Review of 11 Canadian tech companies to watch in 2020
For the past few years, thanks to the team at BetaKit, I’ve had the opportunity to share my thoughts on some of the companies…
opinion
Virtual events provide opportunity for minority-focused organizations, underserved communities
The COVID-19 pandemic forced in-person events to seek out virtual venues. Not that virtual event platforms didn’t exist before, but their customer value propositions…
Pilots over pitches: how to accelerate growth through corporate-startup collaboration
“Always be pitching” has been the startup mantra for years, and for good reason. Pitching helps improve and validate ideas, understand customers, and accelerate…
How COVID has re-routed Canada’s mobility future
In February of this year, I wrote about what mobility could look like in 2020 and beyond, based on trends that had emerged over…
Out-collaborate your competition: The growth formula for FinTechs
This is the decade where businesses must take on large societal problems. From healthcare, education, climate change, to finance, every industry will need to…
How SAFEs can be dangerous: what early-stage entrepreneurs should know
As a VC, lawyer, and entrepreneur, I’ve seen the good, the bad, and the ugly of issuing SAFEs. The Simple Agreement for Future Equity,…
Why Canada lags in the global Deep Tech race
These are two key questions that my partner, Colin Webster, and I discussed when we were establishing RiSC Capital to make seed investments in…
The world is on fire: we need leaders ready to build resilient, informed digital nations now
Exactly five months ago I was standing at the World Economic Forum in Davos amidst world leaders, systems builders, and changemakers. I was grateful…
With the US turning away talent, can Canada grab the global lead on innovation during COVID-19?
The coronavirus may be devastating the global economy, but the crisis is catapulting Shopify to new heights. The Ottawa-based ecommerce platform’s stock has soared,…
Communications in times of crisis: how tech companies and startups can best respond
This past year has been full of social issue controversies and crises for tech companies and startups. It is clear technology is becoming increasingly…
New federal recovery panel has opportunity to build a stronger Canada out of pandemic’s rubble
COVID-19 finds industry and public policy leaders scrambling for answers on how to rebuild our domestic economies and restore resilience in our supply and…
The horrifying truth about being a Black woman founder in Canada
Of the thousands of Canadian venture deals produced from 2014 to 2019, so few Black women founders raised money that these figures are very…
Not fine, and that’s ok. A model for managing teams through crisis
How are you doing? This standard rhetorical greeting has taken on a deeper meaning in recent weeks. COVID-19 has upturned how we live and…