Weekly Roundup: What The Experts Think

Journalists only know as many answers as questions they ask. That is to say, we’re never subject matter experts, but we’re excellent at pretending to be.

This is why we love guest content: to hear it straight from the true experts escalates the value we can deliver to our readers. So this week, here’s a handful of mostly guest content we’ve run so far in 2017.

1. Most startups begin as an idea. Right now, countless would-be entrepreneurs are hunched over their laptops imagining new mousetraps they hope will become The Next Big Thing.  To turn that inspiration into a successful startup, a founder must focus on three critical priorities. From the millions of things you could pour time and energy into, these three are the most critical, according to Vidyard cofounder Michael Litt.

2. Information technologies are accelerating at an exponential rate, ushering in the fourth industrial revolution. This is a digital revolution and the pace of change is unprecedented. Mark Barrenechea, CEO of OpenText, dives deep in his vision of the future, fueled by the internet of things, machine learning, and you.

3. Banks must make a philosophical decision to work with financial technology startups or against them. Right now, they don’t know how to liaise with startups or to deploy solutions under short product cycles. Some advice from RateHub’s CMO might help baffled banks.

4. When it comes to tech startups, there are many ideas trying to gain traction and become successes in their own right. While a handful eventually grab headlines and even revolutionize industries, many more end up failing. That’s why tech entrepreneurs need to do whatever they can to increase their chances for success. However you approach it, there’s no single way to achieve the success you’re looking for. Instead, look at these tips as the starting point for what will hopefully be a long lasting successful entrepreneurial endeavor.

5. The pace of change in the information industry is impressive and exhausting. Information continues to grow at an exponential rate and is increasingly variable, diverse and noisy. As a technologist, these are exciting times. But, in an increasingly connected world with information traveling instantaneously and the rules of the game always changing, no one can afford to “wing it.”

6. Duncan Stewart, director of technology, media and telecommunications research at Deloitte Canada, has released his annual report on the future. We spoke with him to find out how today’s technology is expected to transform tomorrow.

7. In 2016 we witnessed cutting-edge innovation in emerging areas like artificial intelligence and virtual reality, and potent advances in traditional industries, all amid political turbulence. The skills to thrive in this rapidly changing environment are, no surprise, tech-focused. Master these six skills and a robot will never be able to replace you.

8. Killer Spaces was our favorite new series last year thanks to a sneak peek at just a few of the amazing offices we have coming in Killer Spaces in 2017.

9. The annual Canadian Startup Awards, now in their sixth year, are back and bigger than ever, with the addition of six all-new award categories. Nominations are now open.

10. Techfest, a unique recruiting event that connects hiring companies with tech talent in major cities, is returning to Toronto on January 19. The event for Techfest now.