Shannon MacDonald is on a crusade to improve productivity in the Maritimes, and she sees one shining example of progress  -- the region’s startups.

The Managing Partner (Atlantic) of the professional-services company Deloitte, MacDonald has worked on the firm’s analysis of productivity in Canada, a study that includes some stark data for the country in general and Atlantic Canada in particular.

 “Canadian productivity is starting to fall significantly behind our competitors,” MacDonald said recently during a lecture she gave for Dalhousie University business students. “This isn’t good,

The founders of Spring Loaded Technology just can’t wait for the day when some sports authority bans their product.

The three Dalhousie University students – Chris Cowper-Smith, Bob Garrish and Shea Kewin – are developing a new type of knee brace, which not only stabilizes the joint but also strengthens it, allowing the user to receive more power from his or her quadriceps. The product, which they hope to license to an established device manufacturer, would grant greater mobility to people who have difficulty moving because of age, disability or obesity.

But it could also improve

IntroHive Inc., a Fredericton- and Washington, D.C.-based startup that helps large companies to mine the contacts of their staff, has raised $1.8 million from GrowthWorks Atlantic Venture Fund,  the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation and a range of angels.

The company was founded by Jody Glidden and Stewart Walchli, who previously launched New Brunswick’s Chalk Media, which they sold to BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion for $30 million in 2009. They came together earlier this year to found IntroHive, with seed funding from Fortify Ventures of Washington, D.C., and CIT Gap Funds of

Atlantic Canadian startups are finishing the year with a flourish of fundraising, pushing the total amount of equity capital placed in young innovative companies in 2012 up over $50 million, spread across more than 45 companies. 

That $50 million figure isn’t the total for the whole year, as I’ve heard that a few other announcements are in the works before we’re all singing Auld Lang Syne. It’s simply the amount that entrepreneurs have reported to Entrevestor this year.

I try to track the investments into these young tech, biotech, cleantech and whatever-tech companies, and compiling

SimplyCast, the Dartmouth-based multi-channel marketing company, today will unveil its new Canadian data centre in Toronto, which will allow it offer enhanced communications services to large Canadian organizations, including governments.

The data centre will give SimplyCast clients the option of storing their company and client data completely in Canada, which is becoming increasingly necessary for Canadian organizations due to Canada’s relatively  strict privacy laws . Many government agencies and universities are required to keep data within Canada's borders.

“This is a huge deal for

Equals6, the Halifax-based social network linking students and potential employers, has formed a partnership with a Nevada-based network for student interns as part of its strategy to target growth in the United States.

The Halifax company said in a statement it had struck a partnership with YouTern, an online community that helps students seek internships and meet mentors, especially in the Silicon Valley area. By working together, Equals6 and YouTern can share content, reach more students and offer each other’s products to their clientele.

 “At Equals6, we are constantly looking for

Precipice Capital of Dartmouth said Wednesday it has hired Philip Bassil, a former managing director of BSM Global Partners Inc., who will be joining the firm as Managing Director, Power & Utilities.

“I was fortunate enough to have had the experience of collaborating with Phil on a previous project which gave me a first-hand look at his dedication to his clients and his craft,” said Precipice President Chris Dobbin in a statement. “His skill set is well-suited for our firm as we continue to build Atlantic Canada’s leading independent bank and corporate finance firm.”

Dobbin established

Our startup community has a problem: too many young companies are looking for too much money. Strategic investment is becoming part of the solution.

There are literally dozens of companies in the region that have raised a few hundred thousand in seed funding and now need $2 million or more (sometimes a lot more) in follow-on funding to finance the rollout of their main product. My estimate is that there will be demand for more than $100 million over the next two years.

Most of these companies are hoping to tap investment from venture capital funds, but the region’s startups are on track

The New Brunswick Innovation Foundation announced yesterday that the total prize value of its Breakthru competition – which assesses the business plans of embryonic companies -- has risen to a total of as much as $406,000, making it the largest competition of its kind in Canada.

The NBIF and the law firm Cox & Palmer are staging the fourth bi-annual Breakthru competition, which assesses viable business ideas and teams’ ability to plot out their development and then execute on the plans. No business is too early for the competition, the entries for which close on Dec. 20.

The foundation

Our Guest Columnist today is Ian Cavanagh, Chief Executive Officer of Ambir Co., founding Chairman of the NB IT Council and Member of the New Brunswick Business Council. Ian is also a mentor with Launch36. This article has appeared already on the Ambir website and in the Telegraph Journal of Saint John.

 

As we head towards the end of another year, ongoing economic uncertainty faces both businesses and governments around the globe.  We are reminded daily of the challenging fiscal climate we are experiencing here in New Brunswick.  The picture that gets painted is a bleak one, lacking