What I also discovered is how much of Ottawa’s entrepreneurial spirit comes from Ottawans who weren’t born here. If you have the courage to start a whole new life in a new city or country – I guess you certainly have what it takes to start a business. Fantastic!

I also think our business ecosystem proved we have the ability to collaborate, at lightning speed, to assemble 30-plus events under the new Ottawa Entrepreneur Week brand. Every major Ottawa media outlet participated as well. And Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube also buzzed with news.

Thank you to our sponsors, the City of Ottawa, Global Entrepreneurship Week, the Ontario Network of Excellence and the Ontario Centres of Excellence, the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Innovation, chartered accounts Welch LLP, law firm Gowlings Ottawa, the Ottawa Citizen, the Ottawa Business Journal, La Cité collégiale, Algonquin College, Carleton University, the University of Ottawa and the Regional Innovation Centre for Ottawa and Eastern Ontario.

Our thanks also to the organizations that let us know about their events, including: the Ottawa and Nepean Chambers of Commerce; TiE Ottawa; SIFE at Carleton University; TIM Entrepreneurs; Android Developers; Lead to Win; IBM; and the Telfer School of Business.

We’ve already chosen the dates for next year’s Ottawa Entrepreneur Week, which will again coincide with Global Entrepreneurship Week, mark your calendars and plan to join us November 12-18, 2012.

I invite you to start thinking, creating and planning now for how we’re going to make next year’s Ottawa Entrepreneur Week an even bigger success. Send your ideas to me at ceo@ocri.ca.

And if you missed the launch party at the Heart & Crown, take a minute to check out this YouTube video and pass it along to friends:

Thanks again!
Bruce

Ottawa has it all and we’re telling the world as we engage in the first Ottawa Entrepreneur Week in conjunction with other cities around the world during Global Entrepreneurship Week.

Attendees at the Ottawa Entrepreneur Week Kick-off Reception on November 14

As we enter into our first Ottawa Entrepreneur Week we are already preparing for next year. Be part of it, mark your calendars and align your entrepreneurial events around November 12-18, 2012. Look out world, Ottawa’s onboard! After all, a little competition never hurts!

All Seasons Indian Catering – Whether it is for a small, single serving portion of lunch, or for a large party or event, All Seasons Indian Catering goods are guaranteed to fit all of your needs! At competitive prices, our selection of variety goods can be used for all different events! All Seasons Indian Catering provides a unique service of delivery and convenience at the tips of ones fingers! Try us out today!

Aqua Academy – Aqua Academy is a local business situated in Stittsville, Ontario. It offers an exclusive program that provides private and semi-private swimming lessons in the comfort of an outdoor backyard pool setting. The swimming lessons target children ages 3-14, following the Lifesaving Society swim program. In addition to swimming lessons, Aqua Academy offers small group aquafit for adults interested in building their fitness using the water.

Bellingham Video – Bellingham Video is an Ottawa-based videography company specializing in weddings and dance studio recitals. Preserve all the fleeting moments you worked so hard to create–into one crisp, carefully edited DVD, High Definition Blu-Ray, or mobile file format you’ll want to watch again and again. Bellingham Video: flexible, affordable, and unforgettable.

Capital Lawn & Hedge – Phil Brougham has been in the lawn mowing business for ten years working for various companies. After being given a grant by the Government of Ontario’s Youth Entrepreneurship Centre, Phil started Capital Lawn & Hedge. He currently attends Concordia University where he is working to obtain his Specialization Degree in Urban Planning. Phil is committed to help you achieve a beautiful lawn in a positive atmosphere where you feel relaxed and satisfied. Phil offers a professional and friendly service because customer satisfaction comes first!

Caramel Pet Products – Caramel’s Pet Shop supplies pet owners with stylish and personalized pet items. The pet collars are hand-crafted, made out of premium fabric, and personalized with beautiful embroidery. Other pet products such as dog leashes and bandanas are also hand-crafted carefully and are made with only the finest and classy fabrics such as Burberry patterns, select flannel fabric and more trendy designs. These trendy pet items appeal to trend-conscious pet owners who prefer to dress their pets like how they dress themselves – stylish.

Carolyn’s Couture Closet – Carolyn’s Couture Closet is a one-of-a-kind shop located in the heart of downtown Ottawa. It offers a collection of unique couture fashion from different parts of the world, different designers, and different people’s closets! Each and every piece is hand-picked, dry cleaned and made available to you to RENT. That’s right, nothing is for sale but everything can be borrowed! No longer will you have to splurge on that perfect outfit for the birthday party you have to attend, the date you are going on tomorrow night, your friend’s wedding this year, or the job interview in which professional and fashionable attire is a must. And if you’re like me, you know that the $300 dress you bought to wear to your graduation is lucky if it see’s the light of day TWICE.

CPR Saves Lives – CPR Saves Lives is an innovative new concept that focuses on teaching CPR and First Aid to seniors, new mom’s and groups in the privacy of their own home or workplace. CPR Saves Lives offers flexible hours and in-home instruction so seniors can learn the skills necessary to potentially save their partner’s life. CPR and First Aid instruction in a home environment not only removes a key barrier to learning these skills, but more importantly it teaches what to do in an emergency – in the location where heart attacks and accidents are most likely to occur.

Crypsis – Crypsis is an Ottawa based online retail store that provides camouflage solutions for: paintballers, airsofters, hunters, and all others that can’t afford to be seen. Camouflage is our passion, and amongst our stock you will find exotic, hard to find, and in-demand camouflage patterns and apparel.

Dragonfly Gardening Service – Dragonfly Gardening Services (DGS) is a garden maintenance and design business. DGS can do a wide variety of garden maintenance such has weeding, planting, watering, and mowing. DGS can also design new garden plans fitting the client’s personality and wishes, whether it’s working off an existing garden or starting new. DGS caters to clients who need extra help in their garden, doesn’t have garden knowledge and skills, or want a garden but do not wish to do the work themselves.

Hinschilini Contractors Ltd – Hinschilini Design Construction is a general contracting company. We offer top quality services for window cleaning, painting, ceramic tiles, hardwood flooring, and deck staining. We believe in innovation, creativity, quality, pride and integrity. Our services are available to the Ottawa, Orleans, and Kanata regions. All renovation projects can be sketched up using our design software, so our clients know exactly the outcome of the final product.

HotzStudios – HotzStudios is Ottawa’s most affordable, professional recording studio. Officially established in 2011, we specialize in recording, production, mixing, voice overs, video and much more. Our studio engineer and owner, Phil Hotz, has been turning artist’s aspirations into realistic and achievable goals through professional recording techniques for over 5 years. From basic to extensive projects we can help you achieve results in the competitive media industry. Our acoustically treated studio and isolation booth provides you with a relaxing and comfortable environment to help you complete and achieve the best results for your project. Book a free project consultation today and see what we mean.

ilumite media – ilumite Media is a web design and hosting company based in Ottawa, ON. We help people with small budgets build professional, user editable websites. We also provide low-cost e-commerce solutions and offer free consultation services to help small-businesses and individuals get on the right track when first building an online presence.

Irvine Birth Companionship Services – Greetings! My name is Brittany Irvine. I am an entrepreneur and the sole proprietor of Irvine Birth Companionship. What I offer my clients is birth counsel and doula services, including attendance during labour and delivery, as well as assistance in the perinatal period. I am sustained by these endeavours and personally engaged with continual learning objectives as they regard modern obstetrical care. I look forward to hearing from you!

James Jones Paddle Company – James Jones Paddle Company handcrafts quality wooden canoe and kayak paddles using only the finest woods and craftsmanship. Each paddle has been designed for both aesthetic appeal and exceptional performance. To ensure these qualities are attained, the paddles are made from a combination of individually selected Ash and Basswood, as well as Mahogany or Walnut. The combination of these wood’s characteristics as well as quality craftsmanship results in strong but lightweight paddles that are perfectly balanced for a light feeling, comfortable stroke. Much time and effort is put into each paddle to achieve near perfection in quality.

Klutch Universe – Clothing design.

LeftClick Productions – We are a small Ottawa business dedicated to making fun, informative and innovative internet shorts for your business, organization or band. Our goal is to give your business a unique video that you can put on your website, Youtube and/or any other social media site to garner attention. We will work with your input from the script through to the finished video to give you a product we all can be proud of.

McCormack Sealing Solutions – Our company is a locally owned and operated driveway sealing company in Ottawa. We specialize in offering a high quality sealant service at an affordable price. We take pride in the thing that sets us apart–quality product and friendly service. We take care of our customers as the best advertising has been the recommendations of our satisfied customers. This ensures that we will do the best quality job every time!

Orleans Lawn Care – Orleans Lawn Care keeps Ottawa’s East end clean and green. We keep it local to keep our prices low. We’d would be pleased to provide a free quote for your residential or commercial needs.

Play Today Guitar Lessons in Your Home – Play Today! Guitar Lessons offers students the opportunity to learn the guitar in the comfort of their own home as well as the option of borrowing a guitar and trying their hand at it before committing to buying one. This model allows students to enjoy learning the guitar without the common drawbacks of travel time, traffic, parking and rising fuel costs. Lessons are taught by a recent graduate of Carleton University ’s music performance program and female guitar teacher specializing in getting beginner students started on the right foot. With lesson plans designed around each student’s particular interests, they achieve their musical goals sooner. Learning the guitar is a great summer activity for kids out of school and a fun thing for adults to pick up on their vacation time. Some other unique advantages offered by Play Today! Guitar lessons include the option of taking lessons with a friend or relative for the same price as one-on-one sessions and pay-as-you-go payment so that the student has the freedom to choose how many lessons they take.

Riviera Media – With advances in broadband technology, there has been no better time to integrate video content online. As a promotional tool video content allows for an engaging and interactive experience that can hold an audience’s attention better than text-based web media. Riviera Media provides professional, competitively priced video production. Drawing on experience ranging from dynamic promotional videos to stylish music videos, Riviera can help you take your business, project, or event to the cutting edge of the digital revolution.

Seberatech – Powerseller of Laptop PC Accessories. Seberatech is the Canadian based professional online powerseller of Laptop PC Accessories and Consumer Electronics. Seberatech answers buyers’ needs for real deals on Laptop PC Accessories and Computer parts. Make Seberatech your favourite seller for Laptop AC adapters, Batteries, LCD screen, RAM memory, Keyboard, HDMI cables… Various categories and real-time inventory, orders can be placed and tracked online and local pick up is also available in Ottawa.

Soundcheck Studios – Soundcheck Studios provides the Ottawa area youth a facility in which they can produce their own music . Ottawa is one of the most talented cities in Canada. Soundcheck Studios helps that talent to get discovered. Our clients will be treated with utmost respect and will be sure to leave the studio with the best sound possible. We currently run Avid’s Pro Tools 9 on a PC-based system. Our high quality pre-amps and interfaces are sure to give you the top notch raw sound you are looking for. Here at Soundcheck Studios we have thousands of on board digital plug-ins to give you the best sounding mix and final product. Our goal is not only to help our clients in getting the best sound possible but help that sound get distributed in order to promote their careers.

SQU4REone – Whether you’re starting a new business or expanding an existing one, we will provide the solutions, strategies, and guidance you require to get the most out of your company without increasing operating costs. Through Logo design, business plans, market research and web design, SQU4REone provides feasible, and easy to implement campaigns that are guaranteed to give you the boost you need in your business!

Synergy Texts – Do you need to create great content for your website or blog? Synergy Texts offers creative writing services within Ottawa to help you create written web content including business reviews, articles, and copy writing. We create high quality custom original content for good prices. The creative writing process includes research, content creation, search engine optimization, as well as editing and revision. Our focus is to provide customized writing to communicate our client’s values and your business’ benefits. Our mission is to help you create interesting, informative, and relevant web content. Get exposure for your business with writing that entertains and educates prospective clients.

Topspin Tennis – Topspin Tennis is a small business operated by a Tennis Canada-certified coach whose aim is to bring this wonderful sport to residents of communities neighboring Ottawa. Tennis is a growing sport in Canada and we would love to help it take roots in small towns to increase awareness and produce more players like rising Canadian star Milos Raonic. Whether it is a summer camp for juniors, lessons for adults, ladder matches for seniors or tournaments for everyone, Topspin Tennis can do it all. We also offer quality racquet stringing at affordable prices. If you have courts to use and need a coach, give us a call and we would love to come to you to improve your game!

Vacation Dog Care – Our company is going to be servicing West Wellington and Westboro providing pet care. When people go away for their vacation I will be looking after their pets, this includes feeding of the pet, walking if needed, etc.

VP Studios – V.P. Studios offers high quality videography and digital video editing services at competitive prices. We will capture all your precious moments on High Definition Digital Video so you can always relive your experiences in sharp living colour. Whether it is a Wedding, Bar mitzvah, Lecture or Sporting event V.P. Studios can accommodate your needs and budget. All footage is taken with professional HD Video cameras and post editing on professional software. Multiple cameramen / camera angles available.

WestScape – At Westscape I specialize in lawn mowing, resodding lawns, garden maintenance\spring clean up, hedge trimming, small landscaping projects involving mulch an riverstone. Customers will be inclined to choose me because of my professionalism, personality as well as references from other customers. I can also offer lower labour prices than any competition due to my need for business.

Worry-Free Driveways – Looking to add value to your property this summer? Worry-Free Driveways can help! Your driveway is the welcome mat to your home, one of the most recognizable features of your property. It is important to keep it clean, repaired, and freshly coated in order to maximize its life. Watch as we completely revive your driveway with our patented crack-repair technology, and our top-of-the-line liquid sealer making it look – and feel – younger. Customer satisfaction is our number one priority, so trust Worry-Free Driveways to do it right.

To contact any of these companies please contact: Diana Martinez-Cachon | Business Advisor, Youth Entrepreneurship | OCRI Entrepreneurship Centre | 613-580-2424 ext.22704 | dianam@ocri.ca

OCRI’s Global Marketing group, re-branded as Invest Ottawa, will market Ottawa to attract investment, people and companies critical to the city’s sustained success. Additional funding will enable the group to expand international relationships with rising economies, such as China, India and Brazil, as well as, build its capability in business expansion and retention.

OCRI will continue to deliver innovation programs to develop, attract and retain talent; support entrepreneurs in the startup and early growth of their business; promote entrepreneurial and innovation success skills; support the acceleration of high potential companies; and offer training and skill enhancement events to Ottawa’s professional community.

The funding announcement felt like a well-earned pat on the back from the Mayor and City staff – recognition of the valuable work that OCRI has done to accelerate innovation while promoting Ottawa to the world on a tight budget with a small staff. Increased funding for both the investment and innovation initiatives as well as the great work done by the Entrepreneurship Centre for the broad business community allows OCRI to continue to lead the way for Ottawa and we’re happy to take up that challenge.

As orange pylons begin sprouting up all over the streets, consider the frustration of trying to run a business in the middle of a construction zone. Limited parking spaces disappearing as fast as the pavement, blocked off sidewalks, and restricted street access can have a serious impact on the bottom line. Is there a strategy for negotiating your retail business through a construction disruption? According to local business advisors the answer is yes.

Carole Lair and Peter Stewart of the Entrepreneurship Centre are hosting a one-hour panel presentation that will provide recommendations, tips and guidance on how to keep your business going. The panel will discuss cash flow, operations, social media, other marketing opportunities as well as motivation. One-on-one sessions with representatives from the Entrepreneurship Centre are also available.

The panel session will take place on Thursday June 23 (8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.) at the MVP lounge on Bank Street. There is no charge to attend but pre-registration is required. Please contact info@glebebia.com or call 613-680-8506.

We are very pleased to announce the three finalists for Co-op Student of the Year. This program is a joint initiative between Algonquin College, Carleton University and the University of Ottawa. Each institution carefully considered the profiles and projects of their most enthusiastic and successful students and have chosen their own winners. These top students are the finalists for the inaugural Co-op Student of the Year Award. 

Algonquin College nominates Dagan Shaw. Dagan completed his final co-op placement with B-Con Engineering in the summer of 2010 and graduated with his Bachelor of Applied Technology – photonics. Dagan balanced a full course load with a part-time job but was still able to eagerly apply his classroom skills in a work environment.  Throughout his studies he maintained a stellar GPA and was often caught working with other students after hours. In recognition of his contribution to B-Con’s Exicon Project, Dagan was a winner of the 2010 Polytechnics Conference Showcase. 

Carleton University nominates Anthony (Tony) Hiratsuka who completed his co-op placement with Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. Cited for his keen eye for detail which led to cost and time savings in the magnitude of approaching millions of dollars and years of unnecessary work, Tony’s placement with DFAIT was so successful that he was hired for four consecutive work terms. His enthusiasm for the co-op program has inspired other students to participate and encouraged his employer to continue their co-op alliance. 

University of Ottawa nominates Hubert (Haoyang) Duan a student in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics. Hubert has achieved excellence in academics maintaining an amazing cumulative grade point average of 9.9 after 3.5 years. Hubert went well beyond his role of a summer student and became an integral member of the National Population Health Survey team.  Despite the steep learning curve he had to overcome, he was able to excel quickly, contribute to the success of the program, prioritize multiple activities, meet tight deadlines and perform quality control.  Clearly, his future employers will be lucky to have him. 

All three candidates are sure to leverage their unique learning opportunities into a successful and rewarding career. Judging criteria includes: job achievement, contribution to cooperative education, personal experience, contribution to extra-curricular activities at school or the community at large, academic achievement and resume. 

We look forward to the announcement and celebration on April 7th. 

CHEERS!

It also indicated that Ontario is the “hot-bed” of co-op education participation. Here in Ottawa, Carleton University alone had 1, 182 co-op students placed this year.  The number of participating students increases every year. 2010/11 numbers were up 15 per cent!

It’s fairly clear why students take the co-op route. There’s nothing like hands on learning and being taught by the people who truly know what goes on “inside” a genuine business.  Two University of Waterloo researchers who conducted the largest study of co-op students tracked 10,000 students from 2000 to 2006 and verified that after graduation, co-op grads were earning 15 per cent MORE money than their peers and tended to secure more “prestigious” positions. According to the same survey, there appears to be a slight difference between university and college co-op students where the university co-op students tend to be male in science, tech and engineering whereas in college the students tend to be female with interests in fine and applied arts as well as the humanities. With such a diverse and strong educational infrastructure here in the Ottawa region and our highly entrepreneurial business scene of entrepreneurs and knowledge-based sectors we are in an excellent position to provide both co-op students and co-op employers with unique opportunities to grow and contribute to growth.  

Through co-ops students are provided with invaluable experiential learning that will help them be successful upon completing their post-secondary studies.  Companies who choose to employ co-op students are putting themselves in a win/win situation.  They have access to intelligent, keen and motivated individuals who can help them complete specific tasks AND they have an opportunity to help shape the future of a next generation employee.  Essentially, they are grooming Ottawa’s talent pool and play a role in bridging any talent gaps in their specific industry.

In recognition of the excellent work being done by Ottawa’s co-op students and the Ottawa-based companies who provide them with the opportunity to learn, the City of Ottawa has created two special awards which will be presented annually to the Co-op Student of the Year and the Co-op Employer of the Year.  An official from the City will make a presentation to the winners at the OCRI Awards on April 7 at the Hilton Lac-Leamy.

We look forward to celebrating the winners with the entire community!

Currently, archives include media clips and entire presentations from our events to give you a full picture of what you’ve missed but going forward we’re just going to let you in on the Q&A. If you want more you’ll have to come check out an event to reap all the benefits of the presentation and networking.

Cheers!

Ottawa is expected to face shortages of skilled knowledge workers in specific sectors in the relatively near future. By generating interest in science and technology opportunities throughout the entire education experience including kindergarten through to Grade 12, increasing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) participation and implementing retention strategies we will be able to meet the demands for knowledge workers in the long term.

The technology sector in the region has recovered from the telecom collapse of 2001 and is now emerging from the global economic recession. Registration for computer and technology related programs in 2009 at post-secondary institutions did increase but remains dangerously low overall. It is important to note that early indicators in 2010 indicate that registration is down dramatically, with roughly only one quarter of the registrations seen four years ago.  In an effort to restore interest in computer engineering and computer science programs and establish entrepreneurship as viable career options in the minds of students, a number of programs and initiatives have been created that develop the city’s next generation of business leaders, skilled talent and entrepreneurs.

OCRI believes strongly in restoring the connection between entrepreneurism and traditional business skills among youth and the economic reality of our society. In an economy where eight of 10 net new jobs   are created by SMEs, Ottawa has an opportunity to promote entrepreneurism and teach business skills as a workforce asset since the majority of graduates will either be asked to contribute to the success of, or startup their own small or medium-sized enterprises. Our vision is that students have access to a broad array of entrepreneurship and business programs from the earliest grades through to post-secondary studies.

Junior Achievement, Summer Company and TalentBridge are all in place to help develop the entrepreneurial skills of students and aid their pursuit of careers in Ottawa’s diverse knowledge-based industry. The High School Technology Program is designed to introduce technology careers as viable options for students in Grades 10 through 12. All programs leverage community and industry mentors to help deliver them.

In order for Ottawa to maintain its position as an innovative technology leader, it is imperative that we have a sustainable talent pipeline. In 2009, OCRI introduced more tools and resources that help develop the skills of our future business leaders. OCRI assumed responsibility of the Junior Achievement programs in Ottawa, a mainstay in the lives of many young entrepreneurs. As part of the TalentBridge initiative, the new Ottawa Innovation Challenge gave teams of students an opportunity to address real life business challenges facing local SMEs, over a period of only 48 hours. From this successful project another seed was planted for the Ottawa Community Challenge (OCC) which will give students an opportunity to work on social enterprise-based projects for nonprofit organizations and community associations. OCC will be implemented in 2010. Satellite kiosk offices of the Entrepreneurship Centre have been opened in two more suburban communities expanding the reach of advisory services. Two new Entrepreneur’s Edge professional development programs were also introduced in 2009.

The strategic combination of technical skills and entrepreneurial ability feeds our diverse knowledge-based industry and furthers Ottawa’s position as a leading creative economy in today’s world of limitless opportunities.

Creating an environment that is attractive to skilled talent anywhere in the world who are considering career options or relocation is a crucial element of the city’s talent recruitment approach. The city must continue to foster strong retention of new recruits to the area, as well as existing, homegrown talent. Integration, access to challenging and meaningful projects and jobs, like-minded peers and a sense of community are key elements of a broader decision to “stay” or “leave” the city. These success factors also help in the individual’s promotion of the city as a destination of choice. Rather than merely marketing Ottawa abroad, the city is well served by creating the right conditions once new talent arrives, as it is likely that individuals well established in Ottawa will be far more influential for others considering Ottawa because of their own personal experience.   

OCRI is a champion for education, working with the school boards, the universities, and the colleges to help make education more accessible to students and to improve the education experience from Kindergarten through to PhD. No other element of the local infrastructure is as integral to the ongoing growth and future success of Ottawa’s economy as the education system.  By providing critical links between the local business community and entrepreneurially-minded students eager for real-life work experience while supporting initiatives that enable students to learn at their highest potential, OCRI is helping to ensure that Ottawa is well equipped with generations of skilled and enthusiastic talent.

Specifically, we need help with a Grade 5 program called “Our Business World”  It’s a fast paced and energizing learning experience for students and it’s an opportunity for individuals and organizations to connect with schools and students to facilitate a hands-on exercise that: gets students actively involved in learning; helps students understand what running a small business is all about; and, creates awareness of and promotes entrepreneurism and business as real career options.

We need approximately 300 volunteers in order to reach our goal of 10,000 students this school year in Ottawa. In 4 easy steps, you can be part of the team.  The requirements are simple.

1)     Register:
a)    Fill out the Registration form
b)    Obtain a Police records check, then send us a copy as soon as you receive it

2)     Attend one 90 minute Train the Trainer session in either February, March or April

3)     Prep for approximately one hour prior to your volunteer day

4)     Deliver one full day (~8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.) in the classroom with a co-volunteer

In the big scheme of things for 2011, donating 9.5 hours of your time before the end of June and filling out a few forms is really no big deal for any of us but imagine the life-long impact you could have on a Grade 5 student who catches the incurable business bug this year.

If you are interested helping us turn this viral you can find more information about the program and the process here.