With so much potential in Canada to build the next big thing, the country is falling short as talent and founders are leaving. Innovation is declining, and the economy is in free fall. Over the past decade, public sector jobs have skyrocketed, while private sector jobs have decreased. We need an ecosystem that fosters early-stage startups into scale-ups and global brands. Here are some ways we can fix the ecosystem:
1. Let’s stop making entrepreneurs jump through hoops for funding
Non-dilutive funding programs are great, but we need to simplify the funding process for entrepreneurs who are working full-time on creating new ventures.
2. There are too many bloated startup programs.
Canada has the most number of accelerators and incubators, but does this actually translate into more innovations and jobs? Not so much as there are too many bloated programs that fall short on delivering value to the ecosystem.
3. Tax incentives that actually attracts talent and investors.
Adding tax on top of tax won’t help founders or investors. We need tax incentives that actually reward risk-taking and encourage diving into entrepreneurship full-time.
4. We need more storytelling at a global scale.
Local startup publications are a great start, but at the end of the day we keep talking to the same audience. This is why we try to do things differently at the FoundersPress to provide more of a global platform with global reach.
5. Tech conferences that don’t bring politicians.
We need to bring bootstrapping founders and full-time entrepreneurs to showcase their story. Give them a platform! In other words, let’s bring actual practitioners, and not gurus and celebrities as it doesn’t help local founder scale up their venture.
6. Events that bring people together to actually build something.
Leadership talks are just that—talks. Let’s organize events that help talent connect and actually build something together. Remember Startup Weekend? Let’s bring those back to solve big problems and launch global companies.
6. Better banking services for entrepreneurs.
Let’s face it—self-employment in Canada is hell. No one offers any sort of funding options for this demographic. We need a banking system that actually helps entrepreneurs.
7. Let’s put actual entrepreneurs into incubators and accelerators
Canada boasts the highest number of startup accelerators and incubators globally. For more information, check out The Most Complete Guide to Canada’s Startup Ecosystem. However, many people offering advice to startups have never run one full-time. If you haven’t been directly involved in an early-stage startup as a founder or operator, it’s best to refrain from advising founders on how to build a startup.
8. Scale up programs that actually scale up.
Majority of scale up programs don’t work because we don’t have actual practitioners running these.
9. Consult entrepreneurs before creating economic policies.
Planing to introduce a new economic policy? Get feedback from actual entrepreneurs on how to deliver value.
10. Entrepreneurship Centres need to stop teaching 30-page business plans.
This is an absolute non-sense as some of these funding programs require business plans. Let’s encourage entrepreneurs to find paying customers. This means adding value to product and marketing.
11. Better sales and marketing mentality.
American founders are incredibly good at this as Canadian founders are too humble. Being humble doesn’t help grow the next big thing from Canada.
12. Help startups actually find more paying customers.
Helping that small startup in your community grow creates more opportunities for everyone. It’s that simple!
13. Try out a startup product if you can.
If you’re a tech leader at a company and a founder reaches out, try out their product. Even better, purchase it if you can!
14. We need more cheerleaders in the ecosystem.
We need more cheerleaders who help startups grow by sharing their stories, making introductions, or trying out their products.
Are you building a startup in Canada? Let me know what your thoughts are.