What does innovation mean in Canada?
When the Canadian government released the 2017 federal budget, the Spark team took notice because of one word that came up hundreds of times — innovation, one of our favourite topics.
The federal budget included an innovation and skills plan. It also included a plan to invest in 'skills innovation'. Hm. One of the budget's subheadings was even called, "The Case for Innovation."
But what does it really MEAN to be innovative? And what does it mean for the tech sector in Canada to be innovative?
In March 2017, the DMZ hosted a post-budget roundtable meeting with the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, Navdeep Bains, and 16 companies form the Toronto-Waterloo corridor.
"It was an honest, candid discussion," says Abdullah. "It wasn't just about saying 'Great job we're happy to see where things are going'."
But plenty of tough questions were asked of the Minister about the current state of innovation in Canada, and how the government plans to improve it.
A big issue on the table was the lack of diversity and women in the venture capital world.
"So, how do you provide better engagement opportunities and more incentives, and how do you build more transparency in organizations to really showcase that they're actually building diversity within their plants?" Abdullah says.
How do we ensure that women have a better say and a bigger say around the table in what's actually happening.
There was also discussion about how Canada can build a more collaborative and less competitive community, "so that we as a small country of 35 million people are able to work together on each others' strengths."
Abdullah says if Canada wants to be a global powerhouse, it needs to be more strategic and focused in specific areas.
"That's what's going to turn everybody's heads globally and say, 'Look at Canada, look what they're doing, these guys are fantastic. They're focused and know exactly what they're after'."
In order to create an innovation mindset here in Canada, we have to know what we're good at, and focus on those areas.
"And to be honest with you, we have to stop comparing ourselves to Silicon Valley," Abdullah says. "We're better than that, believe me.
"Imagine what we can be doing as a nation over the next ten years. If we continue to take risks, embrace innovation and defy the status quo? We're going to be doing extremely well for ourselves."