AccelerateOTT Virtual | Fueling Ottawa's Entrepreneurial Fire

Different delivery. The same epic event.

Every Thursday afternoon, October 15 – November 5, 2020

AccelerateOTT 2020

Different delivery. The same epic event.

Now in its eighth year, our annual flagship entrepreneurial conference has gone virtual. AccelerateOTT 2020 kicks off on October 15. Instead of just one high-impact day, we’re bringing the actionable insight and meaningful connections to you four weeks in a row.

If you’re an entrepreneur, investor, or looking to advance your business, mark your calendar.

What this year looks like

Every Thursday afternoon, for four Thursdays in a row, join in. Watch an exciting $100,000 pitch competition. Listen to top speakers from Ottawa and around the world. Learn from impressive panelists with raw experience. And do it all from anywhere you want.

Oh and did we mention – tickets are free!

Here’s what you can expect:

4 easy-on-your-schedule sessions
4 hot topics
8+ hours of content
20+ speakers and panelists
1 pitch competition, 10 womxn founders, 1 winner for $100,000
$0 from your bank account

Register now to save your spot

Get your ticket

Day 1: A roadmap for womxn entrepreneur journey and the pitch finale for $100,000
Thursday, October 15, 2020
1:00 - 2:00
A conversation with Techstars’ Claudia Reuters, who will share her expert advice for women looking to enter an entrepreneurial journey. Claudia is the General Manager, Americas East, of Techstars and the author of Yes, You Can Do This!
By Claudia Reuter General Manager, Americas East, Techstars
2:00 - 3:00
SheBoot Pitch Finale: Watch 10 womxn founders pitch their business to win $100,000.

Day 2: The convergence of diversity and technology in fundraising
Thursday, October 22, 2020
1:00 - 2:00
"Fundraising for a debut VC fund is incredibly hard. Fundraising as a Black woman is infinitely harder. My $3.5 M fund was the second largest first-time fund by a Black woman VC in America…ever. Contrast that to the largest debut fund by a white man, clocking in at $1.3B, and you start to understand how big the chasm is." In this powerful conversation, Mexican Canadian serial immigrant entrepreneur Karla Briones will take you on Sarah Kunst’s journey from being a startup founder, to working for Sequoia, to starting her own VC. They will also discuss hard hitting topics such as how the venture capital industry could be held accountable for “walking the talk” when it comes to diversity, as well as share Sarah’s advice for young women who are looking to break into VC.
By Karla Briones, Immigrant serial entrepreneur and Sarah Kunst, Managing Director, Cleo Capital.
2:00 - 3:00
In the midst of a pandemic and international movement for diversity, founders are worried about where their next injection of capital is going to come from. We’ll chat with our investor panel to find out how VC investments have changed in this new environment, how deal sourcing and due diligence has been impacted, and how companies should adapt their fundraising and growth strategy. We will also get their perspectives on cross-border investment process, access to US capital in a remote-first world, and how investors can play a part to improve diversity and inclusion in the venture capital industry.
By Snita Balsara, Senior Investment Manager and Head of Community, MaRS Investment Accelerator , David Dufresne, Partner, Panache Ventures, Lance Laking, Managing Director, MARS Investment Accelerator Fund, Hamzah Nassif, Partner at Real Ventures, Alessandra Sukin, Investor, Bessemer Venture Partners.

Day 3: Storytelling in a chaotic world; and Journeys from startup to scale-up.
Thursday, October 29, 2020
1:00 - 2:00
These are weird times, aren't they? It's business as usual at exactly ZERO companies.
That's true no matter what you do or what you sell – B2B, B2C, SMB, start-up... all of us. Everything is suddenly, confusingly different. So what's the path forward? What do the current times mean for you, your business, and your customers?

In this fun, relatable presentation, marketing author and thought-leader Ann Handley will help you understand how brand storytelling and content marketing is key in this post-Covid world. She’ll help you see how your story is the key to your long-term success. You'll learn:
· How the notion of brand storytelling has shifted.
· The non-negotiable things your storytelling and content marketing MUST do for your brand today.
· The best tactics for connecting with customers right now.

The goal is to build a more solid foundation along with sustainable and sane momentum for the rest of 2020… and into 2021.
By Ann Handley Chief Content Officer, MarketingProfs
2:00 - 3:00
Journeys from startup to scale-up: Moderated by Donna Ronayne, a panel discussion with the founders of Knak, Relogix, and Rvezy, graduates from the IO Accelerator this fall. Together, these firms have raised tens of millions in venture capital and have grown their businesses in Canada, the US, Europe and Australia. Hear first-hand from the founders about how they have grown their businesses from an idea to scaling successes.
By Donna Ronayne Former CMO, Halogen , Jeff Bennett Chief Operating Officer, Relogix, Pierce Ujjainwala Co-Founder and CEO, Knak, Michael McNaught Founder, RVezy

Day 4: Navigating remote work: managing the human aspects of high-growth tech companies
Thursday, November 5, 2020
1:00 - 2:00
Eight months in, working from home has evolved in its challenges and benefits, for employees and managers. Shauna Moran will present her latest advice to tech CEOs on how to uplift your culture, employee morale and productivity. She the founder of Operate Remote, a leadership coaching company that is ranked in the top 10 of its kind in Europe. Also in this session, Shauna will engage in a conversation with Wendy Knight Agard, leadership coach at Shopify, where they will dive in on the challenges and solutions around keeping your relationships, motivations and mindfulness strong as more organizations move to “digital by default”.
By Wendy Knight Agard, Leadership Coach at Shopify, TEDx Speaker and Shauna Moran, Founder, Operate Remote.
2:00 - 3:00
Led by Lynn Stevens, a panel discussion with three tech firms whose employee net promoter scores stood out in Invest Ottawa scale-up program’s eNPS pilot. What makes employees feel connected and committed in the absence of in-person engagements? How is it possible to make your employees feel even more engaged (thereby increase your eNPS scores) during remote work? Leaders from GoFor, CanvasPop and Field Effect will share how they keep their culture strong and their employees happy and productive, virtually.
By Nazim Ahmed,CEO, Creative Layer & CanvasPop, Alexander Hatton, Director, People, Culture and Performance, GoFor Industries, Matt Holland, Founder, CEO and CTO, Field Effect and Lynn Stevens, Principal, Lynn Stevens Consulting Services.