Entrepreneurial skills aren’t just for entrepreneurs, they are essential to everyone. In times of turbulence and unpredictability, having an entrepreneurial mindset and skills is critical. In this episode, I speak with the research lead of the Future Skills Centre, and we explore what it means to approach work and life with an entrepreneurial mindset, as well as the skills necessary for the future of work.

Dr. Wendy Cukier is a professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the Ted Rogers School of Management at Toronto Metropolitan University, Academic Director of the Diversity Institute, and Academic Research Director of the Future Skills Centre. She co-authored the bestseller “Innovation Nation: Canadian Leadership from Java to Jurassic Park" and is a leader in disruptive technologies and innovation. Formerly the Vice President of Research and Innovation, she has been the architect of many large scale projects and is currently the Academic Research Director for the Future Skills Centre as well as the founder of the Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub. With a PhD in Information Systems and more than thirty years of technology consulting, her recent work on the Canadian AI Paradox addresses the gap between Canada’s leadership in the development of AI tools and the adoption of them. With the Future Skills Centre, she has led several related research projects, the development of competency frameworks and strategies to support the adoption of AI among entrepreneurs and Small and Medium Enterprises. She leads Toronto Metropolitan University’s Diversity Institute which has over 80 research staff, 100 research associates across Canada and from around the world, and more than 200 industry partners focused on includive education, employment, leadership and entrepreneurship. Wendy has been recognized with many awards for her volunteer work. She has also received Canada’s Meritorious Service Cross, one of the country’s highest civilian honours. In addition to her PhD in Information Systems from the Schulich School of Business, she has an MBA (Marketing and Information Systems), an MA, and honourary doctorates from Laval and Concordia universities.

Links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cukier-9aa85910/

Future Skills Centre: https://fsc-ccf.ca/team/wendy-cukier-2/

This is a special episode featuring highlights from the inaugural Ottawa Innovation Week, with seven insightful interviews from some of the most inspiring leaders in technology and innovation, many of whom were speakers and organizers during the week’s events.

Ottawa Innovation Week is a celebration of bold ideas, creative minds, and the changemakers driving the future of technology, business, arts, entertainment, and social impact—right here in Canada’s capital. The initiative was led by Sonya Shorey, President and CEO of Invest Ottawa, in collaboration with the Ottawa Board of Trade, Ottawa Tourism, and numerous partner organizations. My interview with Sonya can be found in Episode 118 of The Art & Science of Learning podcast.

Designed to showcase the strength, diversity, and growing momentum of Ottawa’s innovation ecosystem, this first-of-its-kind event brought together leading voices from across technology, entrepreneurship, investment, and research.

Throughout the week, I had the privilege of speaking with seven influential figures who are shaping the future of innovation both locally and globally. From startup founders and global corporate leaders to investors and ecosystem architects, each guest shares unique insights into their field, along with personal reflections on growth, leadership, and opportunity.

Featured interviews (with timestamps) include:

• Veronica Farmer (11:50) – Chief Marketing Officer at Wesley Clover International and a widely respected community builder in Ottawa’s business and tech landscape
• Dr. Lindy Ledohowski (37:20) – Vice President at RBCx, supporting leading tech companies with insights drawn from her background as both founder and academic
• Julia Elvidge (46:20)– Co-founder of SheBoot, a trailblazer in intellectual property strategy and a champion of women’s entrepreneurship in tech
• Nick Quain (59:10) – Vice President of Venture & Entrepreneurship at Invest Ottawa and a driving force behind the city's startup ecosystem
• Erin Kelly (1:07:20) – Co-founder and CEO of askpolly.ai, an AI-powered platform transforming predictive analysis in public affairs and beyond
• Jonathan Lowenhar (1:14:50) – Founder & Managing Partner at Enjoy The Work, a global advisory firm helping startup founders become exceptional CEOs
• Andrew Holmes (1:23:20) – Founder of Sleep Efficiency Inc., and a national expert in the science and impact of sleep health

From venture capital and AI innovation to women-led tech startups and the future of sleep science, this episode presents a compelling cross-section of ideas and expertise. Whether you’re a founder, investor, policymaker, or simply curious about Ottawa’s role in shaping the innovation economy, there’s something here for you.

----

Links and Guest Biographies:

Ottawa Innovation Week: https://www.investottawa.ca/innovation-week/

Invest Ottawa: https://www.investottawa.ca

Interview with Sonya Shorey about Ottawa Innovation Week: https://www.theartandscienceoflearning.com/e101-jan-present/e118-launching-ottawa-innovation-week-sonya-shorey

Veronica Farmer

Veronica Farmer is Chief Marketing Officer at Wesley Clover International where she oversees all aspects of its promotion and management, collaborating closely with portfolio companies and affiliates such as L-SPARK, Alacrity Global, and WCS Global. Recognized as one of Ottawa’s foremost community builders, Veronica holds leadership and board roles in numerous business and non-profit organizations. As the Founder and former CEO of TrueCourse Communications, a full-service marketing and communications agency, Veronica guided numerous tech, B2B, and B2C clients in Ottawa and beyond toward market success. TrueCourse was acquired in December 2024, marking a milestone in her entrepreneurial journey. 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/veronicafarmer/

TechTuesday: https://www.wesleyclover.com/events/techtuesday/

Dr. Lindy Ledohowski

Dr. Lindy Ledohowski is VP at RBCx, where she supports some of the Ottawa region’s biggest and best tech companies on behalf of RBCx. Prior to her work in banking, she was a professor and founder of EssayJack, an academic writing platform. EssayJack was acquired in 2021 by Wizeprep, and Lindy joined Wizeprep first as a VP and then as Chief Operating Officer. She is also an active Board member in the not-for-profit space

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindy-ledohowski/

Julia Elvidge

Julia Elvidge is co-founder of SheBoot, a bootcamp for women entrepreneurs of scalable tech and tech-enabled businesses. Julia has been recognized as one of the world’s foremost IP strategists by Intellectual Property Magazine (IAM). Trained as an electrical engineer, Julia designed microchip circuits and analyzed semiconductors before moving into the business side of technology. As co-founder and President, Julia helped build Chipworks into an industry leader, delivering patent analytics and technology intelligence services to intellectual property and R&D groups in electronics companies across Asia, North America and Europe. Recipient of the Canadian Women in Communications Trailblazer of the Year Award (2008) and CATA WIT (Women in Technology) Sara Kirke Award for Woman Entrepreneurship (2007).

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliaelvidge/

SheBoot: https://sheboot.ca

Nick Quain

Nick Quain is Vice President of Venture & Entrepreneurship at Invest Ottawa, he spearheads support for Ottawa’s tech and entrepreneurial sectors while championing the local business ecosystem as a whole. Previously he served as co-founder and CEO at CellWand. They pioneered the use of abbreviated dialing codes in North America with their award-winning #TAXI (Pound Taxi) service and later in the mobile transportation space with The Ride app. CellWand earned numerous business and innovation awards, including the 2010 Canada’s Top 10 Competition for Technology, recognition as one of Canada’s Hottest Innovation Companies, and being named one of the top 10 Wireless Companies to Watch by IDC.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-quain/

Erin Kelly

Erin Kelly is co-founder and CEO of askpolly.ai, the venture-backed AI company that has cracked the code for predicting human reaction to a future scenario. askpolly has successfully predicted the outcome of over 30 elections and referendums, assisted with frundraising, forecast disease spread and helped hundreds of executives hone their messages through very difficult PR situations.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erinottawa/

askpolly: https://www.askpolly.ai

Jonathan Lowenhar

Jonathan Lowenhar is Founder & Managing Partner at Enjoy The Work. Founded in 2015, Enjoy The Work is a San Francisco-based startup advisory firm  that helps founders transform into master operators and become great CEOs. Enjoy The Work has supported more than 125 startups, representing more than $13B in combined market value. Among their global client list are notable success stories such as Tipalti, Paper.co, inDinero, RealtyMogul and Honeybook.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jlowenhar/

Enjoy The Work: https://enjoythework.com

Andrew Holmes

Andrew Holmes is Founder of Sleep Efficiency Inc. Before founding Sleep Efficiency, Andrew served as Senior of Cardiopulmonary labs at the Queensway Carleton Hospital in Ottawa, where he led the team responsible for a full-service out-patient cardiopulmonary department and sleep clinic. Andrew is routinely featured as the sleep subject matter expert on CTV News and CBC’s The National, offering insights into the critical role of sleep health.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-holmes-rpsgt-49961951/

Sleep Efficiency: https://www.sleepefficiency.ca

Something exciting is happening in my hometown of Ottawa, and I’m looking forward to sharing it with you on the podcast. Next week, from June 9th to the 13th, will be the inaugural Ottawa Innovation Week, a celebration of bold ideas, creative minds, and the game-changers who are driving the future of technology, business, arts, entertainment, and social impact right here in Canada's capital. My guest on this episode is Sonya Shorey, President and CEO, Invest Ottawa, Bayview Yards, and Area X.O, a research and development complex that helps accelerate next-gen technology. Sonya is leading Ottawa Innovation Week, in partnership with the Ottawa Board of Trade and Ottawa Tourism, among many other organizations. We discuss what inspired her to create Ottawa Innovation Week, how it was developed, what we can expect, and what she hopes will be the impact on us as individuals and on the city.

I will reflect on my experience and what I learned during Ottawa Innovation Week, including interviews with some of the speakers and innovators I meet, in the episode that will be published on June 19th.

Ottawa Innovation Week event details can be found on the website at: https://www.investottawa.ca/innovation-week/

Sonya Shorey, President and CEO of Invest Ottawa, Bayview Yards, and Area X.O, is a strategy executive and management consultant with more than 22 years of leadership experience with private and public organizations. With expertise in regional, national, and global technology, entrepreneurial, economic development, and innovation-based organizations, she specializes in corporate and communications strategy development and execution. This includes investment strategies that secure new cash and in-kind contributions from public and private sources. Since 2005, Sonya has led, strategized, authored and/or made a significant contribution to successful multi-year funding proposals and initiatives valued at more than $203 million from municipal, provincial, federal, and international governments. 

Within her executive leadership role with Invest Ottawa, Bayview Yards and Area X.O, Sonya plays a pivotal role in developing, leading, and executing strategy for all three organizations. This includes:

•      Area X.O, the futureplex of innovation and collaboration for next-generation smart mobility, connectivity and autonomy technologies;

•      The Women Founders and Owners Strategy and Action Plan. This includes co-founding SheBoot, the investment-ready bootcamp for women tech founders designed and delivered by women entrepreneurs and investors, and founding International Women’s Week in Canada’s Capital; and International Women’s Week.

•      The first Pan-Ontario Scale-Up Platform of its kind aimed at enabling and accelerating the growth, scaleup and commercial success of more $100 million revenue-generating tech companies in Canada.

Sonya launched her career as the Manager of Communications and Member of the Vice-Presidential Cabinet with the 10G Organization of Optical Networks for Nortel from 1999 to 2002, and then served as the Director of Marketing Communications for CMC Microsystems until 2007.  Building on a decade of experience, Sonya launched her own strategy company in 2008, addressing the needs of S&T organizations, innovation, entrepreneurship and economic development agencies across Canada, and their partners around the world. She currently serves Vice President of Strategy, Marketing and Communications for Invest Ottawa, lead economic development agency for knowledge-based industries in Canada’s Capital.

Sonya is a Director of the Institute of Mental Health Research of the Royal Ottawa Hospital, Elevate International, and Mindtrust Leadership. She also serves as mentor and pitch coach with Women in Cloud, AI North America, and Technovation. She holds a Combined Honours in English and Political Science from Carleton University and has won 10+ international awards for communications, leadership, and women’s economic empowerment.

Sonya Shorey: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sonyashorey/

This is a special episode that features seven mini-interviews with speakers at last year’s Learning Ideas Conference, which was held at Columbia University in New York City. As we approach the Learning Ideas Conference 2025, taking place from June 11th to 13th, I reflect on last year’s conference and the conversations I had with some of the speakers, including the three keynote speakers. 

Learning Ideas Conference: https://www.learningideasconf.org

The interviews can be found at the following timestamps:

0:08:25

Prof. Chris Dede 

Associate Director for Research, National AI Institute for Adult Learning and Online Education (AI-ALOE)

Senior Research Fellow, Harvard Graduate School of Education

Title of Talk: Complementing Human Minds with Digital Brains: The Role of GenAI in Learning

Links:

https://www.chrisdede.com

0:25:40

Dr. Alina von Davier 

Chief of Assessment at Duolingo

Honorary Research Fellow at Oxford University

Talk Title: Building Digital-first Assessments in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

Links: 

https://www.education.ox.ac.uk/person/alina-von-davier/

0:37:20

Dr. Christina Katopodis

Senior Postdoctoral Research Associate

CUNY Humanities Alliance

Talk Title: Connecting Learners to Their Internal Motivations for Success

Links:

https://commons.gc.cuny.edu/members/ckatopodis/

0:55:00

Sam Lee and Veronica Gomez

Learning Design at McKinsey & Company

Talk Title: Emerging Tech in Learning: From Overwhelming to Innovative

Links: 

Sam Lee’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/junghwasamleeny/

Veronica Gomez’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/veronicagomezatencio/

1:11:00

Mike Kentz

Founder of AI Literacy Partners (ALP)

Talk Title: Stop Grading Essays, Start Grading Chats

Links:

Substack: https://mikekentz.substack.com/p/a-new-assessment-design-framework

ALP: https://www.litpartners.ai

1:25:45

Gary Dickelman, EPSScentral LLC and Jan Greenberg, National Center on Early Childhood Development, Teaching, and Learning (DTL)

Talk Title: AI in Early Learning and How it Affects Higher Education and Workplace Learning

Links:

https://www.higheredandwork.org/gary-dickelman-bio

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jan-greenberg-7252b1a/

1:37:50

Teemu Patala, 

Co-founder & Cief Learning Officer, Airport College International

Title of Talk: Fostering Innovation through Strategic Partnerships in Aviation Training Post-Pandemic

Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/teemu-patala-1b09562/

https://www.airportcollege.com

Changing careers or building a business can be daunting, and it requires learning many new skills and being creative. In this episode, my guest is one of my former professors from the Harvard Graduate School of Education who has inspired me in the work that I do now as a workplace learning consultant. We discuss how she built a successful learning evaluation business, became a Harvard professor, and now established herself as a successful children’s book author. Dr Ilona Holland shares how limitations can be the mother of invention and the importance of looking for voids as you build the career of your dreams. 

Dr. Ilona E. Holland is an educator and award-winning children's author who inspires readers to ask questions and see the world with awe. Ilona spent over a decade of her professional life teaching at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In addition, she conducted evaluations for PBS producers of programs like Martha Speaks, CyberChase, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, WordGirl, and Wild Kratt’s. Since retiring, she spends most of her time writing for children and visiting schools all over the world. Ilona’s titles have won state and national recognition and awards. Her first book, Buddy Bison’s Yellowstone Adventure is included in United Through Reading, a program that reaches 100,000 military families around the globe. Ilona’s other books have received first place awards given by the Delaware Press Association and the National Federation of Press Women. Her work has also been featured in Ed Magazine and her first book was selected as one of Hoda Kobt’s favorites.

Ilona E. Holland Ed.D.: https://ilonaeholland.com

As new technologies like AI, are disrupting the way we work, there is an increasing need for effective ways to integrate these innovations into workflows. Learning to use new technologies effectively is a primary focus of learning teams around the world. But how can we quickly and proactively adapt to new technologies? McKinsey & Company’s Research & Innovation Learning Lab values developing capabilities that enable teams to stay current with their ever-changing landscape of emerging tech and lead through changes in the future. In this episode, I speak with two learning design experts who have developed a dynamic approach to fostering a culture of continuous learning and innovation with emerging tech, all within existing constraints.

Sam Lee was a Learning Design Expert at McKinsey & Company at the New York City office and has recently transferred to Microsoft. With over a decade of experience in workplace learning domains, she has served in learning design and product leadership roles to design, scale, and innovate learning journeys for a global audience, focusing on future-ready digital leadership and tech skills. Sam is passionate about merging learning science and emerging technologies like AI to enable hyper-personalized learning experiences at scale. 

Veronica Gomez is a learning design expert passionate about learning science and co-creating joyful learning experiences. She leads global design projects for some of McKinsey’s large learning initiatives and programs. Gomez has a master’s degree in educational technology and complements that with her psychology and web design background to build human-centered experiences that strive for equitable access to learning.

Sam Lee’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/junghwasamleeny/ 

Veronica Gomez’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/veronicagomezatencio/ 

Future-proof L&D’s capabilities: three questions can guide your team toward fluency in emerging technologies (ATD Magazine): https://www.td.org/content/td-magazine/future-proof-lampdrsquos-capabilities

The author of a fantastic book - The Learning and Development Handbook: A learning practitioner’s toolkit – is the guest in this episode. I enjoyed reading her book and found it to be a great resource for all L&D professionals. In this episode, we discuss the importance of updating approaches to learning in the workplace and some of the key insights and strategies from her book. 

Michelle Parry-Slater is an award-winning L&OD professional with more than 20 years of experience in the industry. She is the Founder and Director of Kairos Modern Learning, an L&D consultancy specializing in driving a shift from traditional courses to embrace the best of digital, social and face-to-face workplace learning. Working with clients such as the CIPD, Co-op, Shelter, the Charity Learning Consortium and Garden Vets at Keele, Michelle was also the Lead Volunteer for L&D at Girlguiding UK for over five years. She was listed as one of the Top 20 Corporate eLearning Movers and Shakers of 2018 by eLearning Industry and named by HR Magazine as one of the most influential HR thinkers in 2023.  Michelle wrote ‘The Learning and Development Handbook: A learning practitioner’s toolkit’ and is also the host of 'Learning From The Edges' podcast, looking at friction in work and how to overcome it.

Website: https://www.kairosmodernlearning.com

Book: https://thelndhandbook.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelleparryslater

Podcasts can be a great way of learning but are rarely used in workplace training. In this episode, my guest is the co-founder of Assemble You, a company that develops podcasts for workplace training. We discuss strategies to design podcasts that help people retain new knowledge and about his experience as a learning tech entrepreneur. 

Adam Lacey is the Co-Founder of Assemble You and host of the L&D Challenges podcasts. He has 10+ years of experience creating and selling digital learning. In 2022 he launched Assemble You with his business partner. Assemble You is the home of podcast-style audio lessons and helps enable learning on the go.

Links: 

Adam Lacey: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamlacey/

Assemble You: https://www.assembleyou.com

L&D Challenges Podcast: https://www.assembleyou.com/resources/learning-challenges

Having a quality management system in L&D can help ensure that the final learning experience is of high quality. In this episode, the author of the new book, Quality Management in Learning and Development, discusses her book and shares tips on how to embed a quality management system in the L&D process. 

Hadiya Nuriddin is an award-winning talent development professional with over two decades of experience in learning strategy, instructional design, elearning development, and facilitation. With Duets Learning, she’s worked with many companies in various industries on strategy, design, and quality management projects. She holds an MEd in curriculum studies, an MA in writing, and several other learning and quality management designations. She wrote the books StoryTraining: Selecting and Shaping Stories That Connect and Quality Management in Learning and Development, both published by ATD, the latter of which was released on June 25th 2024.

Duets Learning: https://www.duetslearning.com

Book: Quality Management in Learning and Development https://www.amazon.com/Quality-Management-Learning-Development-Nuriddin/dp/1953946607/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=u5oio&content-id=amzn1.sym.d0ebfbb2-6761-494f-8e2f-95743b37c35c%3Aamzn1.symc.50e00d6c-ec8b-42ef-bb15-298531ab4497&pf_rd_p=d0ebfbb2-6761-494f-8e2f-95743b37c35c&pf_rd_r=N46HY3XPXXV5KXTNYW7M&pd_rd_wg=p5IuD&pd_rd_r=1b4ab8dd-78b9-407f-aabb-546e6b6d04bd&ref_=pd_gw_ci_mcx_mr_hp_atf_m

Coaching can be a powerful tool to transfer learning to improving on-the-job performance. However, it is often challenging to scale coaching to an entire organization, unless we use technology. I enjoyed testing out a new chatbot coaching tool called Coach M, which was developed by Lever - Transfer Learning. In this episode, I speak with the CEO of Lever about what it looks like to have a chatbot coach and the impact it can have on learning in the workplace. 

Emma Weber is CEO/Founder Lever – Transfer of Learning. Emma, a learning transfer authority, made it her mission in life to make a difference to learning transfer worldwide. Frustrated by the amount of learning which is wasted when it fails to make it across the knowing–doing gap Emma created the Turning Learning into Action™ methodology to solve that problem. This methodology is deployed throughout 20 countries and in 12 languages by a talented team and Coach M, a conversational intelligence chatbot. Coach M is challenging the industry's thinking of what’s possible in learning transfer. 

Emma shares her passion and expertise through her writing – her first book 'Turning Learning into Action: a proven methodology for effective transfer of learning' was published by Kogan Page in 2014 and is excited to have her 1st co-written ATD Association for Talent Development) press book ‘Designing Virtual Learning for Application & Impact’ published in 2023. 

Links:

Emma Weber https://transferoflearning.com/about-us/emma-weber-2/

Lever Transfer of Learning https://transferoflearning.com

Book: Turning Learning into Action https://transferoflearning.com/book/

Coach M https://transferoflearning.com/coach-m/

Book: Designing Virtual Learning for Application and Impact 

https://transferoflearning.com/designing-virtual-learning-for-application-and-impact/