CS 400Y Work Cultures in Tech Ecologies

Forbes article: Why The Next Billion-Dollar Tech Firm Will Be Born In Canada https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2018/02/22/why-the-next-billion-dollar-tech-firm-will-be-born-in-canada/#1faee5eb36b8 I recently came across this article and thought it would be interesting to share. The article presents an argument for Canada leading the way for the "next" tech firm.  The article begins by talking about Amazon's search for new headquarters, with all of the potential cities scattered throughout America's tech hubs. All except Toronto. And Toronto appears to be a top contender. The reason? Canada doubling down on a commitment to support tech industries and paving the way for tech to lead Canada's future economy. Part of this initiative recognizes that people are an essential component to the fast moving, constantly changing, innovating tech industry.  As the Trump administration creates barriers for immigration, tech industries s...

(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/money/dam/assets/180126023346-amazon-go-inside-780x439.jpg) Could technological innovation be a problem for the future workforce? In the past several years there has been a significant shift in workplace culture and the presence of employees in the workforce. The increased integration of technology into this workforce has been consider a large factor in these changes. As this integration becomes greater through increased technological development and changes in company operations, we are beginning to see a new workforce comprised of these new technologies. Companies are restructuring to put in place innovative technological systems, and this often means the removal of first-line workers (people who customers engage with).             Just like when we walk into a Shoppers Drug Mart or a grocery store, we can now see how technologies are increasingly being used to replace employ...

https://researchgateway.cbre.com/Layouts/GKCSearch/DownLoadPublicUrl.ashx  The link posted above, is a report conducted by the CBRE in 2017, that ranks Canadian cities on their advantages in effort of appealing to technology workers and employers. The report claimed Waterloo Region to be "a tech innovation and startup hub for the country", containing "the fastest growing tech labour pool in Canada between 2011 – 2016, with a 65.6% increase in tech jobs – the second fastest rate in North America after Charlotte, NC at 77.1%" (CBRE, 2017). With a growth rate this large, its exciting to think whats in store for the Waterloo regions future. In addition, the report had found the Waterloo Region led Canada in labour quality based on having "highly skilled and educated workers"   among the 10 markets studied (CBRE, 2017). Overall Waterloo was ranked fifth followed by Toronto in the top position.   Reading this article I could not help but take into ac...

Innovation is about the creation of new ideas as well as the revolutionizing of old ones. To me, innovation stems from creativity, the ability to use the imagination and foster original ideas—this is where innovation begins.

https://blog.neosperience.com/10-ways-the-internet-has-changed-the-way-we-live-and-do-business How does technology change our everyday lives?   In short, technology has pressed the fast-forward button on society. Everything today occurs at warp-speed by the click of a button; from communication to way-finding; from finances to information-gathering. Think about the way you use technology every day and how this has changed your life. This article written on 'Neosperience' discusses ten ways technology has changed our economy, as well as the way in which we communicate with each other and how we form relationships in the workplace, in particular, it covers aspects of our new economy. Before the advancement of technology, we were forced to communicate face-to-face. However, now there are mediums that place barriers between personal interactions. We can talk with people from around the world; technology has eliminated time and space.   We e...

https://www.thebalance.com/traits-of-world-s-most-successful-entrepreneurs-1200703 This article outlines eight characteristics of a successful entrepreneur. An entrepreneur is the brains behind a business. They are the creator who launched their business idea. Eight key traits: -    They listen more than they talk -    Embrace failure -    They are curious -    Follow their passions -    Admit to what they don’t know -    Not afraid to say no -    Keep a work/life balance -    Importance of a good team The two characteristics that I want to focus on are the embrace of failure and curiosity. In the article, the authors use the example of Steve Jobs, who was one of the most successful and worldly recognizable entrepreneurs. At first, Steve Jobs was overthrown as CEO, whereby he then had to work hard in gaining the Apple board’s trust back. When forced to leave Apple, Jobs went off on his own, ...

Article:  https://hbr.org/2017/06/the-4-types-of-innovation-and-the-problems-they-solve Many of our "Innovation Mirror" posts describe innovation as a process of change, without identifying exactly what this "change" involves. If we were to explore this question further, I am sure that many of us would understand that this change is geared towards coming up with a solution for particular problems.  In the article I shared above,  Satell  describes innovation as a problem solving process. Here he identifies 4 types of innovation and the types of problems that they solve. More, he categorizes each innovation type in relation to how well the problem is defined, along with how well the domain is defined. From here, we can decide on what type of innovation our problem requires in order to come up with a solution.  Source: Harvard Business Review;  Greg Satell :  The 4 Types of Innovation and the Problems They Solve 1. Breakthrough...