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	<title>Growth Times &#187; Canadian entrepreneurs</title>
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	<link>http://www.growthtimes.com</link>
	<description>Growing Successful Businesses in Emerging Technologies</description>
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		<title>Troubling Facts about MaRS Discovery District (Part 4 of 4): Suggestions for Public Support to Entrepreneurs</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-4-of-4-suggestions-for-public-support-to-entrepreneurs/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-4-of-4-suggestions-for-public-support-to-entrepreneurs/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 27 Apr 2010 14:44:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bmep]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[communitech]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ilse treurnicht]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[innovation policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[irap]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mars advisors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mars discovery district]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oceta]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[OCRI]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario Network of Excellence]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public accountability]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public support]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ric]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sr&ed]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[venture capital]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.growthtimes.com/?p=436</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[As my previous posts show, Ontario’s current hub-centric model for promoting innovation and entrepreneurship is expensive, unfair, and ineffective. The Minister of Research and Innovation should take note and explore alternative models, rather than continuing to pour taxpayer’s dollars into an expanding bureaucratic network with high fixed costs and built-in inefficiencies.
The Chamber of Commerce in [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Troubling Facts about MaRS Discovery District (Part 3.5 of 4)</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-3-5-of-4/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-3-5-of-4/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 23 Apr 2010 02:59:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[canada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[communitech]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mars]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mars discovery district]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oce]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[OCRI]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.growthtimes.com/?p=413</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In my previous posts, I took a good look at the MaRS Discovery District, to raise attention on the meager $400+K salary of the institution's CEO, the restrictive $130M in subsidies, the crystal transparency of grant decisions, the real estate successes, the tireless dedication of a selfless network of underpaid advisors mostly stemming from the visible minorities of our beloved city, the fantastic public-private partnership and synergies of the hub with private incubators and providers, and the focus on supporting actual start-ups as opposed to associating with companies on a proven winning trajectory that could make for great political advertising.

Well, I am glad to report today that Waterloo's Communitech is well on its way to becoming a success story itself. ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-3-5-of-4/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Troubling Facts about MaRS Discovery District (Part 3 of 4)</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-3-of-4/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-3-of-4/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 14 Apr 2010 12:52:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[commercialization]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[entrepreneurship]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[incubators]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mars discovery district]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[marsdd]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[performance management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public accountability]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public-private partnerships]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[toronto]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.growthtimes.com/?p=364</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In the first two installments of this blog series, I looked into the massive salary of MaRS Discovery District's CEO, the  vast deficit in public reporting in spite of over $130M in public subsidies, the lack of performance management, the systemically poor results and low ROI, the lack of transparency of grant decisions and the reliance on intimidation and ostracization to silence critics.

Yesterday I published a companion post with extracts from the feedback  I received so far, the importance of whistleblowing in a healthy democracy, and the direct impact those who get more than their fair share (like the CEO of MaRS) should know they have on others, like entrepreneurs  who have to work another full-time job to make ends meet.

Now I will take a look into the claims by MaRS that it constitutes a "public-private partnership", and its expansion into the realm of private services.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-3-of-4/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Background Note on Whistleblowing (in Context of the Series on MaRS Discovery District)</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/background-note-on-whistleblowing-in-context-of-the-series-on-mars-discovery-district/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/background-note-on-whistleblowing-in-context-of-the-series-on-mars-discovery-district/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 13 Apr 2010 15:49:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[canada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[commercialization]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[entrepreneurship]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[executive compensation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mars discovery district]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[toronto]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.growthtimes.com/?p=338</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Since I started this series, I have received multiple emails of support from entrepreneurs -several of whom are "clients" of MaRS - and innovation practitioners. Here are some extracts: (...) 
A recurring theme in most of the emails of support communications is fear. There are many, many people agreeing that something is wrong with the MaRS approach, but most of them admit fearing the consequences on their reputation and revenue if they were to publicly express their thoughts.

There is something very wrong with our system if one can't put forward valid concerns without feeling threatened.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Troubling Facts about MaRS Discovery District (Part 2 of 4)</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-2-of-4/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-2-of-4/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 09 Apr 2010 13:35:59 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[innovation hubs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[innovation policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mars discovery district]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario government]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[toronto]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.growthtimes.com/?p=308</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Two days ago I wrote about the incredible $470K salary of the MaRS Discovery District CEO (also spouse to the UofT president), the $130M in subsidies the institution pocketed between 2002 and 2008, and the deficit in public reporting. Today I take a look into the results of all that spending.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-2-of-4/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Troubling Facts about MaRS Discovery District (Part 1 of 4)</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-1-of-4/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-1-of-4/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:34:55 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[innovation hubs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[innovation policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mars discovery district]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.growthtimes.com/?p=293</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The CEO of MaRS Discovery District in Toronto was paid $471,874 in 2008 and $437,500 in 2007. The information first surfaced in a 2008 MacLeans article on the President of UofT – who happens to be the husband of MaRS’s CEO and makes over $380K from UofT, before substantial benefits. That salary made MaRS’s CEO one of the highest-paid public employees in Ontario.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/04/troubling-facts-about-mars-discovery-district-part-1-of-4/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>In the &#8220;I Told You So&#8221; Series&#8230; Financial Post and the Ontario Emerging Technologies Matching Fund</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/01/in-the-i-told-you-so-series-financial-post-and-the-ontario-emerging-technologies-matching-fund/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/01/in-the-i-told-you-so-series-financial-post-and-the-ontario-emerging-technologies-matching-fund/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 13 Jan 2010 22:12:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fund]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Due diligence]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Financial Post]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Financial Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[innovation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Investment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Karen Mazurkewich]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ontario]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[venture capital]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.growthtimes.com/?p=252</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Karen Mazurkewich, Financial Post, in an interesting article on Monday entitled "The new uber-angels", declares on the Ontario Venture Capital Fund that "What Ontario didn't -- or couldn't -- predict was the lack of potential co-investors for these funds." 

Karen, I would invite you and Ontario's decision-makers to step up your due diligence and review Growth Times's August 4th, 2009 blog post entitled "Who Will Match Ontario’s $250M Emerging Technologies Matching Fund?".................

One thing Ontario and Canada really needs to get urgently, is that smart regulation has much more leverage than direct intervention. If Ontario really wants investments, it should work to repel section 116 to get American capital flowing here.
]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.growthtimes.com/2010/01/in-the-i-told-you-so-series-financial-post-and-the-ontario-emerging-technologies-matching-fund/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Video and Slides of Presentation on Sales Process and CRM Systems</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2009/11/video-and-slides-of-presentation-on-sales-process-and-crm-systems/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2009/11/video-and-slides-of-presentation-on-sales-process-and-crm-systems/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 13 Nov 2009 22:14:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Scale]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Angel investor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Customer relationship management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mississauga]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sales process]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.growthtimes.com/?p=222</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Last month I gave a presentation at the Research Innovation Center in Mississauga, looking at the topics I discussed in my last post, and presenting some implementation of a CRM system, which I did for a client.

The video of this presentation is now available at http://www.youtube.com/user/RICCentre and the slides are here: http://www.riccentre.com/images/Greg_Boutin.pdf 
]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>How does Canada Compete with the U.S. for Immigrant Tech Entrepreneurs?</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2009/10/how-does-canada-compete-with-the-u-s-for-immigrant-tech-entrepreneurs/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2009/10/how-does-canada-compete-with-the-u-s-for-immigrant-tech-entrepreneurs/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:53:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[canada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Entrepreneur]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[h1b]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[immigration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[permanent resident]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Silicon Valley]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[skilled workers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Start Up]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tech venture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[toronto]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[venture capital]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[visa]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.growthtimes.com/?p=170</guid>
		<description><![CDATA["A recently released study by the NVCA notes that (a) immigrants have started more than 25% of U.S. public companies that were formerly venture backed, and (b) more than 50% of the employment generated by U.S. public venture-backed companies has come from immigrant-founded companies like Intel, eBay, Yahoo!, and Sun.

The New York Times has also taken note, citing Harvard Law professor Vivek Wadhwa’s claim that 52.4% of today’s Silicon Valley startups have at least one foreign founder. US VCs are figuring that, to expand domestic deal flow, they need to expand the immigrant entrepreneur base."

Having lived in six countries including the U.S., I can tell for a fact that the amount of energy I deployed to learn about and obtain the visas and other administrative passes giving me the right to stay and to work is stupendous. In volume, it easily equals the time required to launch the operations of a start-up. This truly is wasted time. If the U.S. had made it easier for me to stay after my years at Stanford, I'd likely be there. I truly love Canada and Toronto is my favorite city in the world - but on a professional level, for tech entrepreneurs the environment is just not comparable to California. So the main advantage of Canada over the U.S., as Suzie points out, is that it is easier to immigrate as a skilled worker here.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.growthtimes.com/2009/10/how-does-canada-compete-with-the-u-s-for-immigrant-tech-entrepreneurs/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Talking on Techie-Biz Divide at Communitech Guelph on Sept. 3</title>
		<link>http://www.growthtimes.com/2009/08/talking-on-techie-biz-divide-at-communitech-guelph-on-sept-3/</link>
		<comments>http://www.growthtimes.com/2009/08/talking-on-techie-biz-divide-at-communitech-guelph-on-sept-3/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 31 Aug 2009 19:48:19 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Greg Boutin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[canada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[divide]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[entrepreneurship]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Guelph]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[innovation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[market development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[marketers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[product management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[start-ups]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tech divide]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[techies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[venture]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.torevenue.com/?p=120</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I will soon have another opportunity to test my beta talk on the Divide between Technologists and Business folks, and why that is the number one root cause of tech venture failure (see my slides - torn apart by Slideshare, here!). Communitech has kindly invited me again to speak, this time at their entrepreneur group in Guelph, where I currently reside.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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