CanadianSME Small Business Podcast
Welcome to the CanadianSME podcast, a podcast for Canadian Small Businesses. In our podcasts, we interview Canadian experts and entrepreneurs to give small business owners access to expert knowledge that helps them grow their enterprises. Our mission is to empower Canadian small and medium enterprises and help them reach a bigger audience through our platform. Calling upon some of the most successful subject matter experts in the industry, the small business podcasts aim at identifying issues and finding solutions, all this while helping the business owners.
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The Marketing Tech Trap: Why Your Strategy is More Important Than Your Tools
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Kripa Anand. Today, we explore how smart lifecycle marketing, customer retention, and sensible strategy are helping brands grow sustainably in an increasingly crowded digital market.</p> <p>Joining us is Katherine Lesperance, Founder and CEO of Sensible Marketer Inc. Kat shares how businesses can simplify marketing complexity and build long-term customer relationships through data-driven execution.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> Beyond the “Best” Tactic: Kat explains why strategy matters more than chasing trends. Building the Right Martech Stack: Kat shares how SMEs can choose tools that actually fit. Lifecycle-First Growth: Kat...
The Succession Crisis: Why Your Spreadsheets are Killing Your Bench Strength
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Kripa Anand. Today, we explore how Canadian organizations can move beyond static succession planning to build continuous, AI-driven talent strategies that safeguard leadership continuity in 2026.</p> <p>Joining us is Peter Demangos, CEO and Co-Founder of SuccessionHR, who shares insights on modernizing leadership readiness, embedding accountability, and creating sustainable succession practices.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> Limitations of Spreadsheets: Peter explains why traditional succession spreadsheets fail and the risks they pose. AI-Enhanced Talent Insights: Peter highlights how AI provides actionable, data-driven leadership readiness insights. Manager-Level Accountability: Peter outlines strategies for...
The Automation Storm: How Many Canadian Jobs are Actually at Risk?
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Kripa Anand. Today, we explore how AI, labour market shifts, and global trade uncertainty are reshaping the future of Canadian businesses and economic growth.</p> <p>Joining us is Dr. Tony Bonen, Executive Director of Economic Research at Signal49 Research. Tony shares how businesses can navigate economic disruption through data-driven insights, workforce strategy, and global market awareness.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> <p>1. AI and Industry Disruption: Dr. Bonen explains which sectors face the biggest automation shifts.</p> <p>2. Global Trade Uncertainty: Dr. Bonen shares how SMEs can prepare for...
Go-To-Market Friction: Scaling a High-Growth SaaS in a Multi-Terabyte Market
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Kripa Anand. Today, we explore how enterprises are moving beyond legacy file transfer methods to secure, cloud-native workflows that enable high-speed global collaboration in 2026.</p> <p>Joining us is Gene Villeneuve, Chief Revenue Officer at MASV, who shares insights on scaling global go-to-market strategies, simplifying file orchestration, and balancing speed with enterprise security.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> Global GTM Success: Gene explains MASV’s approach to unified international sales and operations. Limitations of FTP: Gene highlights why traditional file-sharing methods no longer meet enterprise needs. Enterprise Security at Speed: Ge...
The Underdog Strategy: Winning Against Industry Giants
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Maheen Bari. Today, we explore why modern growth marketing is no longer about collecting more tools, but about building smarter systems that deliver real customer value.</p> <p>Joining us is Elie Najm, Growth Marketing Manager at eZsign. Elie shares how businesses can simplify their tech stacks, strengthen positioning, and stay human in an AI-driven marketplace.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> Tech Stack Audit: Elie explains how businesses can identify wasteful marketing tools. Underdog Positioning: Elie shares how smaller brands can compete with larger players. Human-Centered Marketing: Elie highlights how...
Crawl, Walk, Run: The Disciplined Framework for Secure AI Adoption
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Maheen Bari. Today, we explore how organizations can move beyond AI experimentation and build scalable, secure, and measurable systems that deliver real business value.</p> <p>Joining us is Emily Steen, AI Solutions Developer and Forward Deployed Engineer at Thrive. Emily shares how businesses can design production-ready AI workflows, implement strong governance, and confidently scale AI initiatives across their operations.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> Why AI Pilots Fail: Emily explains the common mistakes that prevent AI projects from reaching production. The Crawl, Walk, Run Framework: Emily shares how organizations...
Why Climate Innovation Is Canada’s New Industrial Strategy for Growth
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Kripa Anand. Today, we explore how climate hard tech and strategic investment are shaping Canada’s path to long-term economic growth.</p> <p>Joining us is Sarah Goodman, President and CEO of NorthX Climate Tech. Sarah shares how catalytic funding and inclusive innovation are driving real impact in Canada’s climate economy.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> Catalytic Funding: Sarah explains how early investment de-risks climate ventures. Industrial Strategy: Sarah highlights why climate innovation drives national competitiveness. Wildfire Technology: Sarah shares why mitigation tech is critical for emissions reduction. Women in C...
Ditch the Lease: How Lean Infrastructure Scales Startups Faster
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Kripa Anand. Today, we explore how flexibility, lean operations, and virtual infrastructure are redefining what it means to build a modern business in 2026.</p> <p>Joining us is Lucas Seyhun, founder and CEO of The Farm Soho. Lucas shares how coworking, virtual operations, and adaptable workspaces are helping entrepreneurs scale without the burden of traditional overhead.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> The Evolution of Workspace: Lucas explains how coworking has transformed in the modern economy. Scaling with Lean Infrastructure: Lucas shares how startups can grow without expensive office commitments. The...
AI Cultural Coaching: How to Win in International Markets Without the Overhead
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Kripa Anand. Today, we explore why cultural intelligence has become one of the most important competitive advantages for businesses operating across borders and global teams.</p> <p>Joining us is Chris Crosby, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Country Navigator. Chris shares how organizations can avoid costly cultural missteps and build stronger international collaboration through Cultural Intelligence and AI-driven coaching.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> Why Cultural Intelligence Matters: Chris explains why CQ is now a business-critical leadership skill. The Hidden Cost of Cultural Friction: Chris shares the biggest mistakes companies...
The Psychology of Projects: What Drives Success (and Failure)
<p>Welcome to the CanadianSME Small Business Podcast, hosted by Kripa Anand. Today, we explore why successful digital transformation is rarely about software alone and why the real challenge often lies in leadership, communication, and execution.</p> <p>Joining us is Tim Holter, Vice President of Delivery at S4A IT Solutions. With decades of SAP delivery experience, Tim shares how organizations can bridge the gap between technology planning and real operational success.</p> <p>Key Highlights</p> Why Implementations Fail: Tim explains why technology projects struggle despite strong systems. The Human Side of Delivery: Tim shares how psychology and...
