22 Apr 2019 Spotlight on i-onCONNECT
Describe your company and its product.
i-onCONNECT is a high-tech company that links innovation to industry by helping you develop your products and grow your business. We offer hands-on research, product & technology development, and services ranging from mechanical design to product visualization, investor readiness, technology brokerage, and programs.
What year did your company start?
2017
Which city (or cities) are you located?
Burnaby, BC
Describe your company culture in three words.
- Innovation
- Integrity
- Collaboration
How do you celebrate company or employee wins?
The company provides a thank you lunch and snacks over team building sessions.
What is the problem that you are trying to solve?
- Creating a platform that provides services to support start-ups, entrepreneurs and SME’s who need to build hardware prototyping. This is accomplished by connecting these individuals and businesses with industry leaders to help them grow their business.
- Assisting and supporting an array of clients to FastTrack technology and product development projects with engineering qualifications, product development, TechLab space, investor readiness.
- Developing strategies to secure financing for our clients who need to do customer and market validation as part of their commercialization plan.
What is your biggest milestone to date?
Strategic partnerships with industry and governmental organizations that support innovation to commercialization across Canada. For example, Mitacs, ReMAP.
What is your biggest challenge?
- Brand awareness and exposure to the unique services that we provide for companies needing assistance in product development and hardware prototyping.
- Identifying government and private financing to support the growth of start-ups and SME’s with innovative projects
What is your motto?
Linking innovation to industry
How are you making an impact?
Developing a novel business model that allows our clients to implement their innovation to commercialization plan based on defined customer needs.
What is your hope for the future of tech in BC?
We hope that BC will become a hub where local tech startups, SME’s and entrepreneurs come to commercialize their tech innovations for local and international markets. We also hope that BC will be the place that supports training and mentoring for businesses at all levels with targeted services in order to retain local tech jobs.
Lightning Round with Ernest Daddey, Managing Director, CTO of i-onCONNECT
What excites you about your job?
The passion I have for innovation and commercialization of technology solutions that solve industry problems. Also, seeing start-ups succeed through struggles to deliver a viable business model in multiple markets.
What was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome?
Building a successful operational delivery system and maintaining high-performance morale within the team.
If you can give advice to your 20-year-old self, what would you say?
Have a well-defined plan in delivering anything you do and build a network of resources to help you along the journey. Always try new things quickly and never be afraid to fail.
What are your pet peeves?
Poor and untimely communication
Words of wisdom to other tech CEOs or founders?
Think locally and dream globally
Favourite city you visited?
Colmar, Alsace, France
What is your formula for success?
Passion, preparation, planning, productivity and performance through perseverance
Name one book that everyone should read.
The power of intention – by Dr Wayne Dyer
How do you decompress?
- Cooking for friends and family
- Walking and having healthy conversations
Favourite movie?
A Space Odyssey