Putting NB in the Technology Business Race
ICT, NB, New Brunswick, Rising Stars, StartupNorth, ThinkNB, startup Add comments
I confess I haven’t had a lot of time to formulate my thoughts on this. I certainly would not call myself an expert in IT by any stretch of the imagination. However, today a series of articles came through my feeds that culminated after reading a guest post by Will Pate at StartUp North.
The first news item was:
Industry feels pinch as numbers of IT grads plummet (Globe Investor).
The synopsis? Canada’s University and college enrollment in IT and computer related fields have dropped from 36% - 64% depending on the province.
At ThinkNB this year, I spoke with recruiters from UNB and the NB Community Colleges. They confirmed that enrollment was down. UNB was addressing this with a new program that will combine business with computer technology in a Bachelor of Information Systems program.
Next news feed article today:
N.B. IT doing well: software exec (Telegraph Journal)
According to the quote in the Telegraph Journal:
“I would say the knowledge industry in New Brunswick is healthy,” says Paul McSpurren, former president and chief executive officer of Moncton-based Whitehill Technologies Inc.
“And will be healthy and vibrant in the future.”
NB also recently held the Rising Stars awards where 10 ITC winners will be able to participate in a year long mentorship and networking program.
Now I want to send you the last article that I mentioned by Will Pate. If you’re an entrepreneur or thinking of starting your own business, read his post. Let’s make sure that NB is in the race.
Will’s right. This is a race and as Canadians we do tend to just plod through until the work is done. But when you’re following the industry and you see how fast it changes and how someone is always coming out with something new or different. We have to be able to keep pace. I have met many people in NB in the ITC sector and they all have a passion for what they’re doing. As Paul McSpurren said in today’s Telegraph article, I think the knowledge industry in NB is healthy.
We have innovation happening here in NB. We have groups like catalict whose tagline says “Start your engines. The race is on.” We have the Wallace McCain Institute that helps entrepreneurs grow their business.
There are other organizations I could mention as well but the point is that I think we recognize in NB that there’s a need for speed, experience and skills to get ahead in this industry. And maybe because NB is always playing catchup with the rest of the provinces, we’re already used to racing.
What do you think? Is NB in the race?
January 21st, 2008 at 4:50 pm
Is NB as a province in the race? Not sure, but would say probably not. There are a few companies who seem to be in the race, though the competition keeps heating up.
January 21st, 2008 at 8:06 pm
You could be right Harold and maybe it’s because those companies that I’ve met and the passion and drive is evident. They are the ones that are putting NB on the map. If enough companies and individuals in NB are starting to recognize this, then I think it will spread and NB will benefit from it.
January 21st, 2008 at 11:07 pm
I don’t think NB is in the race. Today that is. But I do think we have all the potential to win. I love Sean Grahams concept of being a “Have” Province (by 2025) - but we need to adjust our efforts.
Harolds right though, there are a few companies who are in the race, but that doesn’t mean anything as things are moving fast. Real fast.
I think it’s time we consolidate our efforts.
January 22nd, 2008 at 8:38 am
Yes, I think if there is a race NB is in it. Two things that come to my mind that maybe are missed are:
1)I don’t end up in the job that they get their initial degree in. Many people that are considered the “computer guru” do not actually have a CS degree. They usually took something else in university, and then started working. Especially if it is a small business that has no IT person, someone with a bit of knowledge becomes they ‘expert’ for the company, and the learning process (hopefully continues from that point)
2) Many people also seem to be opting for 1-2 year diploma programs which allows them to enter the workforce earlier. For example, my CS degree taught me a lot about network diagrams, digital circuit boards, and computer programming, but many sysadmins I know don’t have this level of education. Sometimes they have a diploma or a few MCSE’s behind their belt.
Finally, it’s always been my belief, that university teaches you the basics of how to learn and costs you a fortune for a little piece of paper. The really smart ones out there, already know how to digest information and apply it to their daily lives and the little piece of paper is just a marketing thing to convince others. (IMHO)
January 22nd, 2008 at 9:43 am
Totally agreeing with Brad above on the piece of paper aspect. Not enough emphasis is on the college degrees either, which get your hands dirty and get you in the workforce faster. At least, as long as they stop reorganizing their programs long enough.
Today, you *do* need a variety of skills in the industry though - Ron and I use maybe 10% of what we were taught 20 years ago. You have to be able to move fast and think on your feet. You also have to be willing to learn and try new things.
I think NB is dragging their heels as a whole - the corporate powers & some members of government need to be fully replaced (which takes time or a revolution
) with the net-savvy up and comers of today (the under 40 crowd). There’s still too much of a province-wide feel that somehow some large entity is going to swoop in and save us, everyone else will get a cushy job at no effort, and the people as a whole won’t have to do anything. The time for relying on outside help is over. We have to do it ourselves.
The people in NB who are getting somewhere, are the ones insisting on staying here and are insisting on getting things done. If you’re working online, you won’t have to move to T.O.
We’re still stuck in old-school business models. This might take us a good twenty years to get ramped up, just because of the people and systems in the way. Also, it wouldn’t hurt if the pay scale was a little better. The industry needs to be willing to reward the hard workers in it.
January 23rd, 2008 at 9:15 am
A new article in today’s TJ:
Innovation unveils research and development centre
http://nbbusinessjournal.canadaeast.com/journal/article/190710
(from the article)
The centre will employ industry experts to develop new products and will feature equipment to demonstrate and test the technologies. It will also house production facilities for podcasts and web-based seminars, known as webinars.
“We are developing methods and tools that are creating solutions that will produce immediate cost savings and efficiencies that will significantly speed up the time to market for our clients’ products and services,” said Roxanne Fairweather, Innovatia’s chief operating officer.
January 23rd, 2008 at 10:35 am
From NB Bus Journal - “The centre will employ industry experts to develop new products and will feature equipment to demonstrate and test the technologies. It will also house production facilities for podcasts and web-based seminars, known as webinars.”
OK - this is a company that SHOULD be doing R&D, so what’s new? A place to do webinars and podcasts? I can do that from my desktop, and the folks at edtechtalk.com (one of the founders is from PEI) have it down to a fine art, with minimal cost and a large community of practice. Sorry, but I smell marketing hype.
January 23rd, 2008 at 10:57 am
I wondered that too Harold. But I was hoping they had mentioned it like that for “dumbing down” media purposes. There’s no doubt it’s marketing hype, but until we know more about it, it’s hard to say if there’s not going to be anything of value or not.
I think we’re all slightly skeptical of anything that comes out of the government/corporate sponsored entities as there’s often an ulterior motive.
I believe as do others that we have enough talent and resources among each other in NB to pool together to offer resources/learning and networking for the ICT industry much like what was discussed in the press release. There’s been some great discussion about this and hopefully we’ll see something come to fruition.
January 23rd, 2008 at 12:34 pm
I agree that we have talent and resources (e.g, Evolving Solutions, Spheric, Remsoft) but our Achilles heal is that that there are not many of us, and few businesses can scale up before using the available talent pool.
Innovatia’s Centre sounds like a re-branding of NB Tel’s Living Lab, that got lots of press but not much innovation that saw the street. So yes, I’m skeptical, but I also am optimistic about some of the smaller companies around here. The “Kitchen Party” should be an event to flush them out in the open
January 23rd, 2008 at 3:40 pm
Harold echoed my initial thoughts, Why would I drive to Saint John to record my podcast? But I’ve changed my thoughts over the past day. If I had the time, passion, a good subject, and wanted to make some money it might be good to try something like http://www.geekbrief.tv/ or http://www.totallyradshow.com/ and their labs might make it worthwhile or at least get me up and running.
But if it was purely audio then I think Derek Hatchard has shown that you can do a great quality podcast from home http://devcasting.com
January 23rd, 2008 at 7:28 pm
I am far more optomistic about our provincial IT sector then I was 7 years ago. Much work needs to be done to get to the next level, but new leaders are emerging like Dan and yourselves which gives me hope. When I spoke about the opportunity that existed for NB companies in exporting IT around the globe many thought I was crazy, but now the tide is turning and people are begining to see the potential.
We face challenges ahead but with passion and drive we can lead this province in turning potential into real results. Keep blogging and speaking up! Eventually, our culture of complacency will come to an end and people will realize that we can do better and change will occur.
Until then, keep your stick on the ice!