Best Communitech Podcasts (2024)

1
Taking the ‘Why Not’ Approach and Running with Opportunities as they come | Donna Litt 26:02

2+ y ago26:02

26:02

Uvaro: Helping professionals have more fulfilling careers In this episode, Donna talks about the ‘Why Not’ approach that has led her through much of her entrepreneurial career. Taking advantage of opportunities as they come and following your interests to see where they might lead. With Uvaro, Donna and her co-founders saw a hole within the tech in…

1
Knowing When to Pivot in Your Startup | Mallorie Brodie 17:13

2+ y ago17:13

17:13

In this episode, Mallorie talks about the $24M CAD Series B funding that the company has just secured as well as the importance of maintaining the mindset of a start-up. To always be innovating and looking for opportunities within the industry is a crucial component to growing and scaling any business. More on Bridgit Solutions: || https://www.brid…

1
Building a Successful Innovation Ecosystem With Collaborative Capitalism | Communitech CEO Iain Klugman 28:10

4+ y ago28:10

28:10

“We can honestly say that every assumption we made about how we thought it was going to work was wrong.” Iain Klugman has spent the last 16 years bringing together government organizations, businesses, and talent to make Communitech an integral part of the Waterloo Region ecosystem. In this episode, he joins AQ to reminisce on his career of buildin…

1
Driverseat Director of Marketing talks Franchise Expansion and Opportunities for Entrepreneurs | Dani Bazely 17:02

4+ y ago17:02

17:02

In this week’s episode, Alan sits down with Dani Bazely, Director of Marketing for Driverseat, as they discuss the innovative, award-winning business. Driverseat’s franchise-based business model focuses on chauffeur and shuttle assistance, with opportunities for specialized services from accessible transport to tours across wine regions. With low s…

1
How Bridgit Founders Used Customer Insights to Build a Multi Million Dollar Business | Lauren Lake 27:42

4+ y ago27:42

27:42

What does successfully breaking into an untapped market actually look like? How do you do it? How do you bring a product to market that the market is ready to adopt right away? You ask the market. What sets Bridgit apart from so many other companies, and what has made them so successful, is that they went to their customers first. Before they ever …

1
Hamilton’s Innovation Factory and the Value of a Startup Supercluster | David Carter 34:11

4+ y ago34:11

34:11

"Innovation Factory Accelerates Success" - who doesn't want that!? Incubators and accelerators, like Hamilton's Innovation Factory, are the not so hidden gem that entrepreneurs need to know. In this week's episode, David Carter and Alan Quarry discuss the difference between an accelerator and an incubator, why Canada isn't producing enough "mythica…

1
Finding Your Way Through Uncertainty and Coming Out Stronger | Jennifer Moss 30:42

4+ y ago30:42

30:42

The world is currently going through the strangest thing that any of us will likely face in our lives. And there's a ton of fear and anxiety and doom and gloom that comes along with a worldwide pandemic, of course. But in this episode, happiness expert and author Jennifer Moss gives us incredible, tangible advice on how to navigate through this unc…

1
How to Build a Word of Mouth Strategy | Talk Triggers Author Jay Baer 42:56

4+ y ago42:56

42:56

90% of B2B purchases are influenced by word of mouth. Fewer than 1% of companies have an actual “word of mouth” strategy. Jay Baer knows that one of the best ways to grow a business is for your customers to do it for you. In this episode of AQ’s Blog & Grill, Jay shares where to start when building your “word of mouth” strategy. We all know word of…

1
Balancing it all – From Career to #MomLife and Everything in between | Melissa Melnychuk 35:20

4+ y ago35:20

35:20

From her demanding and successful career in sports marketing as the VP of Business Development for the KW Titans to balancing being a single mom to three busy children, Melissa Melnychuk has mastered the art of balancing it all. And it’s not all spreadsheets and Pinterest and spreading yourself so thin that you can barely function, like you may thi…

1
How This Startup is Making a Huge Global Impact | Peter Whitby - CEO of O2 Canada 33:08

4+ y ago33:08

33:08

“I wanted to do something global and make an impact” - Peter Whitby What started as a leisurely trip in China has become a global product and a growing team. With intensive research, O2 Canada has truly innovated the face mask - creating a product with top notch functionality and unprecedented aesthetic ability. From airline travel and city polluti…

1
F#CK Content Marketing – The Critical Difference Between Content Marketing and Content Experience | Randy Frisch 42:57

4+ y ago42:57

42:57

You may just have the best content in the world, but if your user experience isn’t top notch, the content may as well have been written by a seahorse. In this episode of AQ’s Blog & Grill, Randy Frisch describes the key difference between content marketing and content experience. He explains how we can get stuck in this loop of pumping out amazing …

1
BURNOUT – How Well-being Plays Directly into our Ability to Innovate and be Competitive | Jennifer Moss 26:19

4+ y ago26:19

26:19

Jennifer Moss has many accolades – she’s an author, an international speaker, a columnist for the CBC, a contributor to Harvard Business Review and a member of the UN Global Happiness Council committee, just to name a few. When the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that ‘Burnout’ was a workplace issue, and that it was our own problem to ‘tr…

1
#TBT Episode: Stepping Out and Growing an Art Business with a Professional Artist and Entrepreneur | Jennifer Gough 17:00

4+ y ago17:00

17:00

Entrepreneur and professional artist, Jennifer Gough, speaks with Alan about finding her purpose in her art and how she completely changed her career to follow her passion. Jennifer's mission is to inspire people to follow their dreams and make their passions happen. She talks about growing her art business by saying yes to opportunities, taking ch…

1
From Engineering Student to President and CEO of Multiple Companies – How to Fail: Often, Fast, and Cheap | Jim Estill 38:39

4+ y ago38:39

38:39

He didn’t get lucky. He isn’t an investment psychic. And he doesn’t possess any fancy or magical ability to predict which businesses are going to take off, and which won’t. He tries things. He jumps at opportunities and he FAILS. Over and over, he’s failed. He fails, and he’s learned how to fall in loves with failing. And with each missed opportuni…

1
How Lifelong Learning and Cutting out the Noise can Move You Forward into Your Vision of Success | Lindsay Coulter 40:41

4+ y ago40:41

40:41

“What kind of human do you feel like being in the future?” So often, in life, we think of success a certain way. What career we end up in, what home we own, what cars we drive all seem rather important when someone asks you to think about your future. But Lindsay took us down a very different road in this episode. Join us as Lindsay and Alan sit do…

1
Miovision Innovation makes Cities more Efficient | Kurtis McBride 38:14

4+ y ago38:14

38:14

Changing the world through traffic innovations. Kurtis McBride sits down with Alan and discusses how the innovation of Miovision in traffic stops, can globally impact fuel emissions and climate change as a whole. From a university engineering degree to a well respected and internationally respected entrepreneur, McBride is changing the landscape fo…

1
Obviously Awesome | April Dunford 42:00

4+ y ago42:00

42:00

Positioning. And cake pops! 😉 What is positioning? Is it actually still important in this day and age? The simple answer - Absolutely. But why? Find out as April Dunford highlights many of the key points found in her new book #ObviouslyAwesome and imparts her many years of positioning wisdom on to us in this episode. Be sure to check April out at h…

1
Mean People Suck | Michael Brenner 33:09

4+ y ago33:09

33:09

Listen in as Michael Brenner and Alan Quarry chat about everything from Champion Leadership to the LEGO brand, the kindness rule to the Pelaton scandal before the holidays. And the underlying theme that ties all of these things together - empathy. If you can think and feel like the customer, you win.…

1
Creating Disruptive Leaders | Charlene Li 30:18

4+ y ago30:18

30:18

Charlene will always tell you to “begin with the end in mind” but what does that mean? In her new book, The Disruption Mindset: Why Some Organizations Transform While Others Fail, explains just that. In this week's episode, Charlene and Alan discuss company culture and the movement of creating DISRUPTIVE LEADERS within organizations, so they will g…

1
Influence Marketing in the B2B Sector | Lee Odden 29:14

4+ y ago29:14

29:14

In today’s episode, Alan chat’s with Lee Odden on the emerging concept of Influence Marketing in the B2B sector. Lee is a B2B marketing strategist, author, internationally known keynote speaker, and CEO of a digital marketing organization called TopRank Marketing.

1
X: The Experience when Business meets Design | Brian Solis 13:46

4+ y ago13:46

13:46

Experience Architecture. And how to become an experience architect!? You won’t want to miss this throwback episode with top digital analyst, futurist and award-winning author, @BrianSolis as he discusses his book ‘X: The Experience When Business Meets Design” Brian discusses the importance of ensuring that data is HUMANIZED. The data tells a story.…

1
Creating a Legacy of Serial Entrepreneurship & Startup Mentoring | Axonify’s Carol Leaman 25:07

4+ y ago25:07

25:07

CEO of Axonify and Alan’s entrepreneurial heroine, Carol Leaman, stops by to discuss her growing business and her path of serial entrepreneurship. What began as an eLearning platform has transformed into a fully equipped knowledge platform, using gamification and brain science to deliver, share, measure and apply knowledge. The company has picked u…

1
Everybody Writes | Ann Handley 11:11

4+ y ago11:11

11:11

Ann Handley is a veteran of creating and managing digital content to build relationships for organizations and individuals. Ann is the author of the Wall Street Journal bestseller ‘Everybody Writes: Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content. She is the chief content officer of MarketingProfs; a columnist for Entrepreneur magazine; a Li…

1
Beyond Artificial Intelligence: Artificial Empathy | Glen Drummond 19:12

4+ y ago19:12

19:12

In this episode of AQ’s Blog & Grill, Alan chats with long-time colleague and friend Glen Drummond about a potential, slippery slope of AI and other emerging, predictive technology. “Empathy is an essential and defining human quality,” says Glen. And, more than that, we’re hard-wired to respond to empathy. So, what happens when there’s a disconnect…

1
Marketing Advice for Start-ups to Become Stay-ups | April Dunford 19:30

4+ y ago19:30

19:30

She’s the CEO of Sprint.ly, a marketing mentor and angel investor who started her hurricane of entrepreneurial activities by studying engineering. In this episode of AQ’s Blog & Grill, April Dunford shares her experiences going from an engineer to a marketing genius. Alan and April discuss marketing strategy vs. tactics, creating the right metrics …

1
Reinventing the Marketing Consulting Model | Scott Gillum 14:36

4+ y ago14:36

14:36

A nimble marketing services consultancy? You betcha. Scott Gillum, the founder of Carbon Design, has built consulting success around working differently. Carbon Design delivers value-based services thanks to its team of carbonistas. Lean. Efficient. Non-dependent. These are, says Scott, the keys to successfully navigating the future of work. In thi…

1
Content Marketing Isn't Enough | Gary Vaynerchuk aka Gary Vee 10:23

4+ y ago10:23

10:23

Gary Vaynerchuk, the hardest working man in social media, talks about how he takes time to engage with his audience on social media and how content marketing is overflowing on the internet. He touches on his worries that young entrepreneurs think business is easy, the fairness of capitalism, how he built his brand, and how he is creating a scalable…

1
Life Lessons from a Wise Guy | Guy Kawasaki 21:47

4+ y ago21:47

21:47

A big AQ’s Blog & Grill “Welcome Back” to Guy Kawasaki. While he may have hung up his hockey skates and taken up surfing, he’s still giving it his A-game in his new book Wise Guy: Lessons from a Life. In this episode, Guy shares how he’s in the “sweet spot.” That time when he’s acquired knowledge - and not yet lost it. Alan and Guy have a chat abou…

1
How Technology is Enabling Customized Work Experiences | Kiite's Joseph Fung 20:23

4+ y ago20:23

20:23

Joseph Fung understands that hard work, sweat and tears plays a role in startups, but putting yourself out there is a huge factor in success. After consulting with an advisor at Waterloo’s Communitech, Joseph found success with his first startup, TribeHR. He went on to sell TribeHR to Netsuite, the first major chapter in his road to serial entrepre…

1
True North 2019: Richard Yim - The Battle of Tech for Social Good 15:54

5+ y ago15:54

15:54

Richard Yim - The Battle of Tech for Social GoodWhat is Tech for good? In this digital age, innovating for good needs to be more firmly and deeply fixed among all Canadian industries, companies and organizations. Richard Yim, CEO of Dehmine Robotics breaks down his experience in the battle of Tech for social good.truenorthwaterloo.com…

1
True North 2019: Marylin Ma - The True Story of AI is Still Being Written 2:58

5+ y ago2:58

2:58

Building on last year, our conversations at #TrueNorth19 will focus on how tech can be used for good. From last year's show, here's Marilyn Ma talking about the story of AI and how it's still being written.*The Leaders Prize, unveiled at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, will be awarded to a winning team solving a problem of global s…

1
True North 2018 - AI And Machine Learning Programming 1:38:45

6y ago1:38:45

1:38:45

AI promises an exciting future. The upside is massive. It has the potential to help us solve the most obnoxious problems plaguing humanity. We could see giant leaps forward in medicine, manufacturing, transportation, biotech, agriculture, government, and on and on. No more crappy jobs. Maybe we’ll even get those flying cars we were promised.But we …

1
Building a Successful Social Media Centred Business | Jane Barkley of IM@Events 20:04

7+ y ago20:04

20:04

From personal brand to event media, Jane Barkley – founder and CEO of IM@Events – is a powerhouse of marketing talents. Jane joins Alan in this episode of AQ’s Blog & Grill to share her path to success and how others can do the same. Jane founded IM@Events after uncovering a need in the event industry to produce and execute event coverage from fro…

1
Norm Clare | How Technology is Transforming The Brand Experience 20:12

7+ y ago20:12

20:12

Norm Clare of Quarry Integrated Communications joins Alan to share his insight into key technologies that are shaking up brands in this era of digital transformation. Norm is the VP of Marketing Technology Strategy and as Alan puts it, is a great synthesizer of what technology could do and what it actually does. Norm speaks to the buyer’s journey a…

1
Amber Mac | Outsmarting Your Kids Online 14:05

7+ y ago14:05

14:05

Speaker, author and social media thought-leader Amber Mac joins us in studio to discuss her book ‘Outsmarting Your Kids Online’. She shares a bit about the process of self-publishing the work with co-author Michael Bazzell after being inspired by Guy Kawasaki. A book, a business, TV and radio shows and a busy social life is a lot to balance. Amber …

1
Michael Popovich | Advancing Public Health Outcomes Through Information Technology 19:08

7+ y ago19:08

19:08

Michael Popovich, CEO of STC (Scientific Technologies Corporation), caught up with Alan Quarry to discuss the changes in information technology and how they can be used to save lives. STC began as an IT company in the consulting realm, but after a design consult for an immunization registry had them building the software themselves, the firm wound …

1
Rhapsody Barrel Bar in Downtown Kitchener 17:47

7+ y ago17:47

17:47

Tammy Lawrence describes how she came to open this popular downtown venue and a bit about the food and music.By Andrew Coppolino

1
Communitech's Iain Klugman talks food and restaurants 13:48

7+ y ago13:48

13:48

Klugman talks about food and restaurants and why they are important to a robust city and business sector.By Andrew Coppolino

1
Rob Theodosiou talks about the new Abe Erb 12:41

7+ y ago12:41

12:41

The new Abe Erb at The Tannery is open!By Andrew Coppolino

1
Langdon Hall's Brie Dema Talks Sparkling Wine 14:31

7+ y ago14:31

14:31

Langdon Hall sommelier Brie Dema talks about Champagne and sparkling wine, the differences between the two, pairing with food, and the quality of Ontario sparklers.By Andrew Coppolino

1
Alex Kinsella talks about food and the Kitchener restaurant scene 19:45

7+ y ago19:45

19:45

A talk with Alex Kinsella of Communitech in Kitchener, Ontario.By Andrew Coppolino

1
David Marskell at THEMUSEUM on Food 13:08

7+ y ago13:08

13:08

THEMUSEUM CEO David Marskell talks about food, cooking, downtown Kitchener restaurants and old cook books.By Andrew Coppolino

1
Jay Park: Langdon Hall Senior Chef de Partie 11:39

7+ y ago11:39

11:39

A chat with Langdon Hall Senior Chef de Partie Jay Park: he loves cooking, baseball and Jagermeister.By Andrew Coppolino

1
Nick Benninger of Taco Farm Co. 20:53

7+ y ago20:53

20:53

A talk with Nick Benninger about his taco business and food in general.By Andrew Coppolino

1
Foraging with Cambridge Chef Steve Allen 9:09

7+ y ago9:09

9:09

A mushroom foraging adventure on the banks of the Grand River.By Andrew Coppolino

1
Cafe Pyrus beats the LRT construction odds 20:56

8y ago20:56

20:56

A talk with Cafe Pyrus owner Tyzun James. Ethical sourcing, community leadership and healthy eating is what they do so well. And damn good coffee.By Andrew Coppolino

1
C'est Cheese Please! 21:07

8y ago21:07

21:07

A talk with Wendi Yates of C'est Cheese Please! in Galt, Cambridge.By Andrew Coppolino

1
Kurtis McBride | Building Smart Cities with Agile, Data-Based Solutions 15:21

8y ago15:21

15:21

Entrepreneurship is usually focused on solving problems and the story of Miovision does not stray from that mentality. As a co-op student from the University of Waterloo, Kurtis McBride spent weekends manually counting cars at intersections. The common entrepreneurial phrase eventually crept through his mind – “There needs to be a better way.” Now,…

1
Michael Litt | Vidyard Changes the Content Game | AQ's Blog & Grill 20:18

8y ago20:18

20:18

It’s been three years since we caught up with Vidyard’s Chief Executive Officer, Michael Litt, so we’ve pulled him into the AQ studio to discuss the dramatic growth and success of the five-year-old start-up. We start with the facts on what Vidyard does, how they do it and how their clients are benefiting. Michael and Alan discuss the challenges tha…

1
Alex Mustakas | How This Entrepreneur Became one of Canada’s Greatest Arts Success Stories 17:16

8y ago17:16

17:16

Alex Mustakas, Chief Entertainment Officer of Drayton Entertainment, joins us to discuss arts, business and the glorious combination of the two. Alex shares the inspiring story behind Drayton Entertainment and how he used both his creative side and business mind to become an entrepreneurial success in arts. Twenty-five years ago, a small community …

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