By Cybele Negris

Continuing in my series around the Olympics and business, I spoke with Pascal Spothelfer , President & CEO of the BC Technology Industry Association, the organization that supports a membership of over 2100 companies from the diverse BC technology sector which collectively employs over 70,000 people in BC.

Spothelfer has been extremely busy attending receptions and events during the Olympics but was gracious to take time out of his schedule to speak with me. One of the key programs being run by BCTIA during the Olympics is the PODIUM program and I wanted to highlight the benefits and goals of what they are trying to achieve.  PODIUM is an Outreach Program designed to connect Olympic guests and media with potential business opportunities and media stories about the local technology sector.

The focus of the program is the PODIUM digital guide. This guide profiles over 140 technology companies in BC to showcase the talent and innovation that makes British Columbia a great place to live, work, study and invest. 

Spothelfer recognizes the attention and opportunity that the Olympics is bringing to BC but “the attention span is very short.  People are here for a short time and here primarily for the sports; business is the secondary consideration.  BCTIA has designed the program to capture sufficient bandwidth while people are here but will be combining it with proper follow-up afterwards.” He hopes the number of featured companies will increase from 140 to over 1000. The digital guide has already been distributed to consulates and governments around the world.

Spothelfer, President of BCTIA has a PhD in law and an MBA. He was previously President & CEO of Spectrum Signal Processing, a Vancouver-based provider of advanced wireless communication systems.

I was interested in Spothelfer’s perspective on the state of the technology sector in BC currently and where he thinks things will go post Olympics. "Based on the talent survey BCTIA completed recently, technology executives expect to reabsorb the people who were let go in 2008 and 2009 during the recession with recovery to 2007 levels."  He feels the sector is very vibrant and describes the “entrepreneurial groundswell.” He says, "the VC [venture capitalist] community has to now reload. Private equity funds may pick up some of the slack with access to very cheap money right now." He thinks good companies will continue to get funded but it is taking longer and it is harder to get the money. "CEO’s are spending more time getting funding and less time adding value to the company."

While BC is a beautiful place to live, Spothelfer, like so many in the business community feel the key for growth in the sector is to ensure we create an even more competitive environment for companies to operate.  He points out SR&ED [The Scientific Research and Experimental Development Tax Incentive Program – federal tax credit program to incent companies to do research/R&D in Canada] as a positive example.

BCTIA also advocates for the removal of section 116 of the federal income tax act which Spothelfer says hinders foreign (in particular US) venture capital investment. He's not the only one who thinks this. Iain Black, Minister of Technology & Small Business talked about this same issue in his speech later that day at the PODIUM Exchange event which BCTIA hosted.

Iain Black Minister of Technology & Small Business at the PODIUM Exchange event aimed at bringing together PODIUM participants and visiting companies

Another challenge Spothelfer identifies is being able to sustain a talent pool of highly qualified workers in technology in BC. One key ingredient to ensure success of the sector is to grow our crew of qualified management and executives. He describes the end of the road syndrome in Vancouver where high level executives have very few options after they leave one big company. He hopes as the industry grows, executives have opportunities to move to other companies without having to go to the US. We need more experienced management and executives who have grown companies from $5 to $20 million and beyond. 

Therefore, beyond building awareness about the importance of the tech industry to our province or playing a key advocacy role in removing barriers, BCTIA is providing direct support to grow qualified management from a skills standpoint. The Xcelerate Program for example uses coaches with industry experience to teach business skills, leadership, strategy and more to help local companies build stronger management teams. Look for more to come from BCTIA in 2010 as they further develop their experts in residence and training programs, outreach programs and business intelligence programs.

More information about BCTIA

BCTIA is an industry-funded organization supporting the growth of British Columbia’s strong knowledge economy. Membership includes a network of 2100+ member companies of all sizes and from all technology sectors and collectively employ over 70,000 workers in BC.

BCTIA deliver programs and services that directly influence the growth and success of technology companies, such as PODIUM, their industry promotion program, Xcelerate, their executive education program, and PEER2PEER groups, where members connect to share and learn.    

As the voice of the technology industry, the BCTIA is committed to the ongoing growth, sustainability and prosperity of the technology industry and the transformation of British Columbia to a knowledge-based economy.

Website – www.bctia.org

Digital Business card – bctia.tel

2010 Business Outreach Coordinator

BCTIA has a coordinator working closely with Federal, Provincial and local governments to connect to connect businesses with BC companies and business hosting programs being delivered during the Games. Follow-up will continue post games.  Interested parties should contact Zachary Cohen regarding PODIUM at zcohen@bctia.org or 604 374-4465. 

Related Posts:

Vancouver Small Business & the Olympics- Part I of Series – Eclipse Awards by Cybele Negris

Vancouver Small Business & the Olympics – Part II of Series – Forum for Women Entrepreneurs by Cybele Negris

Vancouver Small Business & the Olympics – Part III of Series – Residential Construction Industry by Cybele Negris

Vancouver Small Business & the Olympics – Part IV of Series – Interview with George Hunter, CEO of Small Business BC by Cybele Negris

Cybele Negris is Co-Founder of Webnames.ca, Canada’s Original Domain Registrar. She is on the Boards of the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs, Small Business BC, Government of BC Small Business Roundtable and the Vancouver Economic Development Commission. More information is available at cybele.tel or webnames.tel. Follow on Twitter @cybelenegris and @webnames