First-of-its Kind Canadian Advisory Centre Has Proven Formula to Help Small-and Medium-Sized Businesses Grow
Markham’s Innovation Synergy Centre expands its client base through a unique business model.
Business is thriving at Global Advantage International Inc., a three-year-old Markham company specializing in international safety compliance. Cash flow is positive and the balance sheet is healthy, says founder and engineering manager, Garry Lee. But he’s quick to add that things could have turned out quite differently for the young company if it hadn’t been for the support and guidance of a unique organization he discovered a year ago – Innovation Synergy Centre in Markham (ISCM).
At that time, Global Advantage was facing two choices: to continue providing consulting services to facilitate business compliance with international standards, or to branch out into the research and development (R&D) of safety certification and testing equipment. After learning about the ISCM – a first-of-its-kind, not-for-profit Canadian advisory centre established in Markham, to help small-to medium-sized businesses succeed, Lee sought the guidance of ISCM’s senior advisors, and hasn’t looked back since.
“As a small company, we couldn’t afford to make mistakes,” says Lee, who credits ISCM’s team of knowledgeable business leaders for steering his company in the right direction, which after several calculations was to stay on the path of providing consulting services. “We didn’t like the answer at the time,” he adds, “since it was our vision to grow with R&D. But they were absolutely right, and without their guidance, we would have found ourselves in a financial hole.”
Since opening its doors a little over a year ago to provide growing companies with practical business experience, the Innovation Synergy Centre has helped more than 250 companies just like Global Advantage. As an advisory centre, it serves companies with 10 to 50 employees which are growing and which have annual sales of $1 million to $5 million, or as ISCM president and CEO Bob Glandfield explains, “any export-oriented company facing the challenges of growing bigger.”
Providing a unique wellspring of knowledge and services, its main offerings include consulting, business mentoring, providing links to government and other funding programs, and facilitating networking opportunities between businesses and partners. While ISCM’s expertise tends towards the broad range of technology companies focused on export markets, it has also helped companies in the automotive, agriculture and manufacturing industries.
“What we’ve identified is that although there are many services available to start-ups, there really aren’t any similar services once a company ‘graduates,’” says Glandfield. “People just assume their business is going to grow, but the reality is they’re so busy running it they don’t have time to sit back and ask – ‘what’s going on around me and what are the key issues I should focus on?”
As a result of the positive response the Centre has garnered, Glandfield explains that ISCM is now assisting other entrepreneurial organizations in replicating its model regionally, nationally and internationally. Having served clients in Quebec as well as across Ontario, ISCM has a model that is attractive to other organizations because it focuses on existing companies that are looking for an unbiased business opinion and a push in the right direction.
The idea behind the Innovation Synergy Centre came to Glandfield while sitting in a coffee shop one day discussing investment funds with a business colleague. Recognizing that solving problems associated with business growth often takes a great deal more than funding, they drew up the advisory centre concept and proceeded to sell it to what became three founding partners and a sponsor: the National Research Council (NRC), Town of Markham, York University and Royal Bank of Canada.
“It’s the partners and the support of the partnership that is making this happen,” stresses Glandfield, who himself has more than 20 years of experience fostering business growth as an Industrial Technology Advisor under the NRC’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP). All senior business mentors supporting clients’ plans and goals have a significant broad business background running their own businesses or serving in senior corporate roles in larger companies.
In addition to its founding partners, who provide the operational support and free consulting services, ISCM supporters include the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, Bell Canada, Smart Simple, Lucent Technologies and Avaya. Participating organizations include the Health Technology Exchange, the Association of Ontario Medical Manufacturers, York Technology Association, and Seneca College which contributes a full-time staff advisor.
What makes the Innovation Synergy Centre unique is its expertise in pinpointing business challenges and then leveraging its partnerships to find the right solutions. Rather than operating as a full service consultancy, ISCM is a facilitator – bringing qualified clients and private sector or government consultants together to help companies realize their growth potential in both domestic and international markets.
When approached by a prospective client, ISCM begins by tapping into its team of in-house advisors, experienced business people who provide an initial consultation at no cost. Once a specific business challenge is identified, the advisors serve as mentors, pointing clients in the right direction which may include helping them apply for financial assistance, contacting a third-party consultant, or simply providing solid business advice they can carry out on their own.
Clients do not pay for the Centre’s guidance, and if they do choose to enter into a consulting relationship with a third-party provider suggested by ISCM, they may receive support for the first time retention of an expensive mentor project.
For Robert Brunet, president of King City, Ont.–based Click Media Inc., a visit to the Innovation Synergy Centre provided insightful financial advice that pointed him towards a different way of thinking about his banking relationship. Without it, he says, he could have made a costly business mistake.
ISCM also made him aware of a time-limited assistance program available through the Software Human Resources Council, under Human Resources Development Canada, enabling him to hire and train two new employees and expand the services his company offers.
“What’s nice about ISCM is the ability to go in and share the opportunities that I see for our company, to say here are the things I’m thinking of doing, and to get some objective feedback,” says Brunet.
Alexander Rink, President of Infotriever, Inc., based in Vaughan, agrees, referring to ISCM as the “business equivalent of a big brother.” Rink initially approached the Centre to tap into its financial expertise – in particular, to learn more about the NRC IRAP program – and ended up receiving valuable advice about his company’s operations. He has since maintained a close relationship with the ISCM and has benefitted from access to experienced advisors in marketing and sales.
“ISCM stimulates growth,” says Rink. “They provided us with invaluable perspective at a critical juncture in our history, and have supported us with ongoing access to expert resources when we needed them.”
For more information about the Innovation Synergy Centre in Markham, call 905.248.2709 or visit www.iscm.ca
2600 John Street, Unit 207, Markham, ON L3R 3W3 T: 905.475.5222 F: 905.475.6369
