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A Workplace Revolution in the Midst of the Pandemic

As COVID-19 resets how and where we do our jobs, learn how to improve morale and office culture by reorganizing your workforce and accommodating workers.

The Dragons on the New Normal for Small Business

Experts from CBC’s Dragons’ Den weigh in on how entrepreneurs and small businesses have adapted to the new normal and how Canadians can to support them.

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Powerful Tech Incubator Works to Support Black Entrepreneurs

DMZ’s Black Innovation Fellowship program provides high-impact and customized programs to help Black founders validate, build, and scale their tech startups.

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Transformation in a Time of Crisis

Business leaders believe there’s no going back to our previous normal. How does that affect business culture, and how can employees’ well-being be nurtured?

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How to Make Remote Work a Better Experience for Your Employees

ServiceNow can support your organization as you master work from home effectiveness and facilitate a safe return to the workplace.

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Small Businesses Get High Value from Samsung Tech Solutions

Innovative IT-ready mobile solutions from Samsung offer the perfect support for SMBs looking to adapt to our new normal.

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Innovation in Canada’s Entrepreneurship Community

We need to celebrate the Canadian entrepreneurs disrupting their industries and delivering innovative solutions to consumers — and we need to support them.

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5 Tips for Building A Resilient Business

Dwania Peele from Canadian Small Business Women shares top tips and resources to help you build business resilience and manage your new way of working.

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Support Canadian Manufacturing with Ontario Made

The Ontario Made program is a new searchable database is making it easy for Canadians to shop local this season and support Canadian manufacturers.

Read more »

The post New Year, New Normal appeared first on HiveInnovates.

Innovative IT-ready mobile solutions from Samsung offer the perfect support for SMBs looking to adapt to our new normal.

In a notoriously difficult year, Canadian small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) have faced innumerable hardships. From being forced to shift online to connect with customers, to transitioning employees to work-from-home environments, such challenges have highlighted the fact that when it comes to business technology adoption, many SMBs are still behind the curve.

“The need for a digital transformation has definitely accelerated due to the pandemic,” says Jennifer Safruk, Vice President, Mobile Division for Samsung Electronics Canada. “As we look ahead to the new year, adopting a mobile-first strategy can help small businesses pave a path to success and meet consumer expectations.”

Smart tech designed with SMBs in mind

Many Samsung Mobile products and features cater to SMBs, with multi-functional technology that can help them enhance their productivity and efficiency.

“SMBs’ productivity impacts their bottom line,” says Safruk. “They need reliable, adaptable tech that works in different environments to get the job done right.” A smart mobile solution like the recently-launched Galaxy Note20 5G smartphone allows employees to take their work on the go and multitask seamlessly, thanks to its advanced processor, a long-lasting battery,¹ and an S Pen to make notes or sign documents.

“SMBs also benefit from solutions that help augment their mobile ecosystem,” says Safruk. With Samsung DeX, Galaxy users can easily shift from remote working to a desktop-like environment by connecting their Galaxy device to a compatible monitor or TV.

Choosing secure and reliable devices from the start can help businesses avoid many risks. In fact, according to Statistics Canada, one fifth of businesses have experienced a cyber-security incident, 19 percent of which were small businesses. Samsung Knox helps keep your data secure and is built into all Samsung smartphones and tablets and most wearables, affording businesses better protection against intrusion, malware, and malicious threats.

As we look ahead to the new year, adopting a mobile-first strategy can help small businesses pave a path to success and meet consumer expectations.

Jennifer Safruk, Samsung Electronics Canada

Investments that work as hard as you do

The Samsung ecosystem of products and services means that your Galaxy devices integrate seamlessly, helping businesses create smart, connected workplaces that enable employees to reach their full potential — even remotely. Employees can easily navigate across PC and mobile environments through their smartphones, tablets, and wearables, helping to maximize productivity and efficiency.

“As we look ahead to 2021, we know remote working will continue to be important and business owners will need flexibility out of their tech,” says Safruk. “For small businesses and entrepreneurs, investing in mobile solutions that can meet more than one need — such as tablets that allow you to sign contracts with a stylus, provide a PC-like experience, or create an easy video conferencing experience — can help ensure that those investments work as hard as they do.”

The Samsung Galaxy Book Series of laptops packs a range of features into each powerful device and offers great tools for SMBs. Whether used for creative work, participating in video conferencing, or simply to help optimize productivity, the various options available all have a lot to offer.

By offering an innovative and interconnected ecosystem of IT-ready mobile solutions with a broad range of capabilities, Samsung provides high-tech tools for SMBs in an era of rapid change. Digital transformation is within reach, and business owners can breathe a sigh of relief.

A Clear Path to Digital Transformation

Canadian SMBs can thrive in a post-pandemic world by choosing the right tech solution providers.

Data shows that
31.4%
of SMBs have prioritized remote work technology as part of their ongoing operations.²

The world’s business leaders recognize the benefits of an open approach to using mobile.
83%
of business leaders agree their companies should focus on future-proofing their operations by increasing openness and agility.³

Sophisticated use of smartphones and tablets is already enabling greater employee performance and productivity.³

Businesses using advanced devices and apps see 15% greater productivity and 29% higher profitability than those restricting the use of mobile to basic functions such as email, calls, and scheduling.

87%
of today’s business leaders believe collaborative mobile tools will unlock the flexibility and productivity that are critical to meeting the needs of both employees and customers.³

The innovative ecosystem of products and services from Samsung can provide efficient, high-tech connected solutions that help you work smart.

¹ Based on average battery life under typical usage conditions. Average expected performance based on typical use. Actual battery life depends on factors such as network, features selected, frequency of calls and voice, data, and other application usage patterns. Results may vary.
² Business Resilience and Recovery During COVID-19, Startup Canada, 2020
³ Next Mobile Economy Whitepaper, Samsung Canada, 2019

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Abdullah Snobar

Executive Director, DMZ & CEO, DMZ Ventures

Gbemi Akande

Black Innovation Programs Lead, DMZ

The DMZ’s Black Innovation Fellowship program provides high-impact, high-intensity, and highly-customized programs to help Black founders validate, build, and scale their tech startups.

Underrepresented communities continue to face barriers in accessing lucrative entrepreneurship opportunities created by Canada’s burgeoning technology-driven innovation sector. Black entrepreneurs in particular encounter steep challenges when starting and growing a business —from accessing seed capital to having fewer publicly-recognized role models.

This is why DMZ, Ryerson University’s business incubator, joined forces with a community of founding partners — including Dream Maker Ventures, Shopify, BMO, and the Canadian Women’s Foundation— to develop the Black Innovation Fellowship (BIF) in 2019. The first-in-Canada fellowship program provides tech startups led by Black entrepreneurs with the support of a top university-based incubator network, plus additional programming, mentorship, events, and connections to industry, capital, and an alumni network.

After seeing considerable success from the first year of the Fellowship program, DMZ recognized the need to develop more tailored programming for Black founders and created a Bootcamp program for early-stage founders, as well as the Launchpad program for aspiring entrepreneurs.

Creating an environment where founders can thrive

“Black Canadians have among the lowest participation rate and are among the lowest paid in tech occupations in Canada,” says Abdullah Snobar, Executive Director of the DMZ and CEO of DMZ Ventures. “There’s clearly a gap that needs to be addressed. There’s also an unconscious bias toward Black founders when they’re meeting with venture capitalists (VCs), partners, and customers, and that needs to change.”

The DMZ created BIF to break this perpetual cycle of inequality. “The program is very much in line with what we currently do at the DMZ, which is helping build early-stage and existing tech companies,” says Snobar. “It’s about leveraging our existing core programs to help give access. That’s the key word here: access.” 

The Black Innovation Programs — from its Launchpad and Bootcamp to its more advanced Incubator and Accelerator — give Black tech founders access to best-in-class programming, high-calibre mentors, and the right connections to industry and capital. 

“To participate, startups should have at least one full-time founder who identifies as Black and a business idea that solves a compelling problem using technology,” says Gbemi Akande, Black Innovation Programs Lead of the DMZ Accelerator. “We also look for their coachability and willingness to be collaborative.”

Moving from challenges to opportunities

Zeze Peters

Founder & CEO, Beam.city

Despite regularly attending angel investor meetings and business networking events, Zeze Peters, a serial entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of Beam.city — a company that provides an all-in-one ad automation and AI optimization platform — wasn’t getting any traction. “People would pre-emptively dismiss me before learning a single thing about my company or my background,” he says.

Farah Brunache

Founder & CEO, Lagatos

“As Black entrepreneurs, we have the same issues as other entrepreneurs, but we have these additional layers, too,” says Farah Brunache, a BIF participant and the founder and CEO of Lagatos, a company that increases internet access via a web browser that turns computers into servers. “One of my biggest challenges as a Black entrepreneur is being over-mentored and under-funded,” she says.

BIF helps Black founders overcome these challenges. “I’ve had a great experience with the BIF program, and I attribute a lot of that to the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EiRs),” says Brunache. EiRs are subject matter experts who advise participants on sales process, revenue growth, product design, pitch coaching, and more.

Edgar Brown

Co-Founder & CEO, FitDrive
 

Participants also benefit from connections to investors and extensive resources. “We consulted with the Professionals-in-Residence on multiple occasions,” says Edgar Brown, co-founder and CEO of FitDrive, an app designed for personal trainers and fitness business owners. “This was super helpful to help us think about intellectual property, founders’ agreements, filing business taxes, and more.”

The importance of funding and supporting Black tech entrepreneurs

BIF participants are seeing tangible results. Brunache went through 13 product iterations and now has paying customers. “Since we joined the DMZ, our team has grown 60% and our revenue rate has grown a few hundred percent,” says Peters. “For our team, we’ve experienced 20% month-over-month growth while in the program,” says Brown. 

Supporting Black founders is an essential initiative that needs to continue. “You’re getting unique attempts at solving familiar and unfamiliar problems that have extremely high potential of really disrupting industries,” says Peters. 

 “We’re a huge part of the global population, which means that we’re not all the same,” notes Brunache. “It’s a huge marketing opportunity of people who aren’t being addressed directly and there are entrepreneurs who have unique insights into these markets. Supporting Black entrepreneurs is essentially supporting everyone in the world.”

A Black in Canada survey found only 2,000 Black-owned businesses of significant scale. In addition, only 1 in 8 (12%) of small- and medium-sized businesses are owned by a visible minority.

According to the survey, Black entrepreneurs say their biggest challenges are marketing (51%), networking and learning opportunities (51%), and finance (48%).

In 2018, only 1% of VC dollars went to Black founders, while Black women-backed ventures received a mere 0.2% of all VC funding.

Black Canadians have among the lowest participation rates in tech occupations and are among the lowest-paid groups at Canadian tech companies.

Recognizing that there was a gap in support specifically for Black founders, DMZ launched the Black Innovation Programs. It intends to make an impact and see growth in the number of tech companies that are owned by Black entrepreneurs.

The program’s goal is to equip Black founders and aspiring entrepreneurs with the skills and tools needed to thrive, regardless of their stage of growth. DMZ offers hands-on programming, support, and mentorship in areas of sales, product, tech, marketing, hiring, business strategy, CEO leadership, training, and so much more.

DMZ works to help foster a diverse and inclusive Canadian innovation ecosystem. If we continue to ignore the blind spots where racism exists in tech and don’t make conscious intentions to create equitable opportunities for underrepresented founders, our economy will suffer long-lasting effects.

The post Powerful Tech Incubator Works to Support Black Entrepreneurs appeared first on HiveInnovates.

Society is in the midst of a modern-day workplace revolution as COVID-19 completely resets how and where we do our jobs.

What started as a short-term reaction to the pandemic is quickly becoming a long-term shift for many organizations. Flexible work arrangements are likely to be a permanent feature in the future of work. Those already on or beginning their journey of redefining the future of work must consider many factors. 

Reorganizing the workforce in a way that makes sense

Old-school attitudes about productivity continue to persist. A recent EY survey found that 55 percent of organizations believe remote workers are less productive than their in-office counterparts. Remote workers may be juggling personal and professional demands — especially if they have children or aging relatives requiring care at home — so what’s important to measure are deliverables rather than traditional measures of productivity. Leaders should assign clearly-defined tasks and communicate regularly with employees to see if they’re struggling. 

As the pandemic stretches on, organizations must also assess who truly needs to return to the office. Assessing employees’ current responsibilities will help determine which employees should return — for example, employees who are client-facing or who need access to in-office systems and data. If a job must be performed at the office, then the reasons should be clearly communicated to the employee. Otherwise, many workers will expect flexible work arrangements to continue.

Leaders need to be in close virtual proximity to drive greater empathy and support.

Accommodating workers and creating a positive culture

Businesses must also listen to their staff about where they feel most productive and take steps to accommodate them. Each worker is different, and some employees may long to return to the office. If so, organizations can consider hot desking — multiple workers using a single physical workstation during different time periods — while ensuring sanitation and safety protocols are strictly followed. Otherwise, they’ll need to increase office space to allow for physical distancing and to ensure employees’ health and safety.

Workplace culture is another important consideration. It can be tough to build bonds and culture when people are working remotely, but it is possible. Companies must communicate regularly and ensure they’re keeping people engaged. Leaders need to be in close virtual proximity to drive greater empathy and support. In the recent EY survey, a large majority of employers — 75 percent — said they intended to create moderate to extensive changes to professional learning and skills development. Equipping managers and employees with the right skills to be productive in a remote environment, and with access to educational resources to respond to future changes, is a keen focus.

These types of efforts are likely to build positive morale and improve office culture, which can also play a key role in attracting talent. In the new normal, companies that become adaptable are more likely to become those that thrive.

The post A Workplace Revolution in the Midst of the Pandemic appeared first on HiveInnovates.

As the COVID-19 pandemic progresses, it’s vital to celebrate the Canadian entrepreneurs who are disrupting their industries and delivering thoughtful, innovative solutions to consumers. However, it’s equally important to support these entrepreneurs through the current crisis and collectively empower them to thrive.             

Startups helping Canadians

Adversity is fuelling innovation in Canada’s entrepreneurial landscape despite the pandemic. These innovations have resulted in a number of new tools that are helping consumers navigate the pandemic, such as:  

• VitalTracer, co-founded by Azadeh Dastmalchi, launched a medical-grade smartwatch that continuously measures all vital signs and provides cardiac monitoring, while also serving as an early-stage COVID-19 prediction solution.
   
• Canamasq, co-founded by Audra Renyi, is a transparent face mask that allows people with hearing disabilities to read lips and see facial expressions.
   

Adversity is fuelling innovation in Canada’s entrepreneurial landscape despite the pandemic.

Tools and resources for entrepreneurs

Across the country, individuals and organizations have been working to promote and empower entrepreneurs, their employees, and Canada’s collective startup community. 

Amid growing mental health concerns, platforms like Snap Clarity have pivoted to provide specialized COVID-19 mental health resources for entrepreneurs. Acknowledging the growing importance of local networks, Startup Canada’s Communities program supports the connectivity and promotion of healthy entrepreneur-led communities across the country. Startup Canada also offers a number of supports for underrepresented entrepreneurs, including resource guides for women and Indigenous founders, the THRIVE Podcast for Women Entrepreneurs, and weekly Twitter-based #StartupChats, as well as unannounced 2021 programming.  

The post Innovation in Canada’s Entrepreneurship Community appeared first on HiveInnovates.

If a business didn’t have a digital presence before the pandemic, it more than likely has one now. In fact, Salesforce estimates that the pandemic has led to 10 years’ worth of e-commerce adoption in the past 10 months. Crises, it’s often said, inevitably have a transformative effect on those experiencing them. This applies no less to businesses as it does to societies and individuals.

Today, a consensus among business leaders has emerged. They believe there’s no going back to what we knew as normal. For example, remote work is with us to stay even after the recovery. How does that affect business culture and budgets for remote productivity tools? What do we need from our digital infrastructure to cope with the extra demands of remote work? As work-life integration has accelerated on an exponential scale during the pandemic, so too has the importance of ensuring and nurturing the well-being and mental health of our employees.

As work-life integration has accelerated on an exponential scale during the pandemic, so too has the importance of ensuring and nurturing the well-being and mental health of our employees.

Unique challenges faced by small businesses

For small businesses, adaptation at scale is more challenging in terms of resources, cost, and technical expertise. How will Canada, asa whole, help its national economic engine rise to meet these unique challenges? Small businesses need different tools and resources than medium-sized businesses. How do we create specific solutions for each group?

The pandemic has left profound economic scars upon the Canadian economy, and indeed, the global economy. Looking forward, there are no easy answers. Canada must be bold and innovative, and must avoid the temptation to seek comfortable solutions in an increasingly uncomfortable world.

The post Transformation in a Time of Crisis appeared first on HiveInnovates.

For generations, Canadian manufacturers have designed, created, and assembled innovative products, such as cars, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, technology, clothing, and more, right here, every day. Manufactured goods, parts, components, ingredients, and materials are what we sell to the world with pride. 

It’s now more important than ever before to support local. Buying Canadian-made products supports Canadian companies and their workers. This helps grow the economy, feeding money back into the services we rely on as Canadians, like school, roads, and health care.

Rather than asking what’s made in Canada, the question has now become: why aren’t more things made in Canada? Consumers want to know what they can buy that’s made in Canada. For Ontario in particular, nearly 75% of Ontarians are looking to buy locally manufactured goods over imported ones.

Shopping Ontario Made has never been easier

In partnership with the Ontario government, Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME) created the Ontario Made program — a free branding opportunity to promote the many world-class goods that are made across Ontario by helping consumers identify Ontario Made products, celebrate what is Ontario Made, and support the purchase of Ontario Made products.

Since the program’s inception in July, CME has worked tirelessly to spread the word about Ontario Made. To date, over 1,500 manufacturers have registered over 6,000 products. The program has had companies of all shapes and sizes register their products across a wide variety of industries — including beauty and personal care, clothing and accessories, construction and home renovations, food and beverage, health and medical, technology, and more — showcasing the diversity and depth of all different sectors of manufacturing.

Wanting to buy locally-produced goods is one thing — being able to find these products creates a new challenge. This is where Ontario Made’s searchable consumer database comes into play. The database allows consumers to search across different product categories, search using keywords to find any product type, and discover where to purchase these products. 

Celebrating manufacturing from coast to coast to coast

Although focused on Ontario-made goods, the program is a celebration of Canadian manufacturing. As we’re stronger together, the Ontario Made program can be used as a model for other provinces to replicate and raise awareness of manufactured goods made in their own backyards. 

Governments must begin to shift focus to expanding sales of Canadian-made products at home and abroad through a Made in Canada campaign. This Manufactured Right Here strategy shouldn’t be viewed as trade restrictive, but rather aimed at providing access to better information when making their purchasing decisions. 

Canada has a tremendous opportunity to reshape our economic landscape and future prosperity over the coming months. It’s time for us to stand up and celebrate Canadian manufacturers and Canada Made products.

The post Support Canadian Manufacturing with Ontario Made appeared first on HiveInnovates.

Having just filmed season 15 of Dragons’ Den, how did you see entrepreneurs adapt to the new normal?

Lane Merrifield

We definitely had a very different season this year. First of all, there are a lot more entrepreneurs out there. This pandemic has forced a change in so many people’s lives and we saw that in the Den. We saw a lot more people, story after story, saying, “This an idea I’ve thought about for years, this is something I’ve wanted to do for years, and I finally had the time, the ability, and the space to take it on.”

Jim Treliving

Everyone who came in the Den was a reflection of having had time to think and look at their life in a different way — that’s the biggest change I felt.

Michele Romanow

The world has done a whole 180 on us! This year, we’ve seen entrepreneurs being more adaptive and resilient than ever.

Manjit Minhas

Canadian entrepreneurs have pivoted and adapted with new strategies to not only survive but to thrive. Many are creating new products using existing supply chains to serve their existing customers and finding new customers in creative ways.

Arlene Dickinson

What makes entrepreneurs special is that they see opportunities where everyone else sees obstacles. Entrepreneurs are problem-solvers, so they’re often undaunted — and even excited — by problems.

Vincenzo Guzzo

If I look back to past seasons, entrepreneurs were simply pitching their idea or product. Now entrepreneurs are pitching their idea, how they’ve adapted for today, and how they’re going to adapt for tomorrow.

Why is it important for people to continue supporting and investing in small businesses? 

Michele

Over 40% of Canada’s GDP is from small businesses. Small businesses are the backbone of the economy and our communities.

Jim

The backbone that we’ve got is now changing daily. Big isn’t necessarily the best anymore. It’s something you have to look at and ask, “Is smaller better?”

Lane

Entrepreneurs are on the bleeding edge. They’re the innovators. They’re the job creators in times like these, when our world is rapidly shifting and when the solutions that have worked for decades no longer work.

Vincenzo

When you’re small, you’re an idea-minded business. As a corporation becomes bigger, there are efficiencies in those sizes but there are inefficiencies when it comes to innovation. Without small businesses and without entrepreneurship, the economic development of a country is stale.

Manjit

Small businesses are important to the economic and social fabric of our society, and we all play a part in their survival. When you shop local, your dollars stay in the community and help local development. This is called the multiplier effect.

Arlene

Think about the restaurants, clothing stores, coffee shops, art galleries, and all the other small businesses that make up the fabric of our communities and add to the rhythms of our daily lives. Lots of these places are at real risk of not surviving the winter. Now is not the time to be shy — call the places you love, the places you picture yourself when this is all over, and ask what you can buy from them now.

What are some of the key challenges your own industries have faced, and how are you working to overcome them?

Jim

For restaurants, the most important aspect is to make businesses the safest they can be in these times. People still want to get out and socialize but they want to feel safe when they’re there. First, we have to make sure our employees are safe when coming to work and secondly, that the guests are as safe as possible when coming in. Ultimately, we must make sure we’re ready for anything that can be thrown at us. For example, with takeout and delivery, many restaurants didn’t offer this or had to make their existing system better. Restaurants have had to change direction to stay alive.

Michele

Clearbanc was an entirely in-office team. You could feel the energy when you stepped through the doors. Being together was a big part of our culture — being able to have random encounters that generated new ideas and solving problems in-person allowed us to grow quickly. It’s been difficult to replicate that virtually since we’ve transitioned to a fully-digital workforce. We have three regular all-company calls to try and replicate it!

Arlene

Marketing and communications are always contingent on the success of the companies we work for — if they’re hurting, we’re hurting. If revenue falls, that might mean cutting spending in ads or content creation. I get it, when your company takes a 20% hit, it’s hard to spend money on a commercial. But on the flip side, communication is even more important during a crisis. We’ve seen the most-successful businesses come out strong during COVID-19 and really get the message across — messages of new services, improved products, and enhanced safety measures. The challenge for us is to work with our partners to create a great strategy and creative that addresses the current climate, but also looks ahead and creates brand affinity for years to come.

Vincenzo

For the movie business, it’s just a matter of time. Every pandemic, every war, every socially-shifting event has created a return to going to the movies. The truth of the matter is that the first thing people will do — “once the war is over,” as I call it — is wanting to go out and re-socialize. That re-socializing will look different, but people will go back to the movies, they’ll go back to restaurants, and we’ll get a natural upswing from being unconfined.

What surprising changes or opportunities in the business landscape have you seen during the pandemic?

Arlene

I think the most surprising thing is how many Canadians are making the best of a bad situation. People who have been laid off, and maybe have had an idea for a business percolating for years — they’re using their time to form business plans.

Manjit

When a new normal begins to unfold, customers discover new needs and we’re all open to trying alternative ways of doing things. In turn, innovation is accelerated and strong companies will emerge even stronger. And for small businesses, this is a moment to take advantage of your innate flexibility. It feels counterintuitive, but I firmly believe there are great opportunities now in all industries — it’s about how agile you are and how quick you can pivot for the future.

Michele

We’ve seen e-commerce absolutely surge from 14% to 28% of retail sales. It’s an incredible time to digitize your business. Clearbanc has now backed more than 3,300 e-commerce companies with over $1 billion and has continued to as the e-commerce sector has continued to grow.

Lane

Moments like these, whether it’s been the World Wars of the past or the pandemics of the current, have always been an instrument for radical change. It moves us from evolutionary businesses to revolutionary businesses. Instead of just trying to reinvent the wheel or create a better mousetrap, we’re having to build a brand-new trap that has nothing to do with mice.

What advice do you have for business owners who want to future-proof their operations?

Arlene

Don’t be reactive, be creative! Entrepreneurs need to be flexible and change with the times, of course, but they also need to shape the times. At the beginning of the pandemic, I saw plenty of businesses scrambling to fill the gaps in their digital offerings, and a lot of them failed to do so effectively. Others got it immediately. I saw it as a difference in mindset — the companies that were already trying to figure out better ways to do business before the pandemic were the ones that were able to adapt the quickest.

Michele

A digital presence is critical today. We’ve all living in a world now where you can’t meet your customers face to face. It’s so important to switch your focus and be thoughtful about creating a special experience online.

Manjit

• Don’t depend on one part of your business for complete success. You must think about other ways to diversify your product portfolio.

• Identify and start managing risks. You won’t be able to predict the problems that might occur in future, but you can certainly take some steps to better prepare yourself. You need to find the risks or possible points of failures for your business. These risks could be in areas like people, system or business processes, legal compliance, or data security.

• Listen to customers and observe their behaviour. Business owners are normally so busy with product development and sales that they completely forget their main stakeholder — the customer. In order to future proof your business, you should start focusing on the changes in customer behaviour that might happen in the near future.

• Watch for influencing factors surrounding your business. If you really want to future-proof your business, you need to keep an eye on your surroundings. You must make yourself aware of the developments happening around you even if they aren’t related to your industry.

• Create a favourable environment for innovation. You can’t always win by following the leaders — at one point, you must innovate to stay ahead of the game. Innovation isn’t easy and you might fail several times but once you hit the bull’s eye, you’ll leap ahead of your competition. To foster the culture of innovation, you need to create a favourable environment for it.

Lane

We’re in an era of major revolution when it comes to the workforce, how we manage the workforce, the latitudes we give, how we measure productivity, and how we return that time back to the employee.

Ask yourself: what are you doing to support the changing needs of your employees? How are you changing your policies as a company in order to adapt? How are you changing as a leader and leading differently than you were a year ago? I’m constantly asking myself all of these questions as well because it’s one thing to say, “We’re going to change our revenue model and we’re going to sell our product this way instead of that way.” However, if that’s the only thing you’re looking at, you’re missing major elements of health that need to be addressed in a company.

Vincenzo

I think the most important thing that people need to remember is to not beat yourself up too much over this. Nobody thought a pandemic was going to happen and many didn’t plan for this so the fact that you weren’t ready is okay. Don’t panic, keep a cool head, and manage the burn rate!

The post The Dragons on the New Normal for Small Business appeared first on HiveInnovates.

Dwania Peele from Canadian Small Business Women shares top tips and resources to you help build business resilience and manage your new way of working.

“Being an entrepreneur is hard work”. Is that a statement that you’ve heard a lot? I find that most often, entrepreneurs will share the “fun” stuff — you can be your own boss, set your own hours, and hire your own staff. It’s true. You can be and do all those things, but you must also be ready to roll up your sleeves and put in the work necessary to succeed. The #EntrepreneurLife can be whatever you make it — even during a pandemic like COVID-19.

The past 10 months have been challenging for some entrepreneurs and a blessing for others. Despite their experiences, the one certainty is that we all learned valuable lessons. At Canadian Small Business Women, we were forced to analyze our systems and find new resources to help us excel. We also used this time to interact closely with businesses across different sectors and locales to get a grasp of their challenges, their wins, and what methods they used to pivot to success. There was also an incredible number of women who decided to use this moment to take that step into business ownership and soar.

In the spirit of success, let’s share some of our favorite tips and resources to help build business resilience and manage your new way of working.

Implement fluid systems

The businesses that soared during the pandemic were ones with processes that could quickly change to suit the new needs of their audience during a crisis. As small businesses, many of us didn’t have a pandemic plan or even the knowledge of what a business continuity plan was. What most of us did have was the power to change quickly to adapt to the pandemic. Most of us pivoted to an online model in a matter of weeks. Take note of the processes you put in place and test the rigidity or fluidity of the processes before implementation.

Internship and co-op programs

Many schools are opening virtual internship and co-op opportunities for their students. With the need to be in a physical space waived, the opportunities are endless in this space. It’s a cost-saver for the employer and a great way to increase diversity in your team. You can have team members represented by different countries who can bring fresh ideas and a new set of skills to your organization.

Government assistance programs for small businesses

The Government of Canada has launched many funding initiatives geared to small businesses over the past 10 months. Sometimes it can be difficult to ascertain what pertains to you and your business and if you meet the qualifications for funding. Resources can be found via organizations such as BDC, EDC, Futurpreneur, FedDev Ontario, Office of Small and Medium Enterprises or just by making a quick phone call to your local MP.

Say yes to unique opportunities

The world is open to you. With the majority of events being hosted virtually and most publications introducing virtual options, it’s the perfect time to flex your speaking and writing muscles. Start by making inquiries to your local publications to see if they need contributors. Consider publications, podcasts, and events that you would love to be a part of. Don’t put yourself in a box and only list those in your city. The world is now open to you!

Automate your day

Spend some time to streamline your processes. With new digital products being released daily, the competition for your subscription is high. Take advantage of free trials and discounted rates to see how new products can help streamline your day. There are automatic social media schedulers, email marketing campaigns, on-line shopping portals, and virtual assistants to name a few.

Here are some of my favourite tools:

• Business Planning: Google Workspace, Shopify, Constant Contact, Buffer, Tailwind, Asana, Canva
• Instant Messaging: WhatsApp, Slack, WeChat
• Conferencing Platforms: Hopin, Zoom, Microsoft Teams
   

Dwania Peele is the Owner and Executive Director of Canadian Small Business Women. A lover of entrepreneurship, volunteering, and networking, Dwania strives to inspire aspiring and current entrepreneurs in Canada. In 2013, Canadian Small Business Women began serving as a platform for aspiring and current small business women of Canada. Dwania continues to make an impact by appearing as a guest speaker at various entrepreneur events and by guest appearances on panels across Ontario to provide valuable insight to those in need. Dwania also champions the success of immigrant entrepreneurs, which is reflected in her new book, The Power Within: Inspiring Stories of Female Immigrant Entrepreneurs.

The post 5 Tips for Building A Resilient Business appeared first on HiveInnovates.

When COVID-19 forced Canadians to start working from home, many thought it was a short-term solution. However, a recent survey reveals that most Canadians have new expectations about the future of work, and those expectations are all about choice and flexibility.

Many Canadians don’t want to work from home permanently, but they don’t want to return to the office full-time either. The Work from Home Productivity Study by ServiceNow, a leader in workplace digital transformation, found that 89 percent of Canadian office workers want to continue working from home after the pandemic is over, for nearly two thirds of the time — about 14 business days per month. 

But whether it’s technology barriers or caring for others, staying productive while working from home isn’t always easy. Remote work creates a greater need for support from employers, yet nearly half of Canadians say their employer has a lot to learn when it comes to setting staff up to work remotely. The good news is that employers have an opportunity to meet some of these challenges directly, to keep productivity — and spirits — high.

“Initiatives like reimbursement programs for office supplies are key to helping staff succeed remotely,” says Marc LeCuyer, General Manager of ServiceNow. “But productivity is about more than just checking items off the to-do list. Employers need to find ways to keep their company culture alive too if they want their teams to feel motivated.”

Digital experiences matter to Canadians

While technology is critical to enabling work and connecting employees to their colleagues, more than a third of Canadian employees say their biggest barrier to productivity is tech issues. A quarter feel they would be more productive with access to software that enables communication, collaboration, workflow management, HR technology, and remote onboarding.

Offering the right technology — plus benefits like flexible hours — can go a long way towards making employees comfortable, according to LeCuyer. 

“While employers may be intimidated by the upfront cost and myriad options available when it comes to tech solutions, they need to engage their HR and IT departments to solve these gaps in the employee experience,” says LeCuyer. “It’s a business challenge that employers in every industry need to consider right now.”

As companies manage the return to work, they’ll need the right tools to support health and safety, and to make ongoing remote work successful. ServiceNow can support your organization as you master work-from-home effectiveness and facilitate a safe return to the workplace — whenever and however that happens.

The post How to Make Remote Work a Better Experience for Your Employees appeared first on HiveInnovates.