Flagship Podcast

On this week’s show, we spoke with Kevin Belanger, eCommerce @ Transit.  Ambitious young professional, Kevin works in strategy and innovation. Having demonstrated leadership through a multitude of projects and renowned experiences, he has distinguished himself in many countries both during his academic years and in the business world.
Having successfully completed his bachelor's degree in computer science, he established his first commercial mission to Germany with the help of the MCUL. This three-week mission for the Montreal startup Vrvana was a success. The contacts are numerous, and the establishment of business partnerships are present. It is two years later, in November 2017 that Apple acquired the start up.
He began his MBA in Electronic Business at Laval University. It was during this MBA that he studied at recognized universities in Taiwan, Norway, China, Germany and Mexico, where he was able to take courses given by recognized entrepreneurs, CEO and strategists.
He also began his participation in numerous strategy case competitions and decided to continue his studies by starting a second MBA in Global Business. He took the opportunity to win several titles in strategic case competition. This includes a place, among more than 98 teams, in the GBC 2017 finals in Australia, a third position at the BFBW 2018 at the World Economic Forum in Davos, a first position for university outside Asia at the HKUST Global MBA Challenge 2017 in Hong Kong, a semi-final place at JMSB 2018 in Montreal, Entrepreneur’s Choice award at VCIC 2018 in Halifax and Analytical Awards at DGMC 2018 in Montreal.
With extensive knowledge in Clean Technologies and Blockchain, he was selected to be one of the 100 students invited to the MBA World Summit 2018 in Cape Town. 

On the show, we spoke about:

• The world of case competitions at university
• How he got interested in crypto
• Thoughts on Bitcoin
• Decentralized finance and stablecoins
• The following projects:

• Decentralized Oracle (Chainlink)
• Decentralized Borrow and Lending (Aave et Compound)
• Decentralized Stablecoin (MakerDAO)
• Decentralized Synthetic Asset (Synthetix)
• Decentralized Yield Aggregtor (Yearn Finance)
• Decentralized Automated Market Maker (Uniswap, SushiSwap, Curve Finance, DODO)
• Decentralized Derivative (DerivaDex)
• Decentralized insurance (Nexus Mutual, Cover, Etherisc)

I learned a ton from talking to Kevin and I’m still catching up all the great insights he provided. I hope you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would 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 Sanjay Zimmermann, Principal @ WhiteStar Capital

Since joining White Star Capital at the start of 2017, Sanjay worked on over 10 investments made by the fund across Canada, New York, Germany and South East Asia. While at the firm, Sanjay spent a year pursuing an MBA at Insead in Singapore and returned in September 2020 to launch White Star capital’s Toronto office. Sanjay focuses on identifying talented teams and founders for White Star Capital across Canada and south east Asia.

Before joining White Star Capital as an Associate, Sanjay started his career in investment banking at Rothschild & Co in London. During this time, he worked within the technology, media and telecommunications team, where he focused on corporate finance and M&A advisory for a full range of European companies. Prior to this, he helped manage part of Babson College’s endowment, overseeing the college’s technology fund investments.

Sanjay attended Babson College as a Weissman Scholar and used the program’s stipend to produce a video series called ‘Defining Entrepreneurship’ in which he interviewed over 60 entrepreneurs across the world. He earned a BSc in Business Administration before going on to complete the General Course at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Born in Germany and raised in Canada, Sanjay is a dual Canadian-German citizen.

On the show, we spoke about:

• How tennis helped him in his career
• Getting into VC
• The three key roles in his role
• Having a global perspective
• Deal flow in Toronto versus Montreal
• Why he’s excited about the future of work

Sanjay is a brilliant young VC that keeps laddering up. It was a joy to talk and learn from him. I hope that you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would 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 Guillaume Bouchard, CEO @ Contxtful.

Guillaume considers himself a highly passionate entrepreneur. He enjoys building and managing teams in fast-growth environments. He spent the first few years of his career within a franchise model called College Pro Painters and then launched a University school project (nvi) which was sold 8 years later to Dentsu Aegis Network (rebranded iProspect Canada) and he stayed there for 5 years, almost tripling the baseline revenue and increasing 6 fold its bottom line.
In 2018 he joined CONTXTFUL, a Montreal-based technology start-up focused on developing products that provide insights on mobile users, improving how advertisers and insurers interact with their customers. They recently closed a 2M$CAD seed and are in the mist of commercializing their initial products.

On the show, we spoke about:

• Founding and exiting NVI / iProspect
• Finding a project that helps combat digital addiction
• The concept of receptivity
• His ambitions for his startup and their current funding
• Key trends in online advertising

I’m lucky to have known Guillaume for a long time. I always learn something new when I talk to him. I always learn something new when I talk to him. I hope that you enjoy the conversation.

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would 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 JC Btaiche, Co-Founder @ Fuse. JC co-founded Fuse on a mission to accelerate the world's transition to fusion energy. JC also founded Hestia Academy, a not-for-profit on a mission to guide teenagers to unleash their inner crazy genius and to dare to create. Hestia Academy aims to create more and better self-learners.

On the show, we spoke about:

• How JC hated school
• His admiration for Elon Musk
• What is fusion and how it can solve the world’s energy crisis
• Being mission driven
• His interest in crypto & decentralized finance

JC has massive ambitions and has his sights set on the world’s most intractable problems. It was amazing to speak to someone that is trying to knock it out of the park. I hope that you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would 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 Samer Saab, CEO & Founder @ Explorance. Since 2003, Explorance’s mission is to assist higher education organizations, government organizations and enterprise in enhancing their feedback management processes through cutting edge web-enabled technologies. Prior to founding Explorance, Samer has worked in technology related functions for over 10 years with main focus on bridging the barriers between technology and the end user. His educational background is an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering and a post-graduate degree in business administration from McGill University.

On the show, we spoke about:

• Why Samer was a “bad employee”
• His obsession with sustainable growth
• The shift to continuous learning
• His culture playbook

It was a great treat to speak with Samer, we could’ve chatted for a few hours! His thoughts on culture building and business performance are remarkable. I hope that you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would 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 Antoine Buteau, Senior Engagement Manager @ The PNR.

Antoine holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Information Systems from the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University and a Certificate in Computer Science from Laval University.

Before PNR, Antoine worked at Coveo as a Solution Specialist. He was responsible for implementing Coveo search engine solutions with clients in healthcare, technology and consumer goods. Antoine also worked as a freelance consultant where he helped organizations in IT Selection, IT Implementation, Product Management and IT Project Recovery.

Outside of work, Antoine spends time training at the gym, playing hockey and listening to Japanese jazz. He also enjoys reading, building relationships and drinking strong coffee while eating Mexican food.

On the show, we spoke about:

• How he manages his career
• The concept of continuous improvement
• Tips and tricks for productivity with tools like Roam
• Interesting trends in technology

Antoine is one of the smartest people I know. I always learn from talking to him and I hope that you do as well.

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would 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 Eleonore Jarry, Principal @ Brightspark Ventures

Éléonore Jarry is a principal at Brightspark Ventures. Prior to joining Brightspark, Éléonore worked in Assurance & Advisory at Ernst & Young LLP, focusing on alternative investment funds and private equity firms. She also co-founded Front Row Ventures, Canada’s first student-run venture capital firm. Éléonore developed a passion for helping entrepreneurs and financing innovation while studying technology entrepreneurship in Silicon Valley. She is involved with several startup initiatives around Montréal.

On the show, we spoke about:

• How she started learning about technology
• Getting her start in venture capital and the importance of mentorship
• Her role at Brightspark Ventures
• The exciting market opportunities that are ahead

Eleonore Jarry is a truly impressive individual. She has risen rapidly through the ranks of Canadian VC and she is only getting started. I hope you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would 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 Rachel Labbe-Bellas, Founder @ O’Land Stations

Rachel is a Marine Ecologist and has a BSc. in Biology from McGill University and a MSc. in Ecology from UFSC in Brazil. During her studies she gathered international experience, working at places such as Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, and more recently as a Research Associate at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Her passion for ocean advocacy led her to work with Sylvia Earle Alliance-Mission Blue, and participate in a 21-day all-female research voyage about ocean plastics and health impacts with eXXpedition. Rachel is currently working in development and science program management for 5 Gyres Institute, and spends her free time in entrepreneurship for her plastic pollution reduction start-up in Canada, The Green Stop.

On the show, we spoke about:

• Solving important problems through entrepreneurship
• The global climate challenge and of clean water in particular
• O’Land Stations solution and her startup journey
• The impact of the pandemic and how she has pivoted

It was a joy to speak with Rachel. She’s a smart and passionate entrepreneur. I hope that you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would 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 Luc Filiatreault, CEO @ MDF Commerce.

Mr. Filiatreault is a successful serial entrepreneur. He has successfully founded and led eight different enterprises. Seven of these companies were in Software Technologies and one was in Aerospace Technology. Four of these companies were publicly traded on the TSX.

In September of 2019, Mr. Filatreault was appointed President & CEO of MDF commerce with the mandate of accelerating the company’s growth and leading an ambitious strategic reorientation.

From June 2017 to June 2019, Mr Filiatreault was CEO of Ayuda Media Systems. Ayuda develops and commercializes a software platform that is an ERP system specialized for Out of Home Media Companies such as Outfront, Stroer, Astral, Clear Channel etc. In less than 18 months Ayuda more than doubled its staff and its customers and has reached 100 staff. Ayuda has customers in 25 countries and operates from offices in Montreal, Berlin and Sydney. Ayuda was acquired by Broadsign International in April 2019.

On the show, we spoke about:

• The importance of giving back
• Climbing Mt-Everest as an analogy for professional achievement
• Re-igniting MDF Commerce
• Aligning an entire organization towards a common goal
• Technology as a force for good in the world

Luc is one of the impressive CEOs I’ve ever met. He was extremely generous with his time and shared some great leadership insights. I hope that you enjoy the conversation!

Let us know what you think. What types of guests would 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 Sylvain Perron, CEO @ Botpress. Sylvain, co-founder and director at Botpress, has been interested in artificial intelligence and conversational interfaces for several years. Its mission: to transform the way people communicate with businesses. Before founding Botpress, Sylvain was responsible for technical innovation at Protorisk. Curious and passionate, he is constantly on the lookout for new tech trends. Sylvain stands out in particular for his perseverance, his authenticity and his creativity.

On the show, we spoke about:

• How he decided to start his own company
• His interest for natural language processing
• Botpress and their go to market model
• Focusing on developers first as a core strategy

Sylvain is super passionate about his conversational interfaces and it really showed in this interview. He shared some great insights about the space. I hope that you enjoy the conversation!

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

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