Thought Leaders

It’s an amazing time to be a Detroiter. Yes, the city has its fair share of challenges, but its reputation is on the rise. As noted in a recent PR News article about Detroit’s renaissance, “Behind every rehabbed reputation lies really hard work, dedicated individuals and, of course, some strategic...

In a future where tradition weaves seamlessly with innovation, my dialogue with Dr. Saeed Al Dhaheri unfolds, rich in insight and vision. This isn’t just an exchange of ideas; it’s a deep dive into the life of a visionary committed to guiding us through the complexities of tomorrow. As the...

Winning in the Transparency Era Workplace equity has taken on new urgency in today’s era of public salary ranges, pay gap reporting laws, voluntary disclosures by leading global companies, and investor scorecards. Every measure of how you value your people is now on display. This includes pay, performance, promotions, and...

If we go back in History the invention of the wheel was a tremendous innovation. If we think about the future the spaceship that will transport human beings to a planet outside of the solar system will be a new unbelievable innovation. There are of course innovations of a smaller...

From within these pages you will be introduced to many of the visionaries and innovators who call our city home and are changing the world through work and research being done at some of our world renowned institutions such as MaRS Discovery District, the University of Toronto, and University Health...

Nashville has always been a great place for members of the creative class. It has more than its fair share of the spirit of innovation and, as I was told when I moved here, more recording studios than bars and more microphones than people. And while the artistic creativity is...

The most powerful way to stop people from dying of cancer is to stop cancer from taking hold in the first place. That’s why researchers across Ontario are studying why and how cancer develops, looking back to the days before the first cancer cell divides to drive life-saving advancements in...

I started focusing on the technology sector in the mid -90s when I joined a large national law firm in Vancouver. Over the span of 25+ years, I have been a lawyer, co-founder of a software company, President of the BC Premier’s Technology Council, CEO of a fintech company, Senior...

Kookai Chaimahawong Associate “IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO BUILD GREAT COMPANIES, ESPECIALLY IN HARD TECH. VANCOUVER IS THE VILLAGE WITH A WORLD-CLASS PARTNER ECOSYSTEM THAT ARE HUNGRY TO SEE FOUNDERS AND STARTUP COMPANIES SUCCEED”. – KOOKAI CHAIMAHAWONG, ASSOCIATE I moved to Vancouver in 2017 to pursue my Master of Business...

DK Sugiyama’s journey across continents shapes his vision of tomorrow. Our dialogue explores the profound insights of a man whose life story reads like a blueprint for global connectivity and cultural integration. Born in Tokyo and having spent his formative years in New York, DK’s current focus is on Dubai,...

I have looked at this quote for many years in a row. It was on a board as part of my office decor when I worked in a regional position. And I always felt it reflects my thinking. To be results driven has helped me navigate different roles and different...

While many people are preoccupied about the potential risks if digital asset innovations succeed, what are the risks if we fail? Billions of people are relegated to the financial shadows because analog financial services have reached a point of diminishing returns, which would be a terrible societal outcome. I advocate...

I’ve always believed that opportunity isn’t what you have – it’s what you use. And most people never scratch the surface of their own. We wait. We overthink. We hesitate. We look around for someone to tell us that we’re ready, that we’ve earned it, that we’re allowed to go....

Logistics is facing important sustainability and capacity problems. The changing buying behaviour of the consumer, predominantly accelerated by the steep growth of e-commerce, is leading to increasingly smaller, but more frequent and ever faster deliveries. This fragmentation of deliveries is heavily boosting the need for transport capacity, while the shorter...

When pioneering educator and entrepreneurial advocate, Edward Cohen passed away in 2019, the State of New Jersey lost a veritable lion of education and technological entrepreneurship. Over 30 years ago, Cohen understood that to revitalize the State’s flagging economy, a fuse had to be lit forging the sectors of higher...

Innovation goes beyond creating something new; it’s about making a meaningful difference. My journey, from Pakistan to the World Bank and into the realms of technology and communications, has been driven by this ethos. The turning point was recognizing gaming’s potential as a tool for impactful communication. With a background...

This headline accompanied Washington Post nationally-syndicated columnist Neal Peirce’s column on St. Louis, following the completion of our BioBelt Strategy in 2000. Then in 2019, economists from the  Brookings Institution noted that “To succeed in the global economy, cities must invest in what makes them unique.” My now 40+ year...

A new era of residential energy management is emerging in Australia in response to rising energy prices and environmental concerns. Driven by ‘prosumers’, so named as they both produce and consume resources, including energy, this emerging market has the potential to reshape homes of the future and it has already...

I obviously knew of the proximity to the Rocky Mountains, but I didn’t know about all the wonders such as the Drumheller Valley, Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park and Jasper National Park. I also didn’t know that Calgary is the third most diverse major city in Canada. Or that in 2022 it...

Is it possible to put a price on innovation? Not really. I mean, how do you put a price on something that is in essence non-tangible? And how do we know what the real value of innovation is? It is sadly something that is all too often underappreciated because innovation...

The business day begins in New Brunswick an hour before our colleagues in Montreal and Toronto get started. I think that’s appropriate, because from the age of sail to today’s AI revolution, our entrepreneurs have been working at the forefront of innovation, international trade and technological change. New Brunswick has...

Jobs are changing and evolving faster than anyone expected and humanity needs to embrace technology to accelerate for the better. People need more tools to upskill themselves out of poverty and away from the jobs robots will take. My vision is to create the tools to upskill humanity faster and...

The 21st Century is destined to be a watershed moment in human history. Our lack of timely action to thwart Global Warming will push us to the paramount of our human ingenuity. Will we rise to the challenge and preserve our institutions, global markets, and industries as we know them?...

Health and health care is something that impacts every single one of us, whether we want it to or not. In Alberta, we have seen tremendous developments in how health care is delivered and in the availability of innovative solutions to better manage care. At the same time, it feels...