November 21, 2015Burlington, ON

CONTENTSSPONSORS

ADDRESS FROM THE CHAIRPERSON

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

FACILITATORS

SESSIONS

CONFERENCE VENUE

CONFERENCE WEEKEND

COMMITTEE

CONTACT US

2

3

4

5-7

8-10

11

12

13

14

OUR SPONSORS

Startup Exhibit Sponsor

Ticket Sponsors

In‐Kind Sponsors

Event Sponsors

2

22

FROM THE CHAIR

It is my great pleasure to welcome all of you to the 2015 ACTION Conference. To our returning

speakers and delegates: thank you for joining us again. Your continual feedback has directly

shaped this conference.

ACTION and its underlying philosophies are based on my experiences at Stanford University’s

Graduate School of Business and my desire to help imbue the Canadian startup movement

with the essences of what has made west coast innovation so successful. Over time, we have

adjusted our offerings to reflect your current needs. This year, you will find an incredible

offering of immersive workshops ranging from the ideation stage to investor engagement ­ but

only four slots for them!

Amidst all the excitement today, do not forget those around you. We have deliberately

punctuated the agenda with plenty of time for networking. Do not be shy about yourself and

your ideas! Be sure to introduce yourself to the speakers, fellow conference attendees, and

members of the organizing committee.

This conference would not have been possible without the generous financial support of our

many sponsors, in addition to the intellectual generosity of our talented facilitators. Their strong

interests in positively shaping Canada’s entrepreneurial ecosystem as leaders and mentors

have brought them here today.  

Finally, remember that we live in both challenging and fortuitous times. There is no shortage of

daily perturbing news stories. At the same time, the tools to create solutions to these problems

and creatively collaborate have never been more abundant or accessible. It truly comes down

to our perspectives and how we capitalize on events around us.

Enjoy this year’s conference! I hope that it helps you develop your startup skills, improve your

knowledge, and expand your network.

Best wishes,

Nikolaus Jewell

ACTION Conference Chair

WELCOME TO ACTION CONFERENCE 2015!

3

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Bjoern was born in Germany, and hasbecome a recognized entrepreneur andan expert on data products forbusinesses, performance benchmarking,and business ecosystems. He hasextensive business experience, both inthe corporate realm, as an executive inRussia, and in the startup world, as afounder of five for- and non-profitventures in Germany, Bangladesh, andthe United States. Most recently, his teamand him have set out to decrease themassive failure rate of businesses bytransforming the business world frominstinct to data-driven. The first productCompass.co now serves tens of thousandsof software businesses around the world.Its success has been covered in theEconomist, WSJ, PBS, ARD, Techcrunch,Wired, and Forbes.

Gerald Weiner, in 1971, founded anational company to work exclusivelywith the middle and high risk self-employed which became PennCorp LifeInsurance Company and La CapitaleFinancial Services in 2004 purchasedthe company. In 2005 he helpeddevelop eLogic Learning and in 2006founded Landmark ASP Solutions. Jerry,as he likes to be called, believes inmaintaining harmony with mind, bodyand spirit, and works out forapproximately two hours everymorning. He strives to be in his US orCanadian office by 7 a.m. “Havingpurpose and passion is what keeps anyentrepreneur moving forward andhaving fun”

GERALD WEINER

BJOERN HERRMANN

4

FACILITATORS

LOTFI BELKHIR CAROL CHONG MUSTAFA DOSSAJEE

Founder & CEOJaguar Capital

Chief Education OfficerQuanser

GERARD BUCKLEY TOM LEE

Associate ProfessorMcMaster University

DirectorSklar Wilton & Associates

PartnerSB Partners LLP

HOME GROWN TALENT

5

FACILITATORS

CHARLES MIRE RON NEUMANN

DirectorSklar, Wilton & Associates

CEOSPEAK & IMPRESS!

LAURIE THOMPSON ROBERT VALLEE

CEOStructur3D Printing

Founder & CEOVistaShift

PartnerRidout & Maybee LLP

STEVE LEACH

HOME GROWN TALENT

6

FACILITATORS

CHRIS LIPPPitch CoachPitchpower

Chief Technology OfficerOmniPhy

CLAUDE GAUTHIERCEO

Recovery Record

JENNA TREGARTHEN

TALENT FROM THE VALLEY

7

SESSIONS

Launching and Growing a Hardware Startup

This session will discuss groundwork for launching a hardware startup, from earlyvalidation to working prototype to product launch, manufacturing, and shipping.Growing your hardware company after the initial stage will be covered, along withfundraising (crowdfunding and investment). Many topical startup lessons will beshared.

You want to grow your personal brand. Every time you present yourself, you wantpeople to say: "That was impressive!". Your 30-seconds story is all you have tocapture interest in what you offer. This session will enable you to introduce yourselfand showcase your value to potential clients and business associates. It is only thebeginning of your rise to recognition and fame. Learn and enjoy.

Wouldn't it be great to nurture your start-up without giving it away to investorsbefore even having a prototype? To have a customer on board from day one? Thissession will focus on a unique blueprint for creating and leveraging strategicpartnerships - a blueprint that Dr. Gauthier applied when he co-founded OmniPhy, aprivately held semiconductor company he launched in 2012. OmniPhy started with asingle strategic customer and has grown to become a multi-million dollar business,with 75 employees, servicing technology giants in the consumer, automotive, andindustrial markets.

Ever wish there was an opportunity to quickly learn design thinking? Roll up yoursleeves for an experiential design-challenge. Follow a human-centered designapproach that emphasizes empathy-building and action-oriented prototyping asmechanisms for deeply and accurately understanding users’ needs, and buildingcreative solutions to address them. Attendees will work in multidisciplinary teams tolearn how to design new services that achieve product-market-fit by addressing areal-world problem.

Speak & Impress While Networking!

Bootstrapped! The Art of Creating Strategic Growth Partnerships

Design‐Thinking and Business Model Development (1 hour)

Charles Mire, PhD - CEO, Structur3D Printing

Robert Vallee - CEO, SPEAK & IMPRESS!

Claude Gauthier, PhD - CTO, OmniPhy

Jenna Tregarthen - CEO and Founder, Recovery Record

8

SESSIONS

Negotiating Term Sheets

This workshop will break down the essentials of a term sheet, examine commonsticking points and ways in which you can lose control of your company and prepareyou to negotiate the the terms you can lose control of your company this workshopwill break down the essentials of a term sheet, examine common sticking points andways in which you can lose control of your company and prepare you to negotiate theterms yourself.

The session will provide a general overview of Canadian patent disclosurerequirements, followed by a detailed analysis of the concepts of reasonablespeculation and overclaiming, and an overview of experimental design.

Cash is the fuel for building a strong business. Many companies are profitable withrevenue on the books but with no money in the bank they’re cash poor. By notrespecting that ‘cash is king’, business owners can miss payments, payroll or evenendure bankruptcy. Adequate cash flow is integral to ensuring a business is actuallyoperating as strongly as it may look on income statements and balance sheets.Join Mustafa Dossajee from SB Partners who will share what you need to know tokeep on top of cash flow. How are you generating it? Where is it being used and howmuch do you really have?

How will you differentiate yourself from the competition? In this workshop, Carol &Laurie will leverage their experience in developing strategic plans for some of theworld’s biggest brands to help you build your startup brand. Using relevant casestudies to illustrate the importance of branding, you will create a draft of your brandvision, your key target, their needs & wants, and what differentiates you from thecompetition.

Invention Disclosures for Maximum Effect

Cash is King: Practical Cash Flow Management in Startups

Building a Kick‐A@#! Brand Strategy

Lotfi Belkir, PhD - Associate Professor, McMaster University

Steven Leach, JD - Partner, Ridout & Maybee

Mustafa Dossajee, CPA, CA - Partner, SB Partners LLB

Carol Chong & Laurie Thompson - Director, Sklar Wilton & Associates

9

SESSIONS

The Ins and Outs of Money ‐ Planning for Funding and Exits

Money makes the world go round - it is the life blood of a business. There are manypotential sources of funding for your business and each has different advantages anddisadvantages. Which one should you choose? In this session, Ron, a serial Canadianentrepreneur with multiple successful exits, including ones to RIM and Google, willdistill his decades of experience in building, funding, and selling companies. He willexplore what helps and hinders efforts to procure these different sources of funding,the subtleties of such dealmaking, and what investors look for in these case.

Learn the pitch Silicon Valley startups use to win funding. Over 90% of fundedstartups use the same formula. It's almost impossible to win funding without it. Thissession shares the formula and gives you the chance to improve your pitch during theworkshop.

Valuation is a blend of art and science. Its subjective nature can lead to largevariations in estimates amongst different interested parties. In this session, you willexplore common situations in which a pre-revenue company requires a valuation.You will also become will familiar with factors that impact an investor’s valuation andsome of the popular methods used to estimate a valuation.

How do you sell? What does success look like? What would you like on your pizza?These three questions have guided me throughout my career as a niche technologymarketer. This session will introduce young entrepreneurs to ways to deal with someof the most challenging aspects of marketing. Much is drawn from my 30+ yearsapplying my engineering background to business. As often as possible, I'll engage theaudience in open discussion to make the session as productive as possible.

The Startup Pitch: A Proven Formula to Win Funding

Venture Valuation: Reality Check

The Three most Profound Questions in my Marketing Career

Ron Neumann - CEO & Founder, VistaShift

Chris Lipp, Author of "The Startup Pitch" - Pitch Coach, Pitchpower

Gerard Buckley, BBA, FICB, CMC, ICD.D, Acc. Dir. - Managing Director, Jaguar Capital Inc.

Tom Lee, PhD - Chief Education Officer, Quanser

10

VENUE4350 South Service Rd, Burlington, ON(between Appleby Line and Walker's Line)

Ron Joyce Centre

Shuttle buses will be provided

from Appleby Go station,

McMaster University's DeGroote

School of Business, and Hamilton

Go station. Buses will leave at

7:30AM and 7:45AM from each of

these locations in efforts to arrive

on time.

From Toronto: Take the QEW or

407 Westbound. Take the

Appleby Line exit and turn left and

head south (toward Lake Ontario).

At the traffic signal turn right onto

Harvester Road. Next, turn right

onto South Service Road (street

after Zelco Drive).

Free parking is available at the

Ron Joyce Centre. Should the lot

be full, please notify one of the

event organizers.

Shuttle Bus

Driving Directions

Parking

11

WEEKEND EVENTSPre‐Conference Networking EventFriday, November 20th, 8-10pm

3330 S Service Rd, Burlington, ON

Join us at one of Burlington's premiere nightlife spotsto meet fellow the committee members, a fewspeakers, and your fellow conference delegates! Thereis a cash bar available, but we will provide some lightsnacks on us!

Please note that this venue has a dress code (businesscasual/classy; no ripped jeans, t-shirtsa, hats, runningshoes), and the venue becomes 25+ after 10pm.

Post‐Conference After‐PartySaturday, November 21, 9:30pm107 George St, Hess Village, Hamilton, ON

Once the excitement dies down and the lights go outin the RJC, there's no reason to stop the party! Takethe shuttle bus back to Hamilton, and meet yourcolleagues at legendary Hess Village for a night ofsocializing and snacks!

Please note that while the shuttle bus will drop youoff at Hamilton GO or McMaster University, theshuttle will not be available for post-partytransportation.

12

COMMITTEE

ZACK MUQTADIR PHILIP ZIMNYSocial Media Coordinator Quebec Relations Coordinator

ChairpersonNIK JEWELL ANDREW SCULLION MELANIE RODRIGUES

Website Coordinator Manager

13

Registration CoordinatorLIS MELO DANIEL DINIZO DILLON MULCAHY

Marketing Coordinator Speakers Coordinator

If you have anyquestions or issues on

the day of theconference, find oneof us and let us know!

CONTACT US

www.actionconference.comactionconferenceontario@gmail.com

WEBSITE:EMAIL:

ACTION Conference 2015

@ACTIONConf2015

Actionconference

ACTION Conference

Have any questions or comments?Drop us a line! We would love to hear your feedback on wentwent well and not-so-well in this year's conference. We arealways happy to chat about new ideas, interests, andopportunities!

14