Flagship Podcast

On this week’s show, we spoke with Jimmy Soni,  Author & Speechwriter. This is a special show celebrating the 200th episode of this podcast. 

Jimmy Soni is an American author and former managing editor of The Huffington Post. He is best known for A Mind at Play, his biography of Claude Shannon and The Founders: The Story of Paypal and the Entrepreneurs Who Shaped Silicon Valley.

Soni became the managing editor at The Huffington Post in January 2012. Previously he had worked as a strategy consultant at McKinsey and Company, as well as a speech writer at the office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia. In 2012, Soni was named to AdWeek's "Young Influentials", a list of 20 people under 40 "who are wicked smart and rebooting your world". He was featured at a TEDx event held at Duke University in March 2012.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• His amazing book The Founders
• The great man theory of history 
• How he became interested in the story of PayPal
• The many lessons from studying and writing the book
• His strategy for interviewing successful and busy people

I’m thrilled that Jimmy took the time. His book is a must read.  I hope that you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week’s show, we spoke with Daniel Armali, Principal @ Amplify Capital

Prior to joining Amplify Capital, Daniel worked for Canada's largest venture capital investor. Daniel started his career working for fortune 500 technology companies including Microsoft, OpenText and comScore, before moving into a capital markets role with the Bank of Canada, spending time working in asset management on the Bank of Canada pension plan as well as the financial markets department of the Bank of Canada that is responsible for the foreign reserves portfolio and domestic debt portfolio. Daniel also spent time doing a consulting mandate at Rio Tinto Alcan during his MBA. Prior to joining Amplify Capital, Daniel spent nearly seven years with the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) supporting venture capital investments in direct companies, as well as Funds, and Funds of Funds. Daniel has held a number of board roles in Canada. Daniel has an undergraduate degree from Wilfrid Laurier University, an MBA from HEC Montreal, and has successfully completed all three levels of the CFA program.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• Defining impact investing
• Amplify Capital’s investment thesis
• Demystifying ESG 
• Tariq Fancy’s take on ESG
• Deep tech’s unique advantage
• Measuring outputs and outcomes 

I really enjoyed learning from Daniel about the interesting field of impact investing. I hope that you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week’s show, we spoke with Bertrand Nepveu, Co-Founding Partner @ Triptyq Capital.

Bertrand has spent his entire career working in the field of computer science and microelectronics. From a very young age, he knew that he wanted to be an entrepreneur like his grandfather and change the world. Hardcore gamer since Donkey Kong on the ColecoVision, he became obsessed with virtual reality when he tried the Power Glove on the Nintendo Entertainment System. As an early adopter and gadget lover, he founded Vrvana in 2005 in order to fulfill his dream of improving the gaming experience by bringing the user inside the game. Geek at heart, he gathered the best and brightest in Montreal to create the ultimate mixed-reality headset, which won “Tom’s Hardware” Best in Show at CES 2017. In September 2017, Vrvana decided to continue the adventure alongside Apple and Bertrand moved in California and worked for Apple for more than three years. Bertrand holds a Computer Engineering degree from the Université de Sherbrooke and an MBA from HEC Montréal.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• The endless possibilities of the metaverse
• Selling Vrvana to Apple
• How people can shape technology 
• How the metaverse can have a positive impact
• Starting an investment fund focused on entertainment startups

Bertrand is one of the most innovative minds in the country. I was lucky enough to  visit the future with him during this conversation. 

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week’s show, we spoke with Liette Lamonde, Managing Director @ Startup Montréal

She was the Executive director of Montréal inc., an organization with the mission to guide young Montréal entrepreneurs down the path to success. She has been an active player in the world of philanthropy since 2004 when she was appointed CEO of the Fondation Montréal. Liette is also the co-founder of Bonjour Startup Montréal, an organization created in collaboration with OSMO, to encourage connections between all players within the startup community. 

On the show, we spoke about: 

• Building a community for startups in Montreal
• Taking over the role of managing director of Bonjour Startup
• The art of bringing people together
• Merging Montreal Inc and Bonjour Startup
• Fundamental values she built into her organization

Liette is driven and passionate about entrepreneurship and it really shows. I hope that you enjoy the conversation.

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week’s show, we spoke with Lucas Martinez, Co-Founder & Co-CEO @ Talent.com.

Lucas Martínez is the co-founder and co-CEO of Talent.com, a job search platform that aims to connect the world to work. The son of Spanish immigrants living in Switzerland, Martínez had the travel bug early in life and was always eager to experience new cultures, people, and places. Before founding Talent.com, Martínez worked as an ERP consultant as well as in Software Sales in North America, Europe, APAC and the Middle East. During his graduate studies in Geneva, he met his fellow co-founder Maxime Droux, who was already friends with their third partner, Benjamin Philion. Martínez then moved to Montreal in 2011 to start the company with his partners and spent the next ten years growing the business from a small start-up to the global $150M enterprise it is today. Martínez now lives in Barcelona with his wife and three children.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• Talent.com’s latest fundraise of $150M
• Ten years of work to make an overnight success
• Transforming the job board and recruitment industry 
• Lucas’ vision for the product 
• Going after the SMB vs. the enterprise market
• Approaching everything with a beginner’s mindset 

I’m lucky to have worked with Lucas and his team and I have to say that they are exceptional. I hope that you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week’s show, we spoke with Richard Chenier, CEO @ Centech

At the head of Centech, one of the most successful university incubators in the world according to UBI-Global, Richard occupies an important place in the Montreal and Canadian startup ecosystem. Dedicated to the development of high technologies through entrepreneurship, it is located at the crossroads of innovative start-ups with high growth potential from science and engineering. In addition, Richard collaborates with the Institut du leadership en gestion and offers his expertise in optimizing the contribution of teams. In the past, he also held positions related to organizational development where he trained and advised more than 10,000 managers in hundreds of organizations. He was also named among the 50 Quebecers who make the extraordinary in 2018 by Urbania magazine and in 2021 received the award for excellence in management - innovation component by the Réseau des Universités du Québec.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• What makes a successful accelerator
• The number one KPI for startups
• Talent density and competition for entrepreneurs 
• The importance of urgency 
• Learning from successes as well as failures

Richard is modest yet has built one of the world’s most important startups accelerators. If you are interested in startups, don’t miss this episode.

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week’s show, we spoke with Melissa Allen, Executive Director @ League of Innovators | Venture Partner @ LOI Ventures

Melissa Allen is the Executive Director of the League of Innovators, a national charity that empowers the next generation of entrepreneurs. Melissa began her career in sales and marketing at tech companies such as Torstar Digital and Google, before pivoting to an award-winning career in wealth management. Combining her love of tech and finance, Melissa became an angel investor in 2019 and is passionate about creating more accessibility and representation in the tech and venture capital industry, which in her opinion ultimately benefits everyone.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• How  Melissa got into venture
• The vision behind League of Innovators
• Helping student achieve their dreams
• Starting a small venture fund and her thesis

It was a blast catching up with Melissa after a few years. She is mission driven and her passion was evident during the interview. 

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week’s show, we spoke with Marc Boscher, Founder & CEO @ Unito. 

Marc Boscher is the founder and CEO of Unito, a workflow management solution that allows you to build, optimize, and track workflows across tools, teams, and entire organizations. Marc has been building businesses since he was 19, and was a founding team member of three other technology startups in the medical and digital signage spaces, leading product and technology, before starting Unito.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• How Marc approaches salary & compensation
• Growth and scaling Unito
• Company culture as a moat 
• Confronting the fear of change 
• Unito’s pillars of community, growth and transparency 

I really enjoyed learning from Marc and his philosophy on company building. I hope that you enjoy the conversation! 

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week’s show, we spoke with Mia Morisset, VP Growth Equity @ iNovia Capital 

Mia Morisset joined Inovia Capital in September 2018 in the Montreal office, with a mandate to continue strengthening the Inovia ecosystem in Quebec and support Partners in identifying late stage investment opportunities. Since joining, Mia was actively involved in Inovia's investments in AlayaCare, Hopper and WorkJam. Prior to joining Inovia, Mia worked at PSP Investments in the Private Equity Direct team at both the Montreal and London offices. She also had worked as a management consultant at Roland Berger in the Montreal and Paris offices. Mia graduated with honours from McGill University in 2013 with a Bachelor in Commerce.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• How she thinks about unit economics 
• Building a defensive moat 
• Functional expertise at iNovia 
• Productivity in healthcare 

I had a blast learning from Mia. I hope that you enjoy the conversation.

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

On this week’s show, we spoke with Mohannad El-Barachi, Co-Founder & CEO @ Wrk

Mohannad El-Barachi is an Egyptian-born tech-entrepreneur, investor, executive, and business strategist. After moving to Montreal at the age of 7, he went on to graduate with a university degree in Computer Science and Political Science before taking on various executive positions in the tech and telecom industries. His experience spans multi industries and disciplines including the launch of multiple successful businesses and product lines in the automotive, telecom, and digital marketing industries. Most recently, he co-founded and led as CEO SweetIQ Analytics Corp., a digital marketing platform helping multi-location brands and marketing agencies increase in-store foot traffic via local search. In April 2017, after raising millions of dollars in VC funding and driving the company’s four consecutive years of +300% growth, he led the company to its acquisition by Gannett, owners of USA TODAY!, a multi-billion dollar publicly traded news and media company (NYSE: GCI). Today, Mohannad is a strategic advisor and investor in several technology companies and venture capital firms.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• How Mo thinks about risk 
• The importance of creating a sense of urgency and how it can help strategically
• Why he started Wrk (hint: it’s making a big impact) 
• WrK’s ambitious mission 
• Human creativity triumphing over machines 
• Their huge $55M and his plans to scale 

Mo is a world-class entrepreneur and is only getting started with his current company. I took away a bunch of great lessons after speaking with him and I hope that you do as well.

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would you like to see on the show?  What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]

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