TechTalks with Cathy Simpson is a series of podcasts and webinars that will provide relevant and timely information to business owners, executives, technology managers, IT professionals, economic development officials and those considering a career in the IT sector.

In this episode of TechTalks with Cathy Simpson, we meet Calvino Anderson with Compugen and the founder and event organizer for the Atlantic Tech Summit.

Based in Halifax, we discuss the Atlantic Tech Summit returning for its 4th year.

We spend time talking about the community and how events like these bring the ecosystem partners together both virtually and physically.

Listen in to learn more about how the Summit will provide an action-packed day of sessions from top local and national tech leaders as they discuss digital acceleration and the experience of managing through the challenges of fast-paced change. We hope you enjoy the show.

Labour force challenges have been a hot topic in the tech sector for the last few years, and they’re only becoming more acute as our region’s digital and overall economies continue to grow.
On episode 36 of the TechTalks podcast, host Cathy Simpson digs into the latest data and insights with Patrick Brannon, a Senior Researcher at the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council (APEC), about his recent report Responding to the Labour Challenge in Atlantic Canada’s Digital Sector.

There is so much happening in New Brunswick’s innovation ecosystem, we are overdue for an event to gather, share stories, learn, honour successes, and plan for the future. 

On Nov. 22, the inaugural InnovateNB Celebration will present a diverse, one-day program in Saint John. The lineup includes an industry trade show, recruitment showcase, job fair, talks on digital innovation, and investor sessions. It all culminates that evening in the first InnovateNB awards show. 

On episode 34 and 35 of the TechTalks podcast, host Cathy Simpson chats with the organizers about what’s happening in their organizations and communities and gets more details about the InnovateNB Celebration.

Happy International Women’s Day! This year’s them is #BreaktheBias, inviting us to imagine a more diverse, equitable and inclusive world.

If you’re a regular listener of the TechTalks Podcast, you know increasing the representation of women (and other groups) is a big focus here at TechImpact. For me personally, it’s my favourite cause. So I was thrilled to be joined on episode 33 with Emma Toole, member of the executive committee and Jharana Luitel, breakout speaker for Girls STEM UP!  

We’re talking about research on episode 32 of the TechTalks podcast with Dr. Laura Richard and Dr. Erik Scheme. Both of this episode’s guests are instrumental to New Brunswick’s thriving research and innovation ecosystem.

This episode of TechTalks captures the highlights of a panel discussion hosted by The Canadian Association of Management Consultants-Atlantic Canada Institute in November. TechTalks host and TechImpact CEO Cathy Simpson joined the panel to discuss trends, recent data and how employers and governments in our region can do to respond to the talent crunch.

In Episode #30 I sat down with Ray Harris, the founder of Data Wazo, a data strategy consultancy in Fredericton, and Jeremy Adamson, who teaches strategic analytics management in UNB’s MBA program and is the author of the new book Minding the Machines, to talk about careers in data.

I was thrilled to sit down with Frank McKenna and Adrienne O’Pray for episode 29 of the TechTalks Podcast to talk about the McKenna Institute which launched on Sept. 7.

Our wide-ranging talk explores their vision for the institute as a catalyst of economic growth, their love of the province, New Brunswick’s unique advantages, and why they believe digital holds the key to our province’s future.

The female sandpiper can run, swim, hunt and fly. Provider for her family, a fierce defender of her territory, this social avian multitasker is the perfect symbol for an organization focused on giving women tech founders the funding and support to soar.

On episode 28 of the TechTalks Podcast, the fourth show in our series on diversity, I’m thrilled to welcome Cathy Bennett and Rhiannon Davies, two of the founding and co-managing partners in Sandpiper Ventures, platform for women investors and founders that made the first investment of its inaugural fund in May.

Dr. Leeno Karumanchery and Mike Wright of MESH Diversity are my guests on episode 27 of the TechTalks Podcast, the third in our series on diversity.

They talk about how their backgrounds meshed to create a software company on the leading edge of diversity and inclusion (DNI) metrics and training. We also discuss the social movements that are fuelling MESH Diversity’s expansion.

I was thrilled to have Propel CEO Kathryn Lockhart join me for episode 26 of the Tech Talks Podcast. She shared her story and her advice to women starting and progressing through their careers. We also talked about her vision for Propel and helping to advance tech in the region.  

This show is the second instalment in our series on diversity!

This week on episode 25 of the Tech Talks Podcast, I was delighted to have Keith McIntosh to talk about his journey testing the limits of diversity in tech. We covered a lot of ground, from his evolution as an entrepreneur to his goal of simultaneously solving two pressing problems–Canada’s shortage of technology professionals and high unemployment among Indigenous youth.

This week on Episode 24 of the TechTalks Podcast Jody Glidden shares his story, charting the path to his post as CEO of Introhive. The New Brunswick CRM software company recently raised a record $100 million US in funding for the largest equity investment in the province’s history.

This week on Episode 23 of the TechTalks Podcast, we’re talking about the launch of Digital Boost 2.0 and why digital adoption is so important. I’m joined by two stellar staff members from ACOA; Kalie Hatt-Kilburn, Director General of Regional Operations, ACOA New Brunswick, and Trevor Macausland, an Economic Development Officer with ACOA’s Innovation, Trade and Business Growth team.

This week on episode 22 of the TechTalks Podcast, we're unpacking change management with one of those rare consultants who's worked in this area for all of her 20-plus-years' career. Nicole Paquet is a Senior Change Management consultant with Mariner, an IT and management consulting firm and long-time TechImpact member. She helps us understand what change management is, why it's essential, and how to do it better.

This episode continues our experimentation with taking the podcast outside the studio and into the community through webinars and other events. This show is adapted from a panel that I moderated on March 12 as part of the 2021 Virtual Data Challenge at UNB. On this episode, I talk to three panelists working on transformational data products and projects about their career paths and perspectives on how data can advance ideas, support quicker decisions and build better products.

This week’s podcast is adapted from Cathy Simpson’s recent webinar on digital transformation.

She breaks it down into simple steps and talks about Digital Boost, a TechImpact program that’s had great success pairing local companies with N.B.-based technology service providers. In the last part of the show, she invites two Digital Boost project reps, Jarvis Spires from SMET Monuments and Paul Harrell from Ganong, to share their experiences.

This week’s podcast was a trip down memory lane, back to the early days of my career at NBTel, with guests Dave Grebenc and Roxanne Fairweather, friends and colleagues for over 25 years.

The powerhouse duo are the co-CEOS (more on that below!) of Innovatia. It was a pleasure to have them on Episode 19 of the show to talk about leadership and driving growth, diversity and values, and the intricacies of a successful business partnership.

Welcome to Episode #18. I meet many smart, interesting people in my work, but my recent guest on the TechTalks Podcast sparked an especially stimulating conversation. Get ready to be inspired by Eric Cook, executive director and CEO of New Brunswick’s Research and Productivity Council, who brought some big, forward-thinking ideas to the show.

Welcome to Episode #17. Instead of our usual podcast format, Cathy hosted our first live webinar with LinkedIn expert Eleanor Austin, founder of New Marketing Today. Much TechImpact’s work about connecting talent and employers in our sector, and this seemed like a great way to help job-seekers put their best face–and profile–forward.

Welcome to Episode #16: E-Commerce and Digital Insights with Scott MacIntosh and Dawn Pottier. On this episode, host Cathy Simpson talks to two New Brunswick-based e-comm veterans: Dawn Pottier, founder and CEO of LuluJo, one of Canada’s biggest baby brands, and Scott MacIntosh of Second Spring Digital, which supports companies in digital transformation.

Welcome to Episode #15: Building Cyber Talent at UNB with Dr. Ali Ghorbani and Dr. Luigi Benedicenti.

This episode is Pt. 3 of our Cybersecurity Mini-series. We hope you enjoy the show! 

Welcome to Episode #14: Humans of Cybersecurity with David Shipley and James Stewart.

This episode is Pt. 2 of our Cybersecurity Mini-series. We hope you enjoy the show!

Welcome to Episode #13: The Cyber Security Opportunity. Host, Cathy Simpson, is joined by Larry Shaw, CEO of Ignite Fredericton and Knowledge Park and Tyson Johnson, CEO of CyberNB Inc. to discuss the Cyber Security opportunity for New Brunswick and Atlantic Canada. Additionally, on this episode, guests discuss the evolution of Cyber and ….

Welcome to Episode #12: Technology Job Interviews and Employer Expectations. Cathy Simpson is joined by two industry veterans with years of hiring experience. Brian Dunphy, senior director of product development at Cvent, and Ryan Strynatka, SVP and COO of the Salesforce Marketing Cloud, offer up a goldmine of insights….

Episode #11 is live! Welcome to the Season Finale: Year in Review with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson. There have been some real glimmers of hope and success among the stress and challenges. Never before have our unique advantages in Atlantic Canada been so clear. On this episode, Cathy will discuss 5 big takeaways from 2020…

Episode #10 is live with TechImpact CEO, Cathy Simpson. On this week’s episode, we chat about Welcoming Newcomer Women to the NB Tech Community with Shaimaa Abbas and Deepika Thapar. This week’s podcast is full of inspiration as we hear the stories of two women in tech whose fascinating and winding paths eventually led to New Brunswick...

Episode #9 is live with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson. What is the role of Sales & Marketing in our Tech Sector? Let's find out with Dr. Shelley Rinehart and David Alston, two local leaders behind progressive programs that are building our sales and marketing capacity…

Episode #8 is live with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson. If talking about Industry 4.0, AI, robotics and the Internet of Things makes you nervous, don’t worry. Martin Davis, my guest on Episode 8 of the TechTalks podcast, is here to demystify it all for us…

Episode #7 is live with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson.What does innovation in the computer science landscape look like in Atlantic Canada? We asked Dalhousie University and the University of New Brunswick. Dr. Luigi Benedicenti is a full professor and...

Episode #6 is live with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson. What is Canada's ocean opportunity? How do we change the way ocean business is done?We asked Kendra MacDonald, the CEO of Canada’s Ocean Supercluster, a transformative cluster model that is...

Episode #5 is live with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson. We're talking about our telecommunications future with Troy Harnish, Senior Director, Atlantic Region for Rogers for Business, Kevin Fournier, Director of Sales for NS & PEI, Bell Aliant and Ken...

Episode #4 is live with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson. We're talking about innovation in the region with CEO of NBIF, Jeff White and President & CEO of Innovacorp, Malcom Fraser. Jeff White is the lead visionary at NBIF. He’s a technology industry..

Episode #3 is live with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson. We're talking about taking your business to the cloud with Mirko Crevatin and Christopher Simm. Mirko is a Senior Manager and the National Technology Solutions lead at MNP, successfully bridging...

Episode #2 is live with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson. We're talking about the landscape of jobs within the tech sector and you won't believe how many opportunities there are! We're speaking to Anneke van der Laan of Sonrai Security and Darcy Wells of...

Episode #1 is live with Tech Impact CEO, Cathy Simpson.Welcome to our new podcast, TechTalks!  The podcast series designed to educate, inspire, and engage new conversations about technology and how it is an enabler for our economy, building our talented...