ABCtech #86 09-MAR-17 Are We Really Innovating … continued

ABCtech #86 09-MAR-17 Are We Really Innovating … continued

TELL US NOW …  CLICK  Is Alberta’s economy resilient? Is Alberta’s innovation ecosystem effective?

REGISTER NOW … CLICK  for Alberta’s Clean Technologies Conference – March 23/24

A MUST read … CLICK  Globe & Mail today reports Canada has more than it takes to lead in innovation it only lacks action!  No projects instead governments obsessed with planning and politics. Fearful of disruptive technologies and a highly fragmented, publicly financed innovation eco-system.

WHY ABCtech EXISTS … CLICK

o Committed to the commercialization of technologies – mobilizing research. Rewarding innovation. Diversifying the economy … making it more resilient. Creating the new Alberta!

o Engaging our youth and indigenous people.

o Educating and encouraging participation and personal investment.

o Evaluating and recognizing success – SME survival, growth, retention!

o Collaboration –  an innovation “system” has many parts, working in sync!

o Less talk. More action!

——————— QuikTech Notes 09-MAR-17 ——————-

Innovation is touted as the solution to the global economic malaise with a focus on the survival and growth of small businesses. It starts with imagination and creativity, and gets rolling when an idea begins to earn revenue, create jobs and wealth.

Emerging technologies in every industry and profession have appeal in solving massive issues: fusion in energy with no GHG emissions; precision medicine in mobilizing the body’s own corrective systems; analytics and machine intelligence for automating decision making. Each of these technologies have significant disruptive implications.

But let’s be clear, innovation has it’s critics, viewing innovation as equating to disruption and increased productivity equating to a loss of jobs. Others – across Canada and certainly Alberta, promote innovation as their economic advantage, with locations prime for attracting and retaining entrepreneurs and hi-tech companies.  But what are the facts?

Alberta Falls Short of It’s Innovation Dreams by Bill Whitelaw HERE  Fragmentation of the innovation ecosystem of service agencies is highlighted as impeding innovation and the capacity of innovators to navigate the “system” of services operating to aide their journey. See also HERE citing relational skills as essential for survival, growth and retention of SMEs in Alberta.

Imagination does not compute by William Watson HERE “We can see jobs being automated out of existence. We can’t see the jobs of the future”.  The article maintains that mankind’s confrontation with technology is a problem of imagination, that time and again in history, disruptive technologies have served to create jobs.  Machines that help people add value actually increase people’s power to create.

Why we aren’t innovating By Jack M. Mintz  HERE  The article cites data comparing private investment as a share of GDP for service and manufacturing sectors of OECD countries. Canada’s relative performance in both sectors is disappointing with services taxed at almost twice the rate of manufacturing. He argues that Canada needs a more business friendly environment for investment in “new ideas”.

What is ABCtech DOING?

Engaging Youth project. Partnering with the Centre for Global Education for engaging high school students in teams across Alberta for exploring the forces and sources of change and designing their future Alberta

Monitoring Surveys.  “Monitor what you value”. Drawing on our extensive network – we conduct bi-annual surveys of several aspects of the Alberta economy, reporting in terms that the public understands.

The Festival of Big Ideas.  Partnering with the Edmonton Research Park and provincial industry associations in the conduct of a unique, 1st in Canada public festival for increasing awareness of the Region’s innovations and innovation ecosystem and generating new business opportunities.

Technology Credit Union proposal. Developing a credit union for our members that targets technology and small business and technology investment opportunities.

ICT Alberta proposal.  ICT is promoted as a corporate enabler. But the adoption of data analytics in Alberta has been disappointing. ABCtech is proposing a collaborative initiative for strengthening Alberta as an advanced centre of analytics and machine intelligence.

Membership. Creating a voice independent of politics and government, industry and the status quo, sharing the vision of a new – more resilient Alberta created through the commercialization of emerging technologies.  Continued growth of a public, no-charge, Technology Industry Directory.