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Monthly Archives: February 2021
Elevating our Black Founders
Get to know Black Founders making their mark in the tech startup ecosystem.
As much as we would have loved to feature ALL of our innovative and determined Black Founders, this list profiles a handful of them. Learn more about our Black Innovation Programs, and how the DMZ is empowering the next wave of Black entrepreneurs here.
Black founders are often faced with various hurdles when starting and growing a new business venture, which has led to a massive underrepresentation of Black leaders in the tech ecosystem. Black founders have never lacked the talent or ability needed to secure funding opportunities; they lack access to those opportunities: access to mentorship, learning opportunities and capital.
Recognizing this opportunity gap in support for Black founders, the DMZ launched the Black Innovation Programs in 2019 to make an impact, see growth in the number of companies that are owned by Black entrepreneurs, and break the perpetual cycle of inequity.
In light of Black History Month, the DMZ wanted to highlight some of our innovative entrepreneurs from our Black Innovation Programs. Sharing personal insights, lessons learned from their entrepreneurial journey, and the inspiration behind their organizations, these trailblazers are spinning the wheels of change.
Peter Odle
Founder at Urban Expeditions
Urban Expeditions creates customizable walking tours and games that leverages technology to strengthen an individual’s cultural connection to a city.
What has been the greatest lesson you learned since your startup journey?
“My greatest lesson on the start-up journey has been to seek harmony amidst the loneliness of entrepreneurship, the passion to create, a focused ambition and building relationships with people who can help me manage my appetite for risk.”
@urbanexpeditions
Nadiya Ali
Founder and CEO at Kynza
Kynza offers an end-to-end management solution for the contemporary rotating savings user, allowing users to take charge of their financial future.
If you had one piece to your younger self, what advice would that be?
“Relationships are the wellspring of great ideas – so value and nurture your network!”
@Kynza.group
Charles F Milton
Founder and CEO at Bursity.org
For marginalized students, Bursity is the fastest way to fund tuition, connecting students with millions of dollars in financial awards, and helping scholarship sponsors streamline their awards campaigns.
What have you achieved since beginning your journey in the DMZ?
‘Since starting DMZ’s program, we have had over 100 new users sign up to our MVP platform, which launched in August 2020. That makes us one third of all of our current users.”
Ogochukwu Anerobi
Co-Founder and CEO at Learndeck
LearnDeck is a cloud-based learning management system that allows users to deploy and track online training courses and programs without geographical limitations.
What have you achieved since beginning your journey in the DMZ?
“My monthly recurring revenue (MRR) has grown by 110% since I joined the DMZ!”
@thelearndeck
Tunde Omotoye
Founder and CEO at HumanSquad
HumanSquad helps people navigate their immigration journey and career path. They do this through a portfolio of services that include HR consultancy, personal branding, and Canada immigration processes.
Why did you start your company?
“There are many people looking to move to Canada but are prone to being defrauded by roadside agents in their respective countries. We created HumanSquad to bridge the gap between respective immigrants and RCICs (regulated Canadian immigration consultants) in Canada. Hence, our start-up tends to help people navigate the often complex immigration pathways by using technology to connect them to licensed experts from the comfort of their homes.”
@humansquadca
Deinyefa Eporwei
Co-Founder and CEO of Solooble
Solooble is making financial wellness available and affordable for all through a tool that monitors the financial health of its users. It tracks users’ spending trends, provides feedback and pays bills.
What has been the greatest lesson you learned since your startup journey?
“Nothing good in life ever comes easy.”
@solooble
Nathan Dumont
Founder at Wealthier
Wealthier helps Canadians build healthy financial habits. It offers a unique and sustainable solution that promotes prosperity by ensuring quality education, reducing inequality and poverty.
If you had one piece to your younger self, what advice would that be?
“Start now. Write a small plan and take action.”
@mywealthmatters
Elizabeth Azuya
Founder at Fabbulist
Fabbulist is on a mission to help melanin women find beauty stylists that get their hair type and skin tone. It’s a marketplace that allows users to find and book black beauty stylists near them, or become a stylist and earn money on their own schedule.
What has been the greatest lesson you learned since your startup journey?
“Taking a step, no matter how small, each day towards moving your idea adds up to big results over time.”
@fabbulist_
Make sure to check out our social channels for even more spotlights on our Black Founders, and find out more about our Black Innovation Programs here!
How digital badging gives young professionals a competitive edge
Jumpstarting students’ career paths in cybersecurity with CanHack digital badges
It’s not too late for high school students to register for CanHack 2021 and compete for up to $16,250 in prizes! Learn more here.
As the years pass in a student’s journey through education, they will tackle many great accomplishments: from academic achievements, participation in extracurriculars, competitions, volunteer and community work, involvement in student associations, and so on. Previously, certificates, diplomas, badges and trophies have typically represented tokens of these achievements.
Now, with the global workforce becoming increasingly digital, students need a new way to display these accomplishments. Furthermore, COVID-19 has forced education institutions to rapidly shift to online learning, meaning physical certificates often can’t be provided to add to student portfolios. How do these accomplishments get recognized?
There’s a better way for students to present these achievements: digital badging.
What is digital badging?
Simply put, digital badging, also known as digital credentials and micro credentials, is a validated online certification of a specific accomplishment or skill. Digital badging provides learners with a bite-sized approach to education, and focuses on the development of a specific skill. When a learner completes a new course or gains a new skill, they receive a digital badge as recognition for their achievement. Unlike physical certificates, badges are designed to be optimized for sharing on social media and professional networks like LinkedIn to help individuals find a job or earn an internal promotion. When an employer or recruiter sees that a potential job candidate has digital badges listed on their LinkedIn profile, it’s a quick and secure way for the employer to understand the certifications and skills the candidate has.
Digital badge benefits: The learner
It is clear that lifelong learning has become an imperative for young professionals to break into today’s rapidly changing workforce. Up-skilling and re-skilling allows professionals (of all ages) to remain relevant and up to speed on the latest trends. Digital badges helps learners:
- Become motivated to grow their careers by learning new skills outside of what they have been taught in school.
- Finesse their own personal brand image and improve their competitiveness in the job market by highlighting badges on social media platforms like LinkedIn.
- Showcase their soft skills and bridge any skills gap that may exist between academic achievements and job requirements.
- Demonstrate to future employers their eagerness and ability to acquire new skills.
CanHack introduces digital badging
At the DMZ, we believe it is crucial to empower Canada’s next generation of innovators and provide them with the necessary skill sets to thrive. As the skills gap in cybersecurity widens, we hope to promote cyber literacy while getting students excited about a potential career in the space. We will provide every participant a digital badge, marking their official participation in the third annual CanHack challenge (bragging rights included)! CanHack participants will be able to send a signal of great success to post secondary institutions and future employers, as CanHack’s digital badge will give them a competitive edge. All CanHack badges are endorsed by cybersecurity leaders, Carnegie Mellon University Cylab Security and Privacy Institute and RBC, helping students to stand out!
About CanHack
The DMZ at Toronto Metropolitan University, in partnership with the Royal Bank of Canada, have come together to launch CanHack – a cybersecurity student competition to promote cyber literacy and to also address digital skills gaps in the labour market. Participants will learn critical computer security skills, work with experts in the field and have an opportunity to win up to $16,250 in cash prizes for both themselves and the school they attend! CanHack leverages an online open-source computer security platform established by the Carnegie Mellon University Cylab Security & Privacy Institute called PicoCTF. This game-based learning experience creates an interactive and engaging experience where students are tasked with addressing cybersecurity challenges faced by Canadian financial institutions.
Want to learn more about the CanHack challenge and how you can participate? Check out our CanHack page for more information!