Collisions YYC

Most of us have the instinct to complain when we are deafened by noise pollution. For Norm and his co-founder, they had an instinct to innovate. So, they took an idea that stemmed from Harley Davidsons disturbing the peace and quiet in Naramata and turned it into Zerosound – the most scalable active noise control technology on the planet that can reduce noise by up to 92%. Join me as Norm takes us along his entrepreneurial journey, talks about Zerosound’s active noise control technology, and goes through the pros-and-cons of being a startup in Calgary during our economic transformation.

We’ve all had a big idea only to have no clue how to make it happen. So, what was Adam’s big idea? To use his tech background to bridge the gap between a big idea and a successful execution. Since then, as the Head of Technology for Aleta, Adam has provided guidance and development for start-up founders in Western Canada and North America who have a great idea but a lack of tech-savviness. Join me as Adam and I chat about many aspects of our transformation, from senior talent retraining themselves to diversify opportunities, to how work has transformed due to COVID, and some new, exciting start-ups that are calling Calgary home.

Kari got her start in marketing and business development right here in Calgary, working with a local architecture firm before entering the oil and gas sector. Once she grew weary of big business politics, Kari started her consultancy to help Calgarian tech entrepreneurs get their ideas off the ground, a venture that took her to conferences around North America. That’s when an AI start-up from New Zealand noticed Kari and lured her across the Pacific Ocean with a job. Now, since coming home to Calgary, Kari sees a lot of untapped opportunities to transform our tech and start-up cultures. Join me as Kari compares her start-up experience in Calgary to those aboard and shares her excitement in the transformation she has seen since she came home.

AI has come a long way in recent years, but it still carries a stigma. For most people, AI feels like an inevitable replacement that keeps them on their toes. But according to Jil, AI is quite the opposite. Instead, it’s a powerful tool we can use to enhance our jobs, elevate our potential, benefit our businesses, and allow us to focus on the work we want to do. Join me as Jil sets our minds at ease when it comes to AI integration from a human perspective and talks about ways that it can help us work better and drive Alberta's digital transformation.

In 2009, Megan opened espy Experience to transform the retail experience from sifting through multiple racks of clothes to having something found just for you. Since then, Megan and her team have created strong relationships with everyone that walks through their doors and helped each re-imagine themselves. So, when the world went into lockdown, how did Megan keep her in-person experience alive? By adopting the latest technologies in eCommerce and maintaining her strong relationships online. Join me as Megan shares how she embraced new technologies to pivot her business without compromising her brand and how the retail experience as we know it will be different post-COVID.

Another buzzword that’s been making the rounds is FinTech; a term that refers to innovations in the financial and technology crossover space that disrupt traditional financial methods and services. As the President & CEO of Alberta Central, an organization that serves Alberta credit unions, Ian has his finger on the innovation pulse to ensure that credit unions and their members always have the right tools to be successful. So, when he looks at FinTech, he doesn’t see a threat to how things are traditionally done. He sees an opportunity to transform credit unions and do everything better. Join me as Ian takes us through the innovations in FinTech, the opportunities that will be created as it continues to evolve, and how Alberta Central will continue to support its members by staying ahead of the curve.

Chris is a born-and-bred Calgarian and the CRO of Jolera, a multinational technology hybrid aggregate service provider (HASP) focused on delivering IT solutions for its customers and channel partners. Now, while that sounds like an interesting topic, Chris joins me for a different kind of conversation. Before we went into lockdown, Chris’s work took him to all kinds of international tech hubs, which gives him a unique perspective on the gaps and opportunities that exist around the world from the outside in. So, what’s his verdict on the global market? There’s a lot of Calgary missing in it. Join me for a good old-fashioned chat as Chris and I discuss all the things Calgary and what we need to do to break down our siloes and give the world a lot more of what we have to offer.

If you live in Calgary, you’ve more than likely seen Justin hanging around town. Not in person, obviously, but on ads for Justin Havre & Associates of RE/MAX First, one of the top and most trusted residential real estate groups in Calgary. For over 15 years, Justin has lived and breathed residential real estate in Calgary. So, naturally, I was excited to meet the guy who is plastered all over town to learn more about the digital transformation in residential real estate and to get his thoughts on the future of our city. Join me as Justin gives his perspective on residential real estate in Calgary, how his business continues to succeed and adapt to changes in the market and shares his insights on the road ahead.

As one of the founders of SkipTheDishes and the co-founder and CMO of Neo Financial, a new digital platform that gives Canadians a more rewarding spending and saving experience, Jeff can teach us a lot about start-ups, innovation and technology. But as a new Calgarian, he brings a fresh perspective on what we can do to make ourselves synonymous with new technology and to create more opportunities for innovation.

In this episode, Jeff takes us on this journey from co-founding SkipTheDishes to his current mission of re-inventing the banking industry and why he believes Western Canada can lead our country forward in innovation and in the tech space.

For nearly 20 years, Billy worked as a Chemical Engineer using a lot of technologies that originated from the 60s and 70s. Many of them improved over time, but none were innovative game-changers that kept up with the times. So, in 2015, Billy decided to shake things up, quite literally. He founded Exergy Solutions Inc., a disruptive technology-focused consultancy that offers fit-for-purpose lab-scale and pilot-scale equipment for research and innovation, including 3D Printing and Augmented and Virtual Reality. Join me as Billy talks about the disruptive technology space, its impact on the transformation of our energy sector and why it needs to happen fast so that Alberta and Western Canada can remain competitive in the international market.