Flagship Podcast

On this week’s show, we spoke with Raymond Luk, Founder & CEO @ Hockeystick. Raymond is a serial entrepreneur and investor. He is the founder of Hockeystick (a matchmaking system for startups and funders), Flow Ventures (a financial consultancy for startups), Year One Labs (an early-stage micro-VC fund), and others. He is passionate about entrepreneurship and removing barriers to raising capital through technology. He lives in Toronto with his wife who is a fashion entrepreneur.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• How he started companies at a young age
• Needing confidence and capital 
• The Canadian ecosystem developed over the years
• How Hockeystick connects startups with funders
• Managing his attention and time
• The importance of the pitch deck

Raymond has been in the game for a long time and his experience shone through during the interview. 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 Christine Dupuis, VP of Product @ Heyday 

She is a passionate product and people leader with a track record of developing data-based strategies and driving measurable product growth and team engagement.

Well-known for being analytical, structured and adaptable, she brings together the best of my varied and global experiences (Google, McKinsey, Nonprofits, Start-ups) to motivate teams and drive execution.

Her personal mission is to equalize the field -- whether it's mentoring women in tech, or helping small businesses compete with giants. She is passionate about topics which relate to democratizing access to education and information.

Recently, she co-founded APM Montreal, a community-based training program which aims to make product management more accessible for people of all backgrounds, based on the highly successful APM Toronto program. 

On the show, we spoke about: 

• The role of a product manager
• Best practices for understanding the role 
• Leaving Silicon Valley and working for HeyDay
• The opportunities at HubSpot after the acquisition

Christine is so smart and yet humble. If you are interested in product management, you have to check out 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 David Nadezhdin, Co-Founder & CEO @ MYR. 

David Nadezhdin is a tech monkey. With over 15 years of experience, David is intimately familiar with all aspects of a project from concept to execution. Currently David is working on Master Your Rush (MYR), a point of sale company tailored for the limited-service restaurant industry. Previously he founded and operated a medical device company in the field of cardiology which holds today a very broad utility patent and a manufacturable Automatic Contactless ECG user experience prototype. David also serves as a board member of The Humanitarian University (humanitarianu.com), an online university dedicated to preparing first responders for humanitarian disasters around the world.

On this week’s show, we spoke with Zach Laberge, Founder & CEO @ Frenter

Zach is the 15-year-old founder and CEO of Frenter. He founded his first startup at the age of 10, an electronics e-commerce startup off Alibaba. At 12 he founded Bernie's Biscuits, an online dog treat e-commerce startup based on his dog Bernie who had 5k followers on Instagram at the time.

At 14 he founded frenter, an online rental community that has since grown to thousands of users and thousands of items listed in 8 cities across Canada. 

He has also founded other startups in the Blockchain, Fashion and Cryptocurrency space all of which he’s learned valuable lessons from that he’s been able to bring into my other business and he’s the youngest founder to join Newchip Accelerator and Propel ICT.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• Why he’s starting companies at an early age
• His sources of inspiration
• How he fell in love with the sharing economy
• Pivoting Frenter and their revised vision

I really enjoyed my conversation with Zach. He’s wise beyond years and I’m excited to follow his journey. 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 Valerie Pisano, President & CEO @ MILA. 

Valérie Pisano has over 10 years of experience in talent, leadership, diversity and organizational dynamics. Appointed CEO of Mila – Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute – she joins an emerging group of women leading tech companies. She was previously Chief Talent Officer at Cirque du Soleil and cofounded The Mobïus Bias Project, an initiative focused accelerating the dialogue on female leadership roles by exploring unconscious bias. She began her career at McKinsey & Company after a Master Degree in Economics at HEC Montreal, and is the proud mother of three girls.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• How artificial intelligence technologies can help humanity 
• Fostering an environment of creativity at MILA 
• Maintaining MILA’s culture amid rapid growth
• The importance of talent in the role of science 
• Montreal’s ranking on the global stage  

Valerie was generous with her time and insights. Her unique view on Montreal’s AI talent is fascinating. 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 Greg Rozdeba, Co-Founder & President @ Dundas Life. 

Gregory Rozdeba is a Sales Director specializing in insurtech and wealthtech firms. He has consulted multiple seven-figure fintech businesses and founded Dundas Life, which is transforming how Canadians buy insurance. Gregory served as Director of Sales at a Toronto-based insurtech firm where he took the company from no product to raising over $7.6M+ in venture capital to transform the prospect to policy process in the insurance industry. After leaving the corporate world, Gregory has taken up cycling and in-depth study of Ancient Rome. He advises business leaders and enjoys helping salespeople refine their process.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• Defining the need for life insurance 
• Giving people the power to take charge of their life insurance with technology
• Thinking about the customer experience
• The potential of open banking 
• Remaining a service firm empowered by technology

I really enjoyed my conversation with Greg, he’s well spoken and extremely knowledgeable. 

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 Paxton Maeder-York, CEO & Founder @ Alife Health. Paxton Maeder-York is a proud member of the MBA class of 2019, Section G.  He deferred between his RC and EC years to complete an additional master’s degree in Computational Science. Having studied Biomedical Engineering as an undergraduate and worked as a Product Manager at Auris Health building surgical robotics to treat lung cancer, the intersection of medicine and technology was a deep interest of his prior to HBS. He is now the Founder and CEO of Alife Health, which uses machine learning to help assess the healthiest embryo to transfer during IVF.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• How he started his career in robotics 
• Tackling the huge challenge of fertility with Alife
• The enormous potential of machine learning in healthcare
• Potential future applications of their technology
• Raising funding from world class investors

Paxton is incredibly smart and hard working. I won’t be surprised if we hear much more about his company in the coming years. 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 Philippe Beaudoin, Co-founder and CEO @ Waverly. Philippe is a venture scientist constantly looking for ideas that can improve society. In 2020, he co-founded Waverly where his team and he are building a discovery engine for our increasingly diverse social and content landscapes. Waverly relies on natural language and Empathetic AI to let users connect with their true aspirations. Before that,in 2016, Philippe co-founded Element AI, a world leader in enterprise AI. Philippe holds a PhD from University of Montreal, was a researcher at University of British Columbia and spent the last 20 years honing his technological and leadership skills, including half a decade at Google.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• Working on machine learning during the early days
• Our addiction to our devices and how that was the motivation to start Waverly
• Building the first natural language based recommendation based engine
• Striving for product-market fit 
• How people will choose their algorithms in the future

Phillipe is one of the most impressive technologists I know. He has huge ambitions and is looking to make a dent in the way we consume information in a positive way. 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 Rupert Hill, Founder & CEO @ Surf Simply

Rupert is originally from the U.K. where he worked teaching both conventional, entry-level surf lessons and also video coaching with young competitors. His vision was to create a scientifically informed coaching methodology which bridged the gap between the two extremes of beginner and competitor. In 2007 he moved to Nosara in Costa Rica, where he set up Surf Simply out of the back of his car. Ten years on Surf Simply has become a high end coaching resort which books out a year in advance. As well as running the resort, he is now a keen water photographer.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• The basics of learning to surf
• Moving to Costa Rica and launching his business
• The Surf Simply business model 
• A neat trick to keep his team happy
• His philosophy of not needing to grow at all costs

It was a pleasure with Rupert. He has a fresh take on building a business that does not get enough attention. 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 Maxie Lafleur, CEO @ Bus.com.  Maxie Lafleur is a talented business leader who quickly rose through the professional ranks with extensive experience in digital transformation and B2B business growth. She also has solid expertise in mergers and acquisitions and business expansion through joint ventures with large international corporations. Most recently, she was instrumental as Chief Financial Officer at Bus.com, improving the company's profitability and redefining how Bus.com positions itself in the market. Her experience working abroad in Europe and Asia positions the company favorably for expansion into new countries.

On the show, we spoke about: 

• Becoming the uber of buses and Bus.com’s large TAM
• Lessons for startups from larger companies
• The challenges and joys of being CEO 
• Building the Bus.com mafia
• The arrival of electric buses
• Her ambition to go public 

It was an absolute joy speaking with Maxie. I will be referring back to this episode for a while. 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]