is happy to let that take place but should be cautious unless there is a confidentiality agreement in place,” Salvatore says.

Sensitive material

A buyer should review sensitive material such as customer contracts and employment agreements. Salvatore says a confidentiality agreement is a must in these cases.

“The buyer wants to do an examination of the company. The seller is happy to let that take place but should be cautious unless there is a confidentiality agreement in place.” Buyers also want assurances that sellers aren’t hatching plans for a competing

business after the sale. Salvatore says solid legal representation can address these concerns. “There are what we call non-compete and non-solicit agreements. With those in place, the seller can’t solicit their customers or compete with the buyer for a period of time.” Once the deal itself begins to come into focus, the parties collaborate on a Letter of Intent. “The Letter of Intent sets out the fundamental terms of the deal. That means determining the purchase price, payment terms, structure and other key business terms.” When it comes to closing the deal, Salvatore says, “Cash is king.” “As a seller, you should try and strike a deal that gets you paid in full on closing. Sometimes that’s not possible. In that case, the seller has to be very concerned that

adequate security arrangements are in place if the buyer defaults.” With the fundamentals in place, Salvatore says, the parties enter into “the heart” of the deal: representations and warranties. These can run many pages and require careful scrutiny. Salvatore warns that if anything disclosed by the seller proves to be inaccurate, the buyer can seek compensation through the indemnification provisions in the sale agreement. With more than 30 years of experience behind him and having handled many transactions on the buy or sell side ranging from a hundred thousand dollars to eighty million dollars, Salvatore is an ideal guide in your effort to get the most out of a business sale or purchase. For more information: psalvatore@lmrlawyers.com lmrlawyers.com

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015

For a seller, a well-kept business means ensuring company records are up-todate. This includes properly documented and signed key contracts. Also, the minute book should be current; this includes properly-documented dividend declarations, share issuances and up-todate information on company directors and officers.

Paul Salvatore, Head of Low Murchison Radnoff’s Business Law Group, psalvatore@lmrlawyers.com

03 OBJ.CA

LAUNCH PAD Website founders putting plan to work Shopify employees launch new business designed to make it easier for job hunters and employers to connect BY ADAM FEIBEL adam@obj.ca

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015

pair of Ottawa entrepreneurs has developed a platform that makes it easier for job hunters to get hired and for small businesses to find talent. So far, their plan is working just like it should. Hired Ottawa looks to undercut expensive pay-per-post job boards such as Monster and Workopolis by automatically pulling in advertisements from companies around town and displaying them in one spot at no cost to the employer or the applicant. “We want to benefit the companies and the job hunters,” says co-founder Dylan Hunt. “You don’t find the small companies without actually going and searching for them, and without knowing them already,” he says. “We wanted to create a database where the company wasn’t hindered by costs to post the job and the user would have a huge database of jobs, way more so ... than some of the major players that are charging companies.” Created and run by Mr. Hunt and Nick Evans, both current Shopify employees, the website went live at the beginning of 2015 and has already surpassed all of its founders’ expectations. Initially, they wanted to grow to 3,000 users within the first year. Hired Ottawa

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is now on track to hit that number by the end of April. After straddling the line between offering too much or too little for free subscribers, the firm has also found a sweet spot for its freemium model. Now, new free users have all the access and search functionality of the website, but only see postings a week after they’re added; paid users, on the other hand, get the “early bird” perk that lets them apply to those jobs sooner.

“We realized that the startup community is getting bigger, there’s so many more companies that are growing, and we would rather a company have money to put toward growing themselves than to spend on finding the right talent.” — DYLAN HUNT, CO-FOUNDER OF HIRED OTTAWA

Hired Ottawa has seen its free-topaid ratio climb to five per cent, a figure many would consider impressive for a

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Dylan Hunt is the co-founder of Hired Ottawa. PHOTO BY ADAM FEIBEL

company its age. According to industry experts, most freemium companies convert between one and 10 per cent of subscribers into paying customers, with an average of around two to four per cent. Pandora, for example, a Californiabased music streaming service whose CEO Mr. Hunt met while on a trip to Silicon Valley, converts one per cent of its roughly 76.5 million users to paid subscriptions. And because the young company has kept its costs to a bare minimum, it’s already profitable – a fact that has apparently made even the veteran startup mentors at Invest Ottawa sit up and take notice. “They (Invest Ottawa) were very surprised that we had made any money as of yet,” says Mr. Hunt. “So that was the big thing we were really happy about.” The idea for the site came to him after he noticed two glaring problems. First, Mr. Hunt says, many of his friends and former classmates had still not been able to find jobs even three years after graduating from university. The Council of Ontario Universities

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found in a 2014 report that recent university graduates’ ability to find work in their field of study has fallen since the recession by about seven per cent six months after graduation and three per cent after two years. The Ottawa company would like to help reverse those numbers. Second, Mr. Hunt says his father Jack, CEO of local business communications firm Netcelerate, had always found it too expensive to promote multiple job postings on existing pay-per-post websites. It costs roughly $600 per month to post a job ad on Workopolis or Monster, according to quotes on their websites. Those expenses make the search for talent a lot more difficult for small companies looking to grow, says Mr. Hunt. “We realized that the startup community is getting bigger, there’s so many more companies that are growing, and we would rather a company have money to put toward growing themselves than to spend on finding the right talent,” he says. So far, the founders seem like they’re on to something. Local media exposure has helped give the firm traction here in town, and Hired Ottawa has fast-tracked plans to move into the Toronto market. Mr. Hunt says the company expects to launch a minimum viable product in the country’s largest city within the next month. Hired also plans to expand into Montreal within the year, and eventually into Western Canada and the United States. “It’s a question of how fast we can do it, not if we can do it,” says Mr. Hunt. “We don’t want to slow our growth. We want to be able to grow into a new city without impacting the ability to offer a good service to Ottawa. So that’s a hurdle, growing while keeping up the user base here.”

For more on Hired Ottawa’s success, check out reporter Adam Feibel’s video at obj.ca.

Welcome to the latest instalment of OBJ’s LaunchPad, a monthly section dedicated to local startups and entrepreneurs. Story ideas and other suggestions can be sent to adam@obj.ca.

Canon invests in Ottawa bioscience startup Spartan Bioscience got a shot in the arm from Canon U.S.A. last month after the companies announced a strategic investment to fund research and development of new diagnostic testing products. The wholly owned subsidiary Canon Biomedical will also look into ways it can work with Spartan on other projects such as rapid genetic testing. Terms of the investment were not disclosed.

CHANGE LOG Wipebook makes hot deal on Dragons’ Den Kickstarter darling Wipebook has been quite successful in each of its two crowdfunding campaigns, raising $420,000 in 2013 and $110,000 in 2014, but now the young firm can add famed investor Arlene Dickinson to its list of backers. The firm’s founders Frank Bouchard and Toby Maurice appeared on the April 1 episode of CBC’s Dragons’ Den. Despite criticism from her fellow dragons, Ms. Dickinson agreed to funnel $300,000 into the maker of portable, reusable notebooks in exchange for a 25 per cent stake in the firm. Matchmakers to form fruitful sponsorship deals A startup that calls itself “essentially a sponsorship dating website” is looking to link up companies with charities and special events to help strike more meaningful sponsorship deals. Sponsearch, launched at the beginning of April by local small business owner Jean-Paul Yovanoff, says it will use algorithms to comb through a database of clients and make matches that will provide the most benefit for both sides. The company aims to have its website up and running in late 2015.

Klipfolio launches mind-reading dashboard system One of Ottawa’s hottest young companies wants to read your mind. At least, that’s the idea behind Klipfolio’s new state-of-the-art technology. Launched this month after three years of development, the Klipfolio Neuro is an EEG brainwave-detecting headset that clients can wear to create and organize business dashboards just by thinking about what they want. The announcement comes during a big year for Klipfolio, which announced a $6.2-million investment round in February. New app wants users to pay it forward An Ottawa-based mobile technology startup that looks to reward the world’s good Samaritans has raised about $10,000 as of April 8 from a crowdfunding campaign that ended April 12, after OBJ went to press. Giovanna Mingarelli is the co-founder and CEO of MCrowdsourcing, which is developing an app called PlayMC2 that will offer prizes and coupons to users who post selfies of their positive “micro-actions,” such as helping out a stranger. However, the startup will likely have to look elsewhere to meet the $35,000 goal it set to complete the full app. Continues on page 14

Salute the top ten! Ottawa Business Journal and the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce will announce the top 10 Fastest Growing Companies on Thursday, April 30th.

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Join us at an awards reception to celebrate and honour this year’s winners and their business accomplishments. Find out how these companies achieve success through an informal panel discussion.

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The Big Bang of Business: Internet of Things (IoT) Demands New Approaches to Remain Relevant by Alan Swain, VP of Technology at Wavefront.

anada has a unique opportunity to lead the world and gain unparalleled commercial advantage in the ‘mobile revolution’ – a revolution marked by the emergence of the Internet of Things (IoT). By the end of the decade, many experts estimate there will be at least 50 billion connected devices around the world, creating a $14.4 trillion business opportunity. It is an opportunity that Ottawa firms simply can’t afford to miss. Firms that fail to integrate IoT within their business risk becoming irrelevant and being displaced from the market. At Wavefront, we believe much like the Industrial Revolution, IoT will unleash a ‘Business Revolution’. It will create massive business disruption. While the Industrial Revolution evolved over more than 60 years, IoT will bring unprecedented change in the blink of an eye. Companies must transform or fail. This dramatic rate of change is unlike anything we have seen before – and it is catalyzing the convergence of the IoT and mobile enterprise much faster than expected. This drives increased urgency for Canadian companies to develop and implement mobile strategies today. Companies that recognize the value of IoT are putting these technologies to work to gain competitive advantage. Exponential growth opportunities are emerging across the economy in vertical sectors from life sciences to energy, natural resources, agriculture, environment, aerospace, and defence. But this new mobile world demands new approaches; old ways of doing things no longer apply. Partnerships are

required to succeed. No single firm will have all the expertise, technologies or knowhow required to bring a complete IoT solution to market. Companies that focus on IoT and related market opportunities have the potential to create ‘exportable’ products and services, and improve our productivity in Canada. IoT opportunity and strategy is the focus of the Wavefront Summits, taking place May 5 and 6 at the Shaw Centre. The marquee event will illuminate the dramatic change IoT will bring, with focus on the business implications of IoT and mobile enterprise, and their convergence. Participants will hear how industry thought leaders are embracing this transformation, adopting novel wireless technologies, and gaining global competitive advantage. They will acquire valuable insight on key challenges, innovation and immediate solutions for policy, security, data value, platforms and networks, and mobility in this new era. It will also feature an Innovation Showcase of leading Canadian wireless entrepreneurs who will compete for cash and in-kind services; and highly targeted Business-to-Business (B2B) meetings that facilitate valuable connections among Canadian entrepreneurs and SMEs bringing mobile solutions to markets and industry leaders from around the globe.

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Do you aspire to capitalize on exponential growth opportunities, and achieve impact that far exceeds your competitors? Join us at the Wavefront Summits to ensure your company remains relevant in this new era.

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015

Wednesday, May 20 5:00 pm – 7:30 pm The Annex (Kivuto) 151 George Street

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“It’s an interesting discussion. If Barry’s numbers are right, that’s quite a bit of sales going somewhere else. To try to open up Good Friday and maybe Easter Sunday, I think there are other battles for us at this point.” — BAYSHORE GENERAL MANAGER DENIS PELLETIER

Opening a stat holiday debate Whole Foods’ bid for business on Good Friday could spark new calls for fewer restrictions on business hours in Ontario, local experts say

hole Foods’ controversial decision to open its Ottawa store on Good Friday could be just the first salvo in a battle to allow all stores in the city to open on statutory holidays, one prominent retail analyst says. The Lansdowne Park supermarket was serving customers on Good Friday in defiance of provincial law and originally planned to open on Easter Sunday as well, but changed its mind after Ottawa police paid the store a visit. Police said early last week they are still investigating and charges are possible. Whole Foods Ottawa team leader Lisa Slater declined comment, referring the matter to a Chicago-based spokesperson

who did not return calls the week after the holiday. Under the Ontario Retail Business Holidays Act, most businesses must remain closed on nine major holidays, including Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Exceptions include gas stations, smaller convenience stores, and pharmacies and shops in designated tourist centres, such as the ByWard Market. Retail expert Barry Nabatian of Shore Tanner & Associates said Whole Foods’ claim that it thought Lansdowne Park was a designated tourist area is only part of the story. Mr. Nabatian noted the Texas-based chain is used to doing business in the

Whole Foods stirred up a hornets’ nest by opening on Good Friday. PHOTO BY COLE BURSTON

United States, where many major stores routinely open on Good Friday and most other holidays, and he predicted the retailer will be a force in pushing to have holiday restrictions lifted here as well. “I think they tried it but the reaction was more negative than they expected, so they said, ‘Let’s just go back to the drawing board for now. Let’s close on Sunday and let’s see what we are going to do next year,’” he said. “They’re basically, in my view, trying to

protect their right to do business whenever they want to, just like in the States. I expect that by next year, before Easter, there will be lots of noise, lots of pressure on the municipal council, all kinds of economic data to support them.” Mr. Nabatian has data of his own that appears to support that argument, at least from an economic perspective. Many Ottawa shoppers crossed the river to shop in Quebec on Good Friday, he said, because

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Alberta’s healthcare advantage: Fact or fiction? PROVINCE’S HEALTHCARE CEO SPEAKS AT UOTTAWA’S TELFER SCHOOL, APRIL 28

rovincial budgets are in deficit. Hospital funding is severely restrained. The public healthcare system is under increasing pressure from an aging population.

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015

Private and public sector leaders in healthcare are challenged like never before to do more with less and ensure the quality of patient care, and patient outcomes, doesn’t suffer.

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Alberta is the only province in Canada in which a single health organization, Alberta Health Services, delivers all of its health services, versus the more diversified regional approach of the other provinces. This has led Alberta to be regarded as a trendsetter with regard to health governance restructuring and transformation, to adapt to the realities of our nation’s shifting demographics and economic climate. “A certain mystique has grown around the Alberta system,” said Brian

Malcolmson, Director of the Masters in Health Administration (MHA) program at uOttawa’s Telfer School of Management. “There is a perception that the grass is greener, but is this really the case?” For more than 50 years, Telfer’s MHA program has been preparing ethical and socially responsible professionals to assume management and leadership positions in the changing health service system in Canada and abroad. Insights from Alberta Health Services’ CEO On Tuesday, April 28, Vickie Kaminski, President and CEO of Alberta Health Services, will visit Telfer as part of the school’s CEO in Residence lecture series. Ms. Kaminski is a registered nurse with executive level experience in several provincial healthcare systems, and holds an MBA from Northwestern University in Chicago and York University in Toronto. She oversees a $13.6-billion budget and 100,000 staff.

Ms. Kaminski will discuss Alberta’s approach to public healthcare, and how successful it has been to ensure efficient and effective health services delivery and support service transformation. Students in Telfer’s MHA program will have the opportunity to discuss career development with Ms. Kaminski during an intimate lunch event. Seating is limited – register now Public and private sector leaders from Ottawa’s broader healthcare and medical device industries can hear Ms. Kaminski speak during an afternoon lecture at 1:30 p.m. Seating, however, is limited. Advance registration is required by April 24 to ensure a spot. To learn more about this event, or to register, please visit www.telfer.uOttawa.ca/CEOSeries or call 613-562-5800 ext. 7019.

Vickie Kaminski, President and CEO of Alberta Health Services

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Who are Ottawa’s startups to watch? VISIT OBJ.CA AND CLICK ON SPECIAL REPORTS. that province does not prohibit stores from opening that day. “On Friday, the people of Ottawa, they spent about $42 million; most of that was in Gatineau,” he says. “Based on rough calculations, the Province of Ontario lost $1.2 million in sales taxes, and there was half a million dollars lost in labour and wages in Ottawa because (major stores) had to close.” Mr. Nabatian commented there should be a level playing field, not just for businesses on the Ontario side of the river, but for all retailers in Ottawa and Gatineau, since the two cities form one economic district regardless of provincial or municipal boundaries. “Why should stores downtown be open and take things away from Bayshore and others, and why should Gatineau be open and not Ottawa?” he said. But Bayshore general manager Denis Pelletier said the west-end shopping centre, which is putting the finishing touches on a major expansion and revamp of its parking area, has more pressing issues to worry about. “We’re sort of head down, focusing on what we’re able to do right now,” he said. “It’s an interesting discussion. If Barry’s numbers are right, that’s quite a bit of sales going somewhere else. To try to open up Good Friday and maybe Easter Sunday, I think

there are other battles for us at this point.” Mr. Nabatian added he expects Whole Foods to lobby other major chains to pressure the province to change the law or allow the entire region to be declared a tourist zone. But he noted that might not be good for smaller, independent retailers who could feel forced into opening on statutory holidays in order to compete with the big boys. “People are not going to buy more,” he said. “They’ll just spread the same amount of shopping over longer time periods … and businesses have to pay more for heating and cooling and labour, et cetera.” Glebe BIA chair Greg Best, who owns Bank St. Framing, said that while most business owners “want to see a level playing field” in theory, he’s not sure it would generate enough extra sales to be practical. Long weekends also give hard-working entrepreneurs something that can’t be measured in dollars and cents, he added – a chance to relax, decompress and spend valuable time with their loved ones. “A lot of these are smaller businesses run by families,” he said. “I think there’s something to be said for a common day of rest for everybody. You have a life and it’s not always related to business. You can shop online 24-7. Do you need to be open all those days?” – OBJ staff

2015

Make your next meeting a memorable experience at the Diefenbunker The Canadian Tourism Commission has called the Diefenbunker Museum a “once-in-alifetime” travel experience. Now, it’s also a space for once-in-a-lifetime meeting experiences. The Museum holds several spaces suited to events of many sizes and wellequipped with meeting essentials including WiFi and audio visual equipment. There’s also ample parking. Cafeteria This is the largest room in the Museum and fits up to 150 people. Be sure to have a look at “the window.” It offers views of a landscape mural that was intended to stave off claustrophobia in longer-term guests. Bank of Canada Vault Built to house Canada’s gold reserves in the event of war, the Vault is suitable for groups of up to 60.

War Cabinet Room Suitable for up to 25 people, this is where all the vital, post-attack decisions would have been made. Federal Warning Centre Here, military personnel would have monitored the progress of hostilities. You can use the Warning Centre to present to up to 25 guests or colleagues. Additionally, the Diefenbunker offers breakout

rooms suitable for up to 20 people. For more information, contact rentals@diefenbunker.ca or call 613-839-0007 x266. www.MuseumMeetings.ca

FEDERAL BUDGET: What will it mean for you?

Wednesday, April 22, 2015 | 7:00 a.m. - 9:15 a.m. The Westin Ottawa | 4th Floor | Confederation Ballroom II & III

Minister Pierre Poilievre

Individual Tickets: $45 + HST (Members) $55 + HST (Non-Members)

Corporate Tables of 10 with Signage: $405 + HST (Members) $495 + HST (Non-Members)

Bruce Anderson, Chairman, Abacus Data

Fred O’Riordan,

EY, National Advisor, Tax Services

John Ivison

Political Columnist, National Post

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015

Photo credit: Jean-Marc Carisse

Join the Ottawa Business Journal and the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce in partnership with EY at this annual event that provides business leaders with in-depth analysis of the budget.

07 OBJ.CA

COMMENTARY New generation of Ottawa CEOs not flashy, but effective Like the great leaders of the past, today’s top execs inspire their firms to excel – they just do it out of the limelight

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015 OBJ.CA

PUBLISHER Michael Curran, 238-1818 ext. 228 publisher@obj.ca SENIOR VICE-PRESIDENT OF SALES Don Mersereau, 238-1818 ext. 286 CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER Terry Tyo, 238-1818 ext. 268 EDITOR, PRINT CONTENT David Sali, 238-1818 ext. 269 david@greatriver.ca EDITOR, ONLINE CONTENT Tom Pechloff, 238-1818 ext. 291 editor@obj.ca

ver the past six months, I have tried to encourage debate about Ottawa’s economic future by examining how our economy is changing and how our political and business leaders can best adapt to both local and global economic realities. This piece will focus on local companies that are thriving and what can we learn from them and others that preceded them. In the past few years, a number of Ottawa-area companies have launched successful initial public offerings, including Halogen Software and Kinaxis, which debuted on the Toronto Stock Exchange, and smaller companies such as Tweed which are listed on venture exchanges. This healthy crop of IPOs bodes well for the overall health and growth of our economy. Shopify, perhaps the city’s biggest business success story of the past decade, is rumoured to be the next local company preparing to go public. We all know the names of these companies, but most of us do not know much about their leaders or business models. During the tech boom in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the city’s economic growth outside of government was driven by telecommunications hardware companies such as JDS Uniphase, Nortel and Newbridge. Together, they employed close to 40,000 people thanks mainly to their large manufacturing workforces. But times have changed, and many of those hardware jobs have moved to lowercost economies. Ottawa’s new generation of technology companies has shifted from a hardware-based telecommunications model to the enterprise Software as a Service (SaaS) model. SaaS is a software distribution model in which a company hosts applications on a server and makes them available to customers via the Internet. Shopify, Halogen and Kinaxis all use the SaaS model to provide applications to clients on a recurring fee basis. This model benefits the local economy because SaaS companies can concentrate their software development, in-house sales, customer support and service in Ottawa, where the workforce has the high level of expertise and education required for these jobs.

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COPY EDITOR Krystle Kung CREATIVE DIRECTOR Tanya Connolly-Holmes, 238-1818 ext. 253 creative@obj.ca ART DEPARTMENT Jamie Dean, 238-1818 ext. 278 jamie@greatriver.ca Regan VanDusen, 238-1818 ext. 254 regan@obj.ca

Like many in Ottawa’s new generation of business leaders, Shopify CEO Tobias Lütke prefers to stay out of the spotlight, and that’s not a bad thing, Jeffrey Dale says. FILE PHOTO

ADVERTISING SALES Wendy Baily, 238-1818 ext. 244 wbaily@obj.ca

In my experience, what separates great leaders from the rest are focus and integrity. The ability to focus on your objectives regardless of what is happening around you is what drives companies forward. Equally important is conducting all aspects of your personal and business life with the highest level of integrity. Integrity allows you to take pride in everything you accomplish without regret.

Kimberley Allen-McGill, 238-1818 ext. 299 kimberley@obj.ca

A great example is Shopify’s “gurus,” who provide front-line sales, support and service to the company’s 150,000 global customers. Gurus require a great deal of both technical and interpersonal skills and experience, and most have graduated from college or university. Best of all, the majority of these well-paid gurus work in Ottawa, pumping millions of dollars every year back into the region’s economy. The SaaS model is allowing Shopify to concentrate most of its growth right here in the capital. As important as a company’s business model is to its success, a firm will never reach its potential without a true visionary at the top. When we think about past Ottawa business success stories, we tend to think not only about the companies, but also the people who led them: Newbridge and Terry Matthews, Tundra and Adam Chowaniec, Corel and Michael Cowpland, Systemhouse and Rod Bryden, Cognos and Michael Potter and Jetform and John Kelly,

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just to name a few. What drove their success? Like all great companies, they had top-notch products produced by strong teams and were in the right place at the right time. But they were also anchored to Ottawa and felt a strong attachment to the community. The leaders of these companies and the majority of their executive teams lived here and worked closely together. They all had a passion for the city and wanted to contribute to the community. Most of these leaders have been recognized as much for their community achievements as for their business acumen. The new generation of companies and leaders also has huge potential for growth. Shopify, Halogen, Kinaxis, Farm Boy and Bridgehead are just a few local enterprises that are having great success. Each of them is driven by inspiring local leaders – Tobias Lütke at Shopify, Paul Loucks at Halogen, Jeff York at Farm Boy and Tracey Clark at Bridgehead. Continues on page 15

Karen McNamara, 238-1818 ext. 259 karen@obj.ca Susan Salsbury, 238-1818 ext. 229 ssalsbury@obj.ca CAREER ADVERTISING & MARKETPLACE ADVERTISING SALES 238-1818 ext. 251 VICE-PRESIDENT OF OTTAWA BUSINESS EVENTS Susan Blain, 238-1818 ext. 232 susan@ottawabusinessevents.ca FINANCE Jackie Whalen, 238-1818 ext. 250 jackie@greatriver.ca

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READER COMMENTS Tarion needs overhaul, critics argue

could have maintained the veneer of a competent manager. Now that he has praised Tarion’s performance under his leadership that illusion has been shattered. – Caesar

Re: “Tarion chair says confidence in firm steadily building” (March 16)

Action is long overdue. Premier Wynne and her Liberal MPPs need to heed the diagnosis and cure the patient. Now. Consumers have been telling Tarion for years the warranty provides inadequate protection for new homebuyers. Not just condo buyers, but purchasers of newly built freehold homes as well. Tarion, whose slogan is “protecting new home buyers,” often ends up protecting builders. Builders have their own powerful, politically well-connected groups to protect their interests. Consumers are supposed to have Tarion protect them. – Gurpreet Singh There is a famous Latin proverb: “If you had remained silent you would have remained a philosopher.” This certainly applies to the outgoing chair of Tarion. Had he kept quiet about the dismal performance of Tarion, he

Consumers’ success rates fighting Tarion at the LAT are disastrous. Why? One key reason is that Tarion is always represented by lawyers, and most consumers are not represented by lawyers at the LAT. In 2014, for example, consumers lost 93 per cent of the time at the LAT. These consumer failure rates at the LAT have become quite wellknown, and many consumers have said they simply abandoned the LAT route. Many believe that this is why only a handful of disputes end up at the LAT. – Alan Greenberg It used to be that whenever the province got complaints about Tarion, the response was Tarion is not perfect. Now, according to Mr. Spiteri, it pretty much is, resolving complaints almost 100 per cent of the time. What they are successful at is getting people to give up out of frustration. Where is the Ontario ombudsman on this? – Unsatisfiedcustomer

A business woman of the year Finalist and fabulous

The partners of Collins Barrow Ottawa LLP are pleased to congratulate fellow partner, Rosa Maria Iuliano on her nomination for the Women’s Business Network Businesswoman of the Year Award, a prestigious award recognizing the accomplishments of outstanding women in the National Capital Region since 1983. Rosa received her Master of Accounting – Specialization in Public Accounting and Tax in 1998 and her C.A. designation in 2000. With 15 years of direct experience in achieving business growth and maximizing profitability, Rosa provides tax and financial planning advice to clients in proprietorships, owner managed corporations and not-for-profit organizations. She is also a noted key speaker at small business and start up events, where she is sought to discuss ways in which a business can identify and seize opportunities to grow. Congratulations Rosa! For more information on expert audit, tax and advisory services, contact: Collins Barrow Ottawa LLP 301 Moodie Drive, Suite 400 Ottawa, Ontario K2H 9C4 613.820.8010 collinsbarrowottawa@collinsbarrow.com

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EXPERIENCE the

SPECIAL PROJECTS Advantage

At PCL, we are more than builders. We are construction partners who are passionate about what we do and about our partners’ success. As PCL Ottawa celebrates a quarter century in the Nation’s Capital, we also celebrate our Special Projects division. It refers to the specialized approach we take to meeting the needs of clients with unique projects that range in scope from $5,000 to $15 million. Clients get the best of both worlds from PCL’s Special Projects teams: the commitment, responsiveness, and friendly service of a local contractor, along with the expertise, advanced systems, and purchasing power of a large construction organization. In addition, our employee-owned culture fosters a vested interest in the outcome of the projects. Advantages: • Progressive safety culture • Competitive pricing and strong purchasing power • Commitment to schedule and quality • Hands-on, individualized attention

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• • • •

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AND THIS YEAR’S WINNERS WERE … More than 70 students participated in this year’s event, competing for first, second and third prizes of $300, $200, and $100, as well as other sponsored awards by professional and scientific organizations.

THE WINNERS WERE: ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

even turns solid as the temperature approaches 0° C. While conventional processing and refining methods can remove two of culprits— monoglycerides and diglycerides—there isn’t an economically feasible way of removing the third one, sterol glycosides. These can foul fuel filters and make diesel engines coke up. Student Alessandro Montpetit is working on the problem. His research, supported by an NSERC Discovery Grant, has determined how sterol glycosides can be economically filtered out using a titanium ceramic membrane.

1st: Ahmad Al-Kabbany, Image Completion Using Image Skimming 2nd: Viktar Tatsiankou, A Novel Instrument for Characterization of Solar Spectral Irradiance 3rd: Parya Samadian, Cylindrical Talbot Effect in Tapered MMIS

COMPUTER SCIENCE 1st: Manuel Belmadani, Mining DNA Network Expression with Evolutionary Multi-Objective Programming 2nd: Mohamad Hoda, Cloud-based Rehabilitation, Muscle Strength Estimation, and Recovery Prediction System for Stroke Patients 3rd: Muhammad Rizwan Abid, Dynamic Hand Gesture Recognition for Human-Computer and Inter-Robot Interaction

THE GAMIFICATION OF STROKE RECOVERY

E-BUSINESS TECHNOLOGIES AND SYSTEMS SCIENCE

Traditional methods of therapy to help stroke patients recover are often tedious and timeconsuming, for both patient and therapist. Standard exercise equipment and devices give the therapist no feedback on patient progress. Mohamad Hoda has set out to change this, with a cloud-based rehabilitation, muscle strength estimation and recovery prediction system that uses competitive gaming. Using Xbox’s motion sensor and video capture technology, Kinect, patients can play games with friends and family that serve as therapy sessions. Therapists can create programs of treatment, track progress in real-time and see exactly how different muscle groups are responding to the activities. The system promises to reduce clinic visits and healthcare costs. Hoda’s system is already being pilot-tested by a hospital in Lebanon.

1st: Olubisi Runsewe, A Policy-Based Management Framework for Cloud Computing Security 2nd: Okhaide Akhigbe, The Role of Information Technology Artifacts in Regulatory Compliance - A Systematic Literature Review 3rd: Mozhdeh Hashemian, Redeployment of Police Services in the City of Ottawa

DO YOU SMELL SOMETHING “PHISHY?”

1st: Yubo Qin & Zheng Dai, Developing an Ultra NonFouling SU-8 and PDMS Hybrid Microfluidic Device by Poly(amidoamine) Engraftment 2nd: Alessandro Montpetit, Measurement of Sterol Glycosides in FAME 3rd: Benoit Duhoux, Simulation of a Combined Calcium Looping and Chemical Looping Combustion Process Honorable mention: Zizhen Li, Synthesizing Multimodal Imaging Probes for Applications in Non-Invasive Axonal Tracing by MRI

IEEE AWARDS 1st: Malak Baslyman, “Smells Phishy”: An Educational Game About Online Fishing Scams 2nd: Kashif Masud Awan, Optimized Aluminium Gallium Arsenide Waveguide Designs to Perform All-Optical Wavelength Conversion Using Integrated Nonlinear Optics 3rd: Danial Nakhaeinia & Pascal Laferrière, Safe Close-Proximity and Physical Human-Robot Interaction Using Industrial Robots

CANADIAN SOCIETY FOR CIVIL ENGINEERING (CSCE) AWARDS Structural Design: Derek Foran, Experimental and Numerical Modeling of a Tidal Energy Channeling Structure Mechanics / Materials: Christian Melançon, Blast Performance of Fibre Reinforced Concrete Slabs Environment and Sustainable Development: Farzad Jalaei, An Automated BIM Model to Optimize the Selection of Sustainable Building Components

WOMEN IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING (WISE) BEST FEMALE PRESENTER Winner: Holly Dole, Metal-Support Interaction and Electrochemical Promotion of the Complete Oxidation of Ethylene over Pt- And Ru-Based Nanostructured Catalysts Honorable mention: Ava Parsian, Optimization of Simvastatin Encapsulation in Alginate Microspheres To learn more about graduate studies in engineering and computer science at uOttawa and how you can join our 1,600+ master and doctoral students, please contact our Graduate Studies Office at engineering.grad@uOttawa.ca

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING 1st: Jean-Michel Guay, Colouring of Metals Using Ultrafast Lasers 2nd: Ava Parsian, Optimization of Simvastatin Encapsulation in Alginate Microspheres 3rd: Ruben Fernandez & Daniel MacDonald, Adhesion Characterization of Cold Gas Dynamic Sprayed Coatings on Pulsed Water Jet Roughened Substrates

CIVIL ENGINEERING 1st: Ryan Black, Surface Analysis and Complexation Modelling of Fixed and Suspended Bacteria 2nd: Christian Viau, Behaviour and Retrofit Options for Light-Frame Wood Stud Walls Subjected to Blast Loads

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MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015

When Malak Baslyman discovered how few of her fellow students in an e-commerce class understood how to spot and avoid online phishing scams, she decided the best way to educate consumers was through a board game. Smells Phishy was born. While the game may be in good fun, the cyber-security issue at the heart of it is not. In a single three-month period in 2014, there were 128,378 phishing attacks. Thirty-nine per cent of these attacks targeted payment services and e-commerce websites, to snare consumers while shopping online. The total financial loss from phishing in 2013 is estimated to be US$5.9 billion. Consumer awareness is key to battling this kind of threat. In Baslyman’s test group for the game, players fell for almost half of the scams.

CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

3rd: Farzad Jalaei, An Automated BIM Model to Optimize the Selection of Sustainable Building Components

REAL ESTATE Capital primed for a rental revival Rising demand, low interest rates create ‘perfect storm’ to spark apartment construction, builders and analysts say BY DAVID SALI david@obj.ca

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015

OBJ.CA

hen Toronto’s “condo king,” Brad Lamb, raves about the opportunities in the Ottawa market these days, he’s actually not talking about condos. To be sure, the man behind such downtown developments as SoBa and Gotham has made his mark on the capital’s condominium scene. But what really gets Mr. Lamb excited about his latest Ottawa project, the Bronson, is the fact it might not end up being a condo development at all. He says there is about a 70 per cent chance that his company, Lamb Developments, will either market the proposed 21-storey, 212-unit tower as an apartment complex itself or sell it to another institutional investor, which will then reap the long-term rewards of rental income. “I think Ottawa’s a very good town for new apartment buildings,” Mr. Lamb says. The Toronto developer is hardly alone in suggesting the capital, like other major Canadian cities, could be witnessing an apartment renaissance. According to commercial real estate brokerage CBRE Group Inc., there were nearly 24,000 rental units under construction across Canada in the second half of 2014, an increase of 52 per cent from a year earlier. Ottawa isn’t as far along that path as some other major centres such as Toronto, which has more than 20 apartment projects under way, but many housing analysts say it’s only a matter of time before things pick up here. They point to a multitude of factors – including low interest rates that make borrowing cash for construction cheaper, a flat condo market, rising rents and inflated home prices – as factors in the upswing in apartment construction. Throw in the hard reality that much of Ontario’s stock of rental housing is nearly four decades old, leaving potential tenants starved for new,

While condos like these Minto units under construction at Lansdowne Park are still the norm for major developers these days, some analysts are predicting that big builders could soon be turning their attention toward apartments. PHOTO BY COLE BURSTON

higher-end digs, and “the perfect storm has happened,” says Derek Lobo, CEO of Rock Advisors, a Burlington-based brokerage that specializes in apartments. “On the renters’ side there’s demand, and on the investors’ side there’s demand,” he says. “There’s an opportunity here, and it’s a big opportunity.” Investors such as pension funds and real estate investment trusts like stable assets, Mr. Lobo notes. That makes apartments attractive to them, and Ottawa, with its steady economy, is a particularly enticing market, he adds. Mr. Lamb suggests another factor is at play in the looming apartment boom. While condos might provide a greater return on investment, he says, they generally cost more and take longer to build and cause developers more headaches because units must be tailored to individual buyers’ tastes. Apartments, on the other hand, are usually built to a uniform standard. “The amount of work and trouble is greatly diminished in an apartment building,” Mr. Lamb explains, noting that the buildings are usually zoned as condos, meaning developers can sell off

COST COMPARISON BUYING VS. RENTING TWO-BEDROOM, 750-SQ.-FT. UNIT TO OWN (PER MONTH) Price per square foot: $480 Condo price: $360,000 Mortgage: $1,362 Condo fees ($.50 PSF): $375 Utilities: $200 Property tax: $355 Total cost: $2,292 TO RENT (PER MONTH) Rent: Parking: Utilities: Total cost:

$1,750 $100 $200 $2,050

This scenario assumes a buyer puts down 20 per cent and has a mortgage at 3.92 per cent. Utility costs are estimates. SOURCE: OLIVER TIGHE, COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL

individual units down the road if they so choose. “There are the two options you have, which is beautiful. You can still do a condo project and sell it, or you can just

sell it as an apartment building. If you can do it, it’s a great way to go.” A few local developers have begun jumping on the bandwagon. Brigil, for example, is planning to market its new 140-unit project at 460 St. Laurent Blvd. solely to renters, and is considering a mix of condos and apartments at other proposed sites such as 121 Parkdale. “There’s a need for new apartments,” says Alain Grandmaison, Brigil’s general manager of real estate. “I think (Ottawa) is going to be a very good market.” Analysts say recent events seem to support that optimism. Last November, Lepine Corporation sold its 152-suite Kanata Lakes Apartments II complex to a group led by Killam Properties for $48.7 million, or about $320,000 per unit. That’s well above the national average of $125,000 per unit, according to CBRE Canada. “With these new rentals, you’re getting everything that a condo offers,” says Oliver Tighe, managing director of valuation and advisory services for Colliers International’s local office. “There’s a compelling story to get renters into new, condo-quality rentals in

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“On the renters’ side there’s demand, and on the investors’ side there’s demand. There’s an opportunity here, and it’s a big opportunity.” — APARTMENT BROKER DEREK LOBO this market. The fact that someone was willing to buy a purpose-built rental in Ottawa for $300,000 a door proves that (investors) like Ottawa, the economics of Ottawa make sense.” Many developers are now “looking to build purpose-built rentals to a condo standard” to compete with condo owners who rent out their units, says Nico Zentil of CBRE’s national investment team in Ottawa. Still, just how much demand exists for high-end rental units remains to be seen, they note. “You’ve kind of got to build this whole

thing and hope the renters come,” says Mr. Tighe. “It’s a concern, I think, for the developers because in their mind it’s riskier and it’s a concern for the lenders because in their mind it’s riskier. You’re really guessing. That’s the big question right now from a developer’s perspective – how long is it going to take to rent this thing?” Mr. Zentil agrees. “The jury’s still out on how much of this stuff gets put into production,” he says. “I wouldn’t anticipate dozens of towers. At the end of the day, we still need to absorb these units.” Mr. Tighe says developers who focus on affordable, mid-sized units will ultimately be the winners. “The guys who are going to do it well are going to be the guys who adjust,” he says. Many builders are keeping a close eye on projects such as InterRent REIT’s major renovation of its 444unit apartment complex at 201 Bell St. before jumping into the fray, he adds. He predicts that will be the “litmus test for the market” when it is complete. “It’s sort of a wait-and-see approach right now,” Mr. Tighe says. “I think the next six months will be telling.” Canada 2017: Base Artwork

ANNUAL CHAIR’S L U N C H E O N Thursday, April 16, 2015 | 11:15 am – 1:15 pm The Westin Ottawa | 4th floor - Confederation 1 Ballroom

Beyond 2017: Creating a Legacy of Prosperity

Mark Sutcliffe

Chair, Ottawa Chamber of Commerce

Featuring an important announcement from OGHA Canada 2017: Base Artwork + City Type

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milestone will have for our city. A dynamic presentation from the Ottawa 2017 Team will be followed by a panel discussion with Mayor Jim Watson, industry leaders and prominent community figures.

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LAUNCH PAD Continued from page 5

Coming Fall 2015 Club Bell will be Canadian Tire Centre’s premier club offering the best in premium hospitality and corporate business solutions.

Uber-for-food drives for eateries with no delivery For all those times when you wish you could stay home and order food from a restaurant that doesn’t deliver, an Ottawa entrepreneur has come up with a solution. Launched last month, MunchWagon sends freelance drivers to pick up food from eateries without delivery service. The company says its customer base has been doubling every day. Founder Goksu Coler says it’s a win-win for restaurants and customers, eliminating the need for restaurants to cut into profits by having MunchWagon’s drivers deliver food to customers’ doors instead. He’ll face competition from another Uber-for-food company called SkipTheDishes, though, which brands itself as Canada’s largest food delivery network.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS Entrepreneur Hangout Monday, April 13, 1 to 3 p.m. Invest Ottawa, 80 Aberdeen St. Info and registration at investottawa.ca/events

StartUp Drinks Kanata Wednesday, April 15, 5 to 8:30 p.m. Royal Oak Kanata, 329 March Rd. Info and registration at eventbrite.ca Youth Business Expo and Bazaar Wednesday, April 15, 5 to 7 p.m. Pinecrest-Queensway Community Health Centre, 1365 Richmond Rd. Info and registration at eventbrite.ca Startup Grind Hosts Ethan Song of Frank & Oak Thursday, April 23, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. CanvasPop, 6 Hamilton Ave. N., Suite 4 Info and registration at startupgrind.com/ ottawa StartUp Drinks ByWard Market Tuesday, April 28, 5 to 8:30 p.m. Aulde Dubliner & Pour House, 62 William St. Info and registration at eventbrite.ca New Entrepreneurs of Ottawa Networking (NEON) Thursday, April 30, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Ben Franklin Place, 101 Centrepointe Dr. Info and registration at eventbrite.ca

L-SPARK Accelerator Demo Day Tuesday, April 14, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. Canadian Aviation and Space Museum, 11 Aviation Pky. Info and registration at l-spark.com/event

“Membership in the Club isn’t only about a seat to the Sens games. It’s 44 opportunities to host and entertain clients and prospects. It’s the opportunity to spend time with high potential employees or a recruiting tool to gain new employees. It’s an all-around business solution to help your company in a laid-back atmosphere.” — Geoff Publow, Vice President, Strategic Development

and present:

ENSURING CANADA’S GLOBAL LEADERSHIP IN ICT

Sean Yang President of Huawei Canada

Thursday, May 28, 2015 7:00 am - 9:00 am

Sheraton Ottawa Hotel –150 Albert St., 2nd floor- Rideau Room

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015

Individual Tickets: $30.00 + HST (Members) $45.00 + HST (Non-Members)

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COMMENTARY

Mitel co-founder Terry Matthews helped inspire Ottawa’s latest group of tech leaders. FILE PHOTO.

Continued from page 8 For the most part, we don’t hear much about them, and that’s probably the way they like it. These leaders are just as charismatic and committed to the city as our well-known leaders of the past; however, this generation doesn’t want the limelight.

That might be a good thing. Having a CEO in the spotlight does not always benefit the companies they lead. Sometimes their personal lives or community involvement overshadow their corporate achievements and distract them from their core business. Ottawa’s new generation of leaders is more private, but still goes about its business and

The Brave Ones

community activities with the same level of enthusiasm. These men and women all have intelligence, passion and drive, but so do a lot of people who are not successful. In my experience, what separates great leaders from the rest are focus and integrity. The ability to focus on your objectives regardless of what is happening around you is what drives companies forward. Equally important is conducting all aspects of your personal and business life with the highest level of integrity. Integrity allows you to take pride in everything you accomplish without regret. These attributes are not learned; they are part of a true leader’s DNA. There is an old saying that “success has many fathers.” Inspiring leadership is a key factor in that success; however, in today’s business world, leadership is being defined more and more as something provided by a whole team rather than one individual. Apple is a great example. When we think of Apple, we instantly think of Steve Jobs and his highly distinctive leadership style. However, since his death, the company has experienced some of its greatest growth.

New CEO Tim Cook is a much more private person than Steve Jobs, and he talks about how success for Apple is driven by the whole team rather than just one person. Ottawa’s new generation of successful companies clearly has inspiring leaders. But more importantly, it has leaders who inspire their teams to achieve success both in the business world and the community as a whole. It has been a pleasure to write this series over the past six months. I have heard from many readers, and I appreciate all your comments and feedback. Listening and learning from many points of view is what will keep our local economy moving forward. Just sitting back and hoping Ottawa will prosper won’t make it happen. Remember, “hope” is never a good economic strategy. Analysis, discussion and action are how great companies and strong economies achieve success. Jeffrey Dale is the director and cofounder of the Odawa Group as well as the former president of the Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation.

Join us May 8th in a oneday event that positively changes the way the world thinks about leadership.

Andy Stanley

Malala Yousafzai

This year’s theme - The Brave Ones - features innovative, fearless leaders who challenge the norm for positive change. Experience Leadercast Live and network with professionals and leaders in Ottawa at the Hellenic Meeting and Reception Centre from 8am to 4pm. Details and registration:

leadercastottawa.com Brought to you by Ed Catmull

Seth Godin

Rudy Giuliani

MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2015