A New Wave of Entrepreneurship
Venture for Canada
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Hear from changemakers, movement drivers and young Canadian entrepreneurs, and learn how they developed their key tools of change and innovation: an entrepreneurial mindset and skillset. Discover your own entrepreneurial potential. Join the new wave that’s building Canada into the most prosperous place in the world.
Available episodes
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4 days ago
Tim Jackson: What the Non-For-Profit and For-Profit Sectors Can Learn From Each Other
Tim Jackson is the President & CEO of Shad Canada, an annual Canadian summer enrichment program for high-achieving high school students. Shad Valley started in Aurora, Ontario in 1989 and has grown into Shad Canada which offers a widespread STEAM and entrepreneurship program for over a thousand students in partnership with top Canadian universities each year.
Tim sits down with Scott to discuss how the not-for-profit and for-profit sectors can learn from each other.
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Jan 30, 2023
Mike Wessinger: Building a Human-Centred Organization
Mike Wessinger is Co-Founder and Executive Chair of the Board of Directors at
PointClickCare, the #1 cloud-based healthcare software provider helping long-term and post-acute care (LTPAC) providers. As of July 2022, PointClickCare generates more than US$ 500 million in annual revenue and has been growing by about 20 percent a year. Mike sits down with Scott to discuss how to build a work culture that encourages people to stay and grow.
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Jan 26, 2023
Michael Garrity: The Gift of Feedback
Michael Garrity, Founder, and CEO of Financeit, has disrupted the financial technology industry for over two decades by bringing innovative technologies to traditional markets. Tune in to his conversation with Scott as they discuss how to cultivate a culture of feedback within an organization.
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Jan 23, 2023
Kirstine Stewart: Cultivating Your Self-awareness
Kirstine Stewart is an internationally award-winning leader with deep expertise working at the intersection of media and technology, and a reputation for turning around revenue performance and driving new market expansion on a global scale. She sits down with Scott to discuss how to cultivate self-awareness, bring value to others, and how to find the right company that fits your values.
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Jan 19, 2023
Annette Verschuren: Trust your instincts
Annette Verschuren is Chair and CEO of NRStor Inc, an energy storage development company. Formerly the president of The Home Depot Canada and Asia, she oversaw the growth of the company’s Canadian operations from 19 stores to 179 stores nationally. She sits down with Scott to discuss how to trust your instincts when making decisions, how to foster a strong work ethic, and how to influence others.
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Jan 16, 2023
Martin Picard: Transforming the hospitality industry
Martin Picard is the co-founder of Sonder, which provides hotel amenities without the formality and manages over 6,300 units in over 35 cities in 10 countries and has served over 1 million guests. He sits down with Scott to discuss how shifting consumer preferences are transforming the hospitality industry and how he built Sonder.
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Jan 9, 2023
Eva Lau: How to Cultivate Resiliency
Eva Lau is a well-respected entrepreneur-turned-investor and one of the few women leading a venture fund in Canada. She is the Founding Partner of Two Small Fish Ventures. She sits down with Scott Stirrett to talk about building your inner resilience. The most important takeaways were about understanding that time heals all wounds, love yourself, and her story on staying resilient while building Wattpad.
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Dec 7, 2022
Fahd Al-Hattab: Becoming a better leader and manager
Fahd Al-Hattab is the Founder & Leadership Development Speaker at Unicorn Labs, a company that coaches managers into leaders and creates high-performing teams that scale. He sits down with Scott Stirrett to discuss the many ways managers can either fail or set up their teams for success. Building psychological safety amongst your teams, and how to be an effective coach as a manager.
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Nov 22, 2022
Todd Finch: Building Concrete Habits
Todd Finch is the Founder & CEO of The Xchange Company, a Venture Corporation developing a platform to reimagine the way people and capital connect to accelerate value. He sits down with Scott to talk about the significance of putting people first in your work, the value of trust and building it over time, and lastly the importance of self-awareness for both professional and personal growth.
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Nov 17, 2022
Vicki Saunders: Re-Imagine the System
Vicki Saunders, Founder of SheEO and #radical generosity; sits down with Scott to talk about proactively initiating systematic changes, bigger companies creating more inequality, and the 7 generational principles to long-term thinking and the impact on our next generation.
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Nov 8, 2022
Magaly Charbonneau: Understanding the Journey
Magaly Charbonneau, a seasoned entrepreneur and investor in many Montreal-based high-tech startup; sits down with Scott to talk about aligning values, and building a trusting relationship with employees. Navigating the processes in VC’s making their investment decisions, and lastly staying calm and meditating to learn and understand how to deal with stress.
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Nov 2, 2022
Mark Wiseman: Investment in Human Capital
Mark Wiseman, Senior Advisor at Lazard and Chair of the Board at Alberta Investment Management Corporation; sits down with Scott Stirrett to talk about all things related to building capital and infrastructure in Canada. He guides us on why Canada has a productivity gap, private sector investments in R&D, and the global war for talent.
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Oct 26, 2022
Gorick Ng: Unspoken Rules
Gorick Ng is the Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author of The Unspoken Rules, a book published by Harvard Business Review Press and named by Thinkers50 as one of the top 10 management books of 2022. During this episode, he talks to Scott Stirrett about the three most important C's when starting a new position. Aside from that, he also shares his tips on leaving your job without burning bridges, believing in your passions, and how to write a cover letter that catches the attention of a prospective employer.
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Oct 19, 2022
Kim Kaplan: It's All About Authenticity
Kim Kaplan is the CEO and Founder OF Snack App, a video-driven dating app where “TikTok meets dating.” She joins Scott Stirrett to discuss the early stages of building the Snack App and appealing to millennials, and the difficulties in fundraising during the pandemic. In this episode, she discusses the importance of focusing on the journey rather than the outcome, which sets you up for greater success.
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Oct 6, 2022
Alison Loat: Easy to start, Hard to Grow, and Build
Allison Loat is the Managing Director, Sustainable Investing and Innovation at OPTrust, a Canadian public pension plan. She joins Scott Stirrett to talk about all things politics. She describes our society's outlook on politicians and re-building trust in the Canadian democracy, the importance of transparency, providing more resources for MPs to excel, and how she got involved in encouraging young Canadians to become public policymakers. In addition, she teaches us that leaning on friends can be helpful to re-establish your self-confidence.
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Sep 14, 2022
Afraj Gill: Health, Wealth & Happiness
Afraj Gill, Partner at On Deck and previously Director / GM at the Royal Bank of Canada's ventures arm, joins Scott Stirrett to discuss the many ways On Deck brings high-quality entrepreneurs together. The importance of meditation and staying grounded, and plus the benefits of staying curious and finding your passion.
This episode will undoubtedly inspire and empower you as Afraj shares his lived experiences.
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Aug 10, 2022
Mohammed Ghalayini: You Have Time to Course Correct
In this episode, we’re joined by Mohammed Ghalayini, Chair of the Board of Directors for Maple Leaf Angels, and Founder of Ovah Inc. Scott Stirrett talks to Mohammed to discuss his reasoning for taking a sabbatical leave, pitching to investors, finding his passion, and being gracious even when you mess up.
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Jul 27, 2022
Markus Frind: Continual Improvement
In this episode we’re joined by Markus Frind, founder of online dating site PlentyofFish, and currently runs a family office that hosts some of Canada’s largest tech startups cymax.com and rvezy.com. Scott Stirrett sits down with Markus to discuss the founding story of Plenty of Fish, aspects to focus on when building a company, what to look for when hiring, and becoming a parent.
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Jun 22, 2022
Probal Lala: All About People
Probal Lala, CEO of Fluent.ai and Chair of the Maple Leaf Angels Corporation, sits down with Scott Stirrett to discuss his early career days, what it takes to be a successful leader and how angel inventors play an important role in investing in people.
He uses his experiences to teach us the value of tools to help people scale their businesses, invest in common shares, and set up expectations as a leader.
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Jun 8, 2022
Mark Macleod: How do I grow 1% each day?
Mark MacLeod, Founder of Mark MacLeod: Coach, Advisor & Investor sits down with Scott Stirrett to discuss why more Founders and CEO's need coaches, how failure rates of startups are starting to increase, because of the lack of guidance. He walks us through the many tactics he uses to help them unlock their personal and company growth.And lastly, how people should start implementing a mindset of growing at least 1% a day.
Mark also opens up to Scott about trying to balance his personal and professional life, and how more people should start to make the two mutually exclusive. If you're interested in becoming a successful leader in all aspects of your life, stay tuned.
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May 25, 2022
Andrew Graham: The Importance of Financial Health
Andrew Graham, CEO & Co-Founder of Borrowell sits down with Scott Stirrett to discuss the misconceptions of working in politics, and learning how to make quick judgements. To sharing his mission and passion for founding Borrowell, a company designed to help set up financial goals, and aid them in reducing any financial stress that may come with their credit scores.
In this episode, we also get to learn the importance of creating a balance between your work and life, and how the two coincide with each other.
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May 11, 2022
Erin Bury: How Do I Get to that Stage?
Erin Bury, CEO & Co-Founder of Willfull sits down with Scott Stirrett to discuss how journalism helped her become an excellent storyteller and communicator, one of the most important characteristics that an entrepreneur can have. She also shares her experience on what it’s like building a start-up with her partner, working for yourself, and navigating the many avenues of funding your startup.
In this episode, we also get to learn the importance of setting up a Will, so you folks can choose what and who gets their things after they pass away, and how to keep a hold of your digital footprint.
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Apr 27, 2022
Matt Golden: Wait, there’s a talent war?
Matt Golden, Founder and Managing Partner of Golden Ventures sits down with Scott Stirrett to discuss how he became an early seed-stage venture capital funder, the importance of investing in businesses like SkiptheDishes, WattPad, and Clearco, and the climate of remote-work.
Scott also gets the chance to dig in a little deeper into the talent wars taking place in the startup, entrepreneurial ecosystem in Canada. How can these businesses start learning from one another, and develop more successful companies?
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Apr 13, 2022
Heather Payne: The School of Choice
Heather Payne, Founder of Juno College of Technology sits down with Scott Stirrett to discuss becoming a manager at McDonalds, differentiation between income shares and tuition fees and the importance of following up on job application when applying to your dream job.
Scott also gets the chance to dig deep into some of the struggles Heather faced when launching her non-profit, so listen closely because you might learn a thing or two!
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Feb 9, 2022
All Things Online Community with Marsha Druker
Marsha Druker, Founder and Director of Toronto’s Fuck Up Nights; and Scott Stirrett, CEO and Founder of Venture for Canada, come together to talk about all things online community.
How do you create a strong online community presence? What are the many challenges small businesses and nonprofits faced when transitioning into virtual space?
In this episode, both Scott and Marsha pick each other's brains on failure, the importance of Canadian youth considering entrepreneurship, and why community is becoming more important than ever.
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Jan 5, 2022
Becoming a Tri-Sector Leader with Lekan Olawoye
Lekan Olawoye, Founder of Black Professionals in Tech Network, joins our host in Episode 06 of Season 3.
In this episode, we get to pick the brain of Lekan and understand the many ways you can become a tri-sector leader in the non-profit sector. He also shares his journey on founding BPTN, defining and explaining the importance of DEI in the workplace, and what ‘allyship’ really means in the midst of a social awakening.
Eager to understand how the Canadian entrepreneurial ecosystem is diversifying? Let Lekan guide you on how companies can better retain and promote individuals from marginalized communities, and establish an inclusive hiring process.
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Dec 22, 2021
Resilience and trusting oneself with Danièle Henkel
Danièle Henkel, current Présidente of Les Entreprises Daniele Henkel Inc, joins our host in Episode 05 of Season 3.
How did Danièle’s transition from Algeria to Canada teach her about a solutions mindset? How did she pivot her career after struggling to find jobs in Canada? What skills does it take to fight fear head-on?
If you’re interested in learning how to persevere through any setback you face, fight for what you want, all while being humble and vulnerable. Anything that is possible when you have the courage to try is what Daniele leaves us within her resilient, entrepreneurial journey.
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Dec 9, 2021
From a PHD in Genetics to a career in public Policy with Val Walker
Val Walker, CEO at Business at Business & Higher Education, joins our host on Episode 04 of Season 3.
How do we better train young Canadians for a rapidly changing economy?
Val walks us through her role and position at BHER, the skill sets that employers in the startups are looking for when hiring undergraduates, and best practices for work-integrated learning programs.
Find out more on Episode 04 of Season 03, where Val Walker touches on building your communication skills, the benefits of work experience, and the misconceptions of working in government.
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Nov 24, 2021
It’s Never a Straight Line in Entrepreneurship with Boris Wertz
Boris Wertz, CEO and Chief Operating Officer of AbeBooks.com joins our host on Episode 03 of Season 3.
What makes a compelling story? How do you win over investors?
Boris Werts walks us through why it’s an exciting time to be an entrepreneur and investor, the demand for venture capital becoming more important as newer innovations arise, and how the school can sometimes be a place where you’re connected with people that help you launch your own business venture.
In Episode 2 of Season 03, Boris Wertz, AbeBooks.com guides us through raising venture capital funds, crypto and blockchain, and how to create a consistent pitch deck.
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Nov 10, 2021
No One is An Expert in Anything with Desiree Bombenon
Desiree Bombenon, CEO and Chief Disruption Officer at SureCall Contact Centres joins our host on Episode 02 of Season 3.
How does one make their company a certified b-corporation? How do companies ensure their employees stay loyal to them? And what are some ways to cultivate a positive work environment?
If you’re interested in getting all those questions above answered, and understand how leveraging mentorship to accelerate your career, and understand how other successful people have made it to where they are today. Let Desiree guide you through relationship building, managing failure, and working with people you’re close to.
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Oct 20, 2021
Arguing for Both Sides with Daniel Debow
In Episode 01 of Season 3, Scott Stirrett sits down with Daniel Debow, VP, Product of Shopify, and a tremendous supporter of Venture for Canada.
Daniel guides us through how he acquired and learned the skill of understanding both sides of an argument, and how this is a crucial mindset for entrepreneurs. The importance of making decisions that are best for you when starting a business, and not relying on money to make your choices. Lastly, is that there’s always room to learn and that there are many resources out there that can help you figure things out, that the university doesn’t have to do.
If you’re in need of a little confidence-boosting today, let Daniel preach to you on how you can become a successful entrepreneur.
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Oct 6, 2021
Investing | It's All About Perseverance
You bring the idea, he invests in it. Charlie Feng, co-founder of Clearco, a fintech firm that has invested over $1B across 3,000 companies. When Charlie isn't busy playing video games, he's helping companies, scale teams, from 0 to 250 people, and has considerable experience in product, operations, and finance.
In Episode 11, Season 02, Charlie talks about finding the right Founder fit, and what to look for in the early stages of angel investing. His whirlwind journey with Clearco, from trying to invest in Uber to pivoting and finding new ways to help underserved entrepreneurial markets.
If you're interested in learning how to invest, solve problems, and find the perfect founder market fit, all while learning from your mistakes. Let Charlie guide you.
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Sep 22, 2021
Behaviours in Tech | It’s all about self-awareness & self-learning
In Episode 10, Season 2, we sit down with Brittanny Danishevsky (2017 Fellow), Backend Software Engineer at Synctera, and a lover of all things self-awareness and learning.
Brittany gets real with us about her personal journey in finding her ideal degree. From dealing with bias in the tech world to using her love for the mind, Brittany offers her advice on investing in an environment that influences you. She also breaks down the misconception of mental health, and how important it is to understand ourselves and others, especially as entrepreneurs striving for change.
If you’re interested in moving away from a perfectionist mentality and understand more about balance, let Brittany teach you a little something.
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Sep 16, 2021
Execution | It’s All About Helping You Reach Your Vision
You bring the idea, he executes. Sam Daviau, 2019 Fellow, worked his way up over 5 years, recently leaving his role of VP of Operations after growing the Operations and People Team. He’s Chair of Alumni Council, Board Member and advisor of Lay-Up Basketball, and advisor and investor to small startups.
In Episode 09, Season 02, Sam talks about bringing passion to the execution and organizational operations processes and ensuring that communities and people’s ideas are met to maximize outcomes. The time spent between work and giving back is filled with reading the synopsis of books (just send him the Blink Notes), camping across Canada’s parks, and taking care of Cole, his four-legged companion.
If you're interested in learning how to execute, get the insider view of building a business from scratch. Let Sam guide you on how to be a community leader.
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Sep 8, 2021
Decision Making | It's All About Your Mindset
In Episode 08 of Season 02, we sit down with Shivani Chotalia, 2015 Fellow Alumni, and an energy storage professional focused on the intersection of clean technologies and social impact.
Shivani spends her time focusing on accelerating the development and construction of industry-leading energy storage technologies as the Director of Development & Partnerships at NRStor Inc. She spills the beans on the supply and demand for energy storage efficiency, systems leadership, and the resistance to change in the electric industry, and the importance of working closely with Indigenous communities to create local benefits.
If you're interested in learning what you can do to save the environment, let Shivani teach you.
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Aug 25, 2021
Communication | It’s All About Understanding the Problem
In Episode 07 of Season 02, we sit down with Nico DiPlacido, and we get the ins-and-outs of what it’s like to be a Senior Product Manager at PartnerStack and we get down to the nitty-gritty.
Nico takes us on his personal journey of unlearning what it’s like to be a product manager, and how to be a better problem solver. In order to lead by example, Nico suggests that managers need to show up as an influence, rather than their job title. Leading by example, managers can navigate their teams through kinship, respect, and direct goals.
If you’re eager to understand how to manage products and become a better leader, then let Nico guide you.
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Aug 11, 2021
Think Ambitiously | It’s All About Having a Clear Vision
Passionate about justice and inclusion, 2017 VFC Fellow, Founder & CEO of Emerge, impact-as-a-service solutions, _Lucia Gallardo_ juggles her time between squeezing in her daily nap, knowing all things Bitcoin, NFTs, SDGs, and blockchain whilst fostering inclusion through technology.
In Episode 06, Season 02, Lucia walks through her experience in working at the National Angel Investor Network and falling in love with the power of technology to address complex social problems. Her company was born based on our innate desire to help and create social change. She applied for her International Development Degree from McGill serving as a board member for Rainforest Partnerships, Women’s Entrepreneur Global, and is a strategy consultant.
If you're interested in mastering multitasking, driving meaningful social change, and setting up your workday to work for you, let Lucia apply her mind mapping.
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Jul 28, 2021
Fake it till ya make it | It’s all about practice with Stewart Hillhouse
In Episode 03 of Season 02, we sit down with Stewart Hillhouse, 2017 Fellow, a content marketer and podcast-showrunner with a passion for storytelling and who can run a 5km race under 4:15 per kilometer.
A Senior Content Lead at Demand Curve by day and host of Top of Mind podcast by night. How does a Bachelor of Science in Forestry grad with a master of Engineering and Entrepreneurship end up as a content-writing expert? Stewart shares his journey to building writing hacks, content creation into tech, and effectively using social media platforms like LinkedIn to practice communication.
If you’re curious about a non-linear career, breaking into tech, tapping into your creative writing abilities, let Stewart teach a little (a lot) something.
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Jul 14, 2021
Own who you are | A Leaders Mentality with Natasha Dhayagude
In episode 04 of season 02, we sit down with Natasha Dhayagude, 2015 Fellow, CEO, and Co-Founder of Chinova Bioworks, and we get👏🏼 into 👏🏼 it.👏🏼
A biochemist and entrepreneur, Natasha built a company that develops natural preservatives extracted from mushrooms for use in food and beverages. She gets real about what it’s been like for her to be a woman of colour in a male-dominated space (& how to own your adaptive-alpha), how networks are essential to propelling your startup in the early days, and how she helped her family glamping business take-off during a global pandemic (takes notes ✍🏼).
If you’re breaking down glass ceilings, then let Natasha ignite your journey.
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Jun 30, 2021
LISN-IN | It’s all about trusting the process
In episode 03 of season 02, we sit down with Zameer Masjedee, 2018 Fellow, and the man who’s trying to revolutionize podcasts and redesign commerce.
Zameer is a Sr. Solutions Engineer at Shopify by day, and the Co-Founder of LISN, a platform helping to organize and highlight the best clips from a podcast by night. He gets real about having tough conversations about goals with your team, the unexpected hurdles that come with starting a business, and how focusing on the right things like your mission can help you make fast and appropriate decisions for the growth of your business. Shopify has taught him how to scale a company, and how as an individual you can strive towards always having a positive impact.
If you’re looking to put your podcast or business on the map, then let Zameer teach you a little something.
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Jun 18, 2021
Wants vs Needs | It’s All About Curiosity with Susie Pan
In Episode 02 of Season 02, we sit down with Susie Pan all the way from New Zealand.
A leader of many talents, a product manager, a scout, a coach and currently an On Deck Fellow, Susie chats about shifting one’s mindset and gifts us her newfound equation to joy. Understanding why rules exist, discovering her gift of being curious, and the importance of constantly redefining her “normal” has opened up unexpected career opportunities.
If you’re looking for career guidance and motivation, let Susie take the lead.
Season 02, Episode 02 with Susie Pan is available on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Anchor and wherever you listen.
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Jun 2, 2021
Talk like a human | It’s all about people with Kelsey Burdett
In Episode 01 of Season 2, we sit down with Kelsey Burdett (2016 Fellow), a lover of everything digital, dot-connector, podcaster, and she talks about the importance of supporting entrepreneurs.
From transferring her journalism and reporting basketball games background to sales at Shopify to being a Senior Partnerships Manager at #Paid, Kelsey helps brands receive funding from incubators like Clearco and strategizes how brands can connect with the right content creators. Her main marketing advice? Move away from social media numbers, focus on your brand’s direct impact and message, and outsource Influencers as a collaboration opportunity to make your brand look more appealing.
If you’re interested in content creation, influencer marketing, and building your personal or company brand image, let Kelsey guide you through insider tips and tricks.
Season 02, Episode 01 with Kelsey is available on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Anchor and wherever you listen.
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May 10, 2021
Special Episode: The Lessons of Season 1
Scott Stirrett, Founder and CEO of Venture for Canada, chats with Lateefa Farah, Marketing and Content Coordinator at VFC, about the key lessons from Season 1 of A New Wave of Entrepreneurship.
In the seven episodes, Scott spoke to ambitious leaders from the VFC Alumni community about their career trajectories and aspirations. Common themes like dealing with failure, the importance of mentorship, and creating space to find their own purpose in life surfaced in all of our recordings. In this episode, we reflect on these key lessons with featured snippets from recordings of Danny Williams 2015 Fellow Alumni and Senior Product Designer @Shopify, David Kantanka 2016 Fellow Alumni and Chief Operating Officer @ RapTV, Dessie Maliaka 2018 Fellow Alumni and Co-Founder at Sustainability Stocked.
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Apr 26, 2021
Comfort with ambiguity: Setting expectations to get what you want
Josh MacIntyre, 2015 Fellow Alumni & Head of Revenue Operations at Grammarly, which provides digital writing assistance tools, sits down with Scott to discuss how Canadian Tire helped him direct his career impact and provided career clarity.
Going back and forth between business school and work, Josh was able to gain a clearer understanding of the type of management role he wanted to step into.
From building relationships to managers setting clear expectations for their employees, finding the right mentor to help with your career or professional growth, and providing value to others, Josh gives us an insight into his career progression and the significance of enjoying what you do.
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Apr 12, 2021
Founding a startup success: Mastering the art and science of sales
Chris Grouchy, 2016 Fellow Alumni & Co-Founder of Convictional, 2.2M seed round enterprise B2C YC graduate company, talks to Scott about how a twice-rejection from Mckinsey sparked his founding journey.
Mastering sales as a rep at Shopify Plus and an internship at Cisco unblocked the conventional possibilities that were traditionally encouraged in the world of commerce and business grads.
From crafting the perfect cold email to land a job, building networks, and coaching other Y Combinator founders on the art and science of sales, Chris gives us an insight into the success and learnings of his journey so far.
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Mar 29, 2021
From the ground up: What does it take to build a successful e-commerce business?
Is what it takes to thrive at a startup the same as building a startup? A thick skin, persuasion, and accepting failure are key characteristics for Micha in her journey as a strategist at Fiix and Careguide in Toronto and now as the COO and Co-Founder at Namstetics. Micha Saade, 2017 VFC Fellow, talks about her early career in sales and marketing at start-ups and gives us tips about how we can have an impact on a company’s overall success.
Micha’s mind, body, and soul approach to health has a direct influence on her yoga-apparel brand. Finding balance through yoga and reiki, Micha shares the economics of her business and gives us an insider's take on influencer marketing, quality control, dealing with difficult customers and employing people internationally.
Leaning on collaboration and expertise of designers and suppliers, having an insider-man, and asking yourself if you truly believe in what you're doing, have been essential for her success.
Celebrating your small wins will m…
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Mar 15, 2021
Customer Success Management must-knows: Squeaky wheel gets the grease?
When it comes to customer feedback and satisfaction, the people you hear from are the typically loudest. Are they the ones you should listen to? Ben Winn, Community and Events Manager at Catalyst Software, Editor and Chief at the Unicornian and 2016 Fellow Alumni, shares his insights on why having an open space for feedback is essential for startups to thrive.
He gives us the ins-and-outs of Customer Success Management, how to structure customer-centric teams, and how hiring your People person (Human Resources) will pay dividends down the road. Having dealt with many new hires, Ben suggests that you need to be upfront about your weaknesses in interviews, find the balance between humble brags but not underselling your accomplishments, and doubling on your strengths. Admit your blind spots...that goes a long way for many other things in life.
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Mar 1, 2021
Putting your Growth Mindset to Practice: Building The Habit
Some people are motivated by money and others by family and others by a combination of things. Manuela Bárcenas, Marketing Lead at fellow.app and 2018 Fellow Alumni is a lover of all things marketing, leadership, and personal development. She challenges us to re-frame our definition of a growth mindset.
What if a growth mindset can be something beyond a mindset and more of a habit? Manuela shares her story on keeping herself accountable to create a space for growth.
Make it a habit to learn more about what you want to become a specialist in. Make it a habit to build accountability. Make it a habit to build your personal brand. A growth mindset is a predictor of success, listen up.
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Feb 15, 2021
The Creation of New Ventures: Serendipitous Moments, Serendipitous Connections
Can you think of a hobby from your childhood that you’ve carried throughout your life? Mark Dhillon 2016 Fellow Alumni, Co-Founder, Operator, ex-VC, will be a #skater4life. To him, that means leaning on communities of creative, radical, and innovative thinkers who don’t judge. Acceptance and landing new tricks are essential to his success. From engineering to an MBA to VC in cannabis to tech, with the goal of ending up in international development, Mark walks us through his multifaceted journey of ensuring growth is attainable.
His advice - don’t be a climber, be a builder. Listen up.
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Jan 27, 2021
Stepping into Your Best Life with Kiki Athanas: Optimizing Health and Happiness
A New Wave of Entrepreneurship, a Venture for Canada Podcast is a biweekly conversation with Scott Stirrett, CEO and Founder of Venture for Canada. You'll be hearing from changemakers, movement drivers, and young Canadian entrepreneurs to learn about how they've developed their key tools of change and innovation and how they've stepped into their entrepreneurial mindset and skillset. This week Scott Stirrett sits down with CEO and Founder of Adapt Daily, Kiki Athanas, to discuss how eating habits tie to mental clarity, finding your purpose while building a business, and being selfish for yourself. Visit us at www.ventureforcanada.ca or follow us on social @venture4canada
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