New Brunswick has named Fredericton-based David Alston, a veteran tech entrepreneur, its first chief entrepreneur-in-residence.
According to a report from Entrevestor, Alston will be responsible for working with government departments to help them develop a more entrepreneurial way of thinking when it comes to solving problems.
“I wouldn’t accept this role if I knew there wasn’t an open door to accept it at every level,” Alston told Entrevestor. “I literally sometimes think, ‘Wow, I’m sitting down chatting with people about ideas and they’re getting it.’ I’ve seen far more openness to this type of thinking than I’ve found people being closed-minded to it.”
Alston will develop an entrepreneur-in-residence program that will encourage entrepreneurs to work with government departments or focus on specific matters within government, such as improving access to services and reducing costs of delivering services.
“New Brunswick has a history of entrepreneurship and innovation,” said Economic Development Minister Francine Landry. “David brings an incredible amount of knowledge and experience that will help us continue to establish the kind of environment that will foster economic development.”
Alston has been a volunteer advisor for the provincial government’s Strategic Program Review and 10-year education plans, and an Industry Champion at the 2015 KIRA Awards, and a Forbes top 50 CMO on social media. Alston was a CMO at Radian6, Salesforce.com’s former marketing cloud chief adoption officer, and currently acts as the CMO at Introhive.