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Making Connections: How Enterprize Gave Them a Headstart

January 31, 2020/in News

Past Enterprize Challenge participants share how the competition helped them get to where they are today

(submitted) Michael Derksen, 2018 Enterprize competitor, is the founder and CEO of NUMU Consulting

VERNON, BC— As a new arrival to Vernon, Mitchal Derksen knew he’d have to build strong relationships for his business to grow. A chartered accountant with a background in finance, he already had a business plan. All he needed was to make the right connections.  

That’s when he decided to enter the 2018 Enterprize Challenge. Presented by VantageOne Credit Union and Community Futures North Okanagan, the annual competition helps local entrepreneurs build on their business ideas with mentorship, marketing, skills training, and more.

Now the founder and CEO of NUMU Consulting, a software consulting firm that provides business data information and tech services, Derksen was supplied with all the tools he needed to succeed thanks to the connections he made at the Enterprize Challenge.

“Even though I had a business plan ready to roll, the program helped me refine my ideas and provided me with a clear point of communication and a strategic direction. I also appreciated the coaching and support I received from my mentor Ken MacLeod. He was a wealth of knowledge,” says Derksen, who now has a team of three supporting clients across the Okanagan, Alberta and around the world. “I would highly recommend Enterprize, especially as the competition has grown in its operation, exposure, and popularity.” 

Anyone with a business idea or who has had a business open in the last 12 months can enter the 2020 Enterprize Challenge.

The competition sees participants work with a mentor and take part in business planning sessions and tasks over eight weeks. Seven finalists then compete in a Dragon’s Den-like competition, where they pitch their business ideas to a panel of judges in front of a live audience. Up to $45,000 worth of prizes are up for grabs for the top three winners, as well as a People’s Choice Award and the new Innovation Award.

(Selina Morrison photo) 2017 Enterprize participant Sue Cairnie is a life cycle celebrant and metaphysical minister with Sue Cairnie Ceremonies.

Sue Cairnie also credits the personal connections she made as a 2017 Enterprize Challenge participant.

As a life cycle celebrant and metaphysical minister, Cairnie has not only created and officiated personalized weddings, funerals, and other rite-of-passage ceremonies through her business Sue Cairnie Ceremonies, she has since launched a sister project called Elope BC, specializing in nature-based elopements. Last year she performed more than 80 wedding ceremonies across BC, and Cairnie credits the Enterprize Challenge for showing her how important it is to network within the community.  

“Enterprize helped me to streamline my message and showed me how success truly takes a village and also showed me that succeeding at business takes equal parts passion and hard work. You need to love what you do, but you won’t get anywhere if you don’t put the time and effort into creating the systems that make your dream a reality. It also showed me that people love a story, and the more I can share who I am, the better I can connect with my community.”

2019 Enterprize participant Dr. Steve Piper is a chiropractor and partner with Monashee Health Collective.

For Dr. Steve Piper, a chiropractor and founding partner with Monashee Health Collective, the 2019 Enterprize Challenge helped him get more brand exposure for a new app he and his allied health care company is developing.

The app will help practitioners efficiently communicate with patients between visits, as well as provide personalized support, track patients’ progress daily, and reward behaviours known to positively impact wellness and quality of life.

Designed by the REd Academy Design School in Vancouver, the app is now being submitted to the National Research Council Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program.

“It was through Enterprize that we were able to network and make connections with a research-based institution that guides funding further development,” says Piper.

Registration for the 2020 Enterprize Challenge closes at noon Feb. 7. The finalists’ pitch, awards and challenger showcase happens Apr. 28 at the Vernon and District Performing Arts Centre. To learn more or to register, visit enterprizechallenge.ca.

https://www.futuresbc.com/wp-2/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/suecairniefuneralskelowna.jpg 408 612 Kazia Mullin https://futuresbc.com/wp-2/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Community-Futures-North-Okanagan-Logo.png Kazia Mullin2020-01-31 10:59:572020-01-31 10:59:57Making Connections: How Enterprize Gave Them a Headstart

CFNO launches Rural Northern Immigration Pilot

January 21, 2020/in News

RNIP project helps Okanagan attract—and keep—talented international workers

VERNON, BC—In just a few weeks, local employers will be able to post jobs that could help bring up to 100 skilled foreign workers to the North Okanagan every year until 2022— bolstering the economy and helping employers overcome a looming skilled labour shortage that can’t be filled solely by residents.

Vernon is one of two communities in BC and one of 11 in Canada selected to participate in the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP), which aims to help smaller communities benefit from the immigration of skilled workers by creating a path to permanent residence. RNIP Vernon will see Community Futures North Okanagan (CFNO) endorse qualifying job postings and support the local committee that recommends the applications of eligible skilled international workers.

Click To Find Out More On How The Rural And Northern Immigration Pilot Will Help Local Businesses Overcome Skilled Labour Shortage

“Our region is extremely fortunate to have been selected to participate in this project,” says Leigha Horsfield, General Manager, CFNO. “The opportunities it presents to enhance and fill gaps in our workforce needs is exceptional. One of the many outcomes we’d like to see is the promotion of the North Okanagan as a destination of choice for skilled immigrants and their families.”

The pilot is scheduled to begin in Vernon Feb. 1 and this week CFNO begins hosting ongoing RNIP training sessions for employers, who must meet several eligibility requirements, including being within a 40-kilometre radius (except for Kelowna), already having at least three full-time employees, and be posting a full-time permanent position. As of Feb. 1, employers can post a position on the new RNIP Vernon website, which goes live today for information, and employers will also be required to post the job locally so current residents can apply.

On Feb. 3, RNIP candidates will be able to create a profile on the RNIP Vernon site and can then apply for postings. To be considered eligible, candidates must meet federal permanent residency criteria as well as language benchmarks, and intend to live in the community. Once there’s a match between qualified employers and applicants, a CFNO committee reviews applications monthly and can recommend up to 100 applicants per year.

“This is a proactive solution that supports our region’s economic development goals. Vancouver and Kelowna are such draws, how do we attract and keep skilled workers? They need to have good jobs and a good place to live,” says Mercer.  

“If we can target skilled workers who can earn a living wage, and if they have job security and a welcoming community, these people and their families are more likely to stay and continue contributing to our region,” says Ward Mercer, Regional Coordinator, RNIP, adding with an aging population, only 47 per cent of Vernon residents are active in the workforce, and that number will continue to shrink as baby boomers retire.

The pilot runs February 2020 to 2022. The maximum number of recommended applicants would be 300 over the three-year period, in addition to applicants’ spouses and children, if their applications are also successful.

The RNIP project is supported by the City of Vernon, Southern Interior Development Initiative Trust, the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction and the Ministry of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

To learn more, visit www.rnip-vernon.ca

ABOUT COMMUNITY FUTURES NORTH OKANAGAN

Community Futures North Okanagan is a not-for-profit organization that supports economic development projects and helps our business community, job-seekers, and employers succeed. As a community-based organization with roots in Vernon dating back to 1984, Community Futures acts as a leader to create opportunities for growth and success across the North Okanagan. A team of nearly 45 staff provide workshops, programs and services for three departments: Business Services, Employment Services, and Economic Development. Visit www.futuresbc.com to learn more.

(feature image courtesy pexels.com)

https://www.futuresbc.com/wp-2/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/woman-in-red-shirt-beside-woman-in-white-shirt-1181724-scaled.jpg 1707 2560 Kazia Mullin https://futuresbc.com/wp-2/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Community-Futures-North-Okanagan-Logo.png Kazia Mullin2020-01-21 13:02:412020-01-21 13:02:41CFNO launches Rural Northern Immigration Pilot

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About Community Futures

From our office in downtown Vernon, Community Futures North Okanagan offers employment, business and economic development services to help residents build their future and the community. We service Armstrong, Coldstream, Enderby, Grindrod, Lavington, Lumby, Mara, Okanagan Indian Band,  Spallumcheen, Splatsin and Vernon.

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