You just never know where things might lead – that’s one of the many exciting aspects of innovation and entrepreneurship.
Now, some of Canada’s most innovative and entrepreneurial students are sharing in that excitement, as they’ve been named as national winners in a global entrepreneur competition, and they will go on to compete at an international level.
Yes, prize money and pro bono business services are available to the winner, but so too, the chance to meet and interact with other innovators and tech developers, adding the as-yet unknown as a possible reward.
“Adding to the tremendous excitement of competing with my fellow finalists,” said Derek Rucki, CEO and Co-founder of a new company called TLink, “is the opportunity to connect with prominent EO members who might see potential in my idea.”
Rucki, a student at Mount Royal University, will head off to Washington DC in April, as part of the EO, the Entrepreneurs’ Organization, and its Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA) competition.
Rucki is the Student Winner of their first-ever Canadian National Competition. Zach Wolff, a University of Manitoba Asper Business School grad, took home the title of Graduate Student Winner for his company Exigence Technologies; he too will head to Washington.
Among the winners of Canadian regional competitions, and now as national winners, they will compete at a global level for $50,000 in cash and in-kind services.
But again, there’s the possibility of an even greater pay-off, Wolff says: “Having the opportunity to share my vision with EO members was an energizing experience, and I was overwhelmed by the wealth of positive feedback on my strategy. The people I’ve met through this event have generously shared their knowledge and wisdom, which I will continue draw on as I build my venture.”
Wolff has worked with other entrepreneurs and innovators, helping to commercialize their inventions, but he also works on his own venture, about saving lives. Exigence develops antimicrobial material to fight bacteria.
Canadian innovation fights microbial infection
The chemical compound he’s developed can be applied to textiles and other materials directly, helping fight spread of infections.
More than 220,000 Canadians, 1.7 million Americans and 4.1 million Europeans acquire a Healthcare Associated Infection (HAI) every year, and more than 147,000 die as a result. In spite of massive hand-washing initiatives and hard surface cleaning, hospitals and other healthcare institutions have been unable to contain the spread of drug-resistant pathogens, but Wolff has a new idea that’s now being widely recognized and well supported.
Rucki is talking on a battle of another sort, but he’s also hoping for some similar recognition and support for his development.
He’s not only in an innovation and entrepreneurship program, he’s an avid golfer.
Having played hundreds of rounds with amateur golfer friends who wore clunky GPS golf watches, he saw an opportunity for a much more lightweight wearable, along the lines of his Livestrong band.
TLink golf accessories developed in Canada
He had the idea of combining Bluetooth and a GPS app to give the same front, middle and back of the green yardages as the watch. Golfers have to simply connect their TLink to their phone via Bluetooth, open up the GPS app, select the course that they are playing and put their phone away for the round. Pressing the button on the device once displays the updated yardage information as well as the hole and par, and holding down the button switches to the next hole.
Rucki, and his cofounder partner and CTO Stefan Radeta, have also been learning and growing with shared advice from other entrepreneurs and tech start-ups back home in Alberta, and their participation in local ‘hack-a-thons’ and company start-up programming at the business incubator, Startup Calgary.
Judged for the Canadian nationals included other well-known entrepreneurs, like Lavalife’s Bruce Croxon and Century 21’s Peter Thomas; business leaders and other members from the Toronto chapter of Entrepreneurs’ Organization joined in.
“This was the inaugural Canadian National competition and we were honoured to host it in Toronto,” said Steve Kearley, Canadian GSEA Chair. “We were impressed and inspired by the level of passion that each of the finalists brought to the room. Although any one of our competitors could have taken home the prize, Derek Rucki’s innovation and adaptability became the deciding factor.”
The Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) is a global, peer-to-peer network of more than 10,000 influential business owners with 144 chapters in 46 countries, founded in 1987.
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submitted by Lee Rickwood
