Minister Chagger Kicks Off Small Business Week at University of Ottawa

News Release

Event is one of many opportunities provided this week to entrepreneurs to learn, network and grow their business

October 17, 2016 – Ottawa – Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

The Business Development Bank of Canada's (BDC) Small Business Week provides Canadian business owners with opportunities to learn, network and grow their businesses through conferences, workshops and trade fairs held across Canada. This year's theme is "Measure Up! Shape your Future," and Canadian entrepreneurs are invited to spur themselves on to greater productivity by benchmarking their performance against other companies in their industry.

To kick off BDC Small Business Week, the Honourable Bardish Chagger, Minister of Small Business and Tourism, attended an event organized by the University of Ottawa Telfer School of Management. Keynote speakers shared their experiences of launching a small business and talked about driving business growth. Minister Chagger spoke about her goal of turning start-up companies into global successes and creating an entrepreneurial society that fosters a culture of innovation.

As part of its ongoing commitment to improving its services to business owners, the government is launching an updated version of the Canada Business Network (CBN) website. This single-window access to federal, provincial and territorial government information and tools for small businesses and entrepreneurs offers new features that include improved mobile access and anonymous profile saving. It also presents new success stories and entrepreneur profiles as well as a video gallery on key business content areas. In addition, the site makes a new directory of Canadian social enterprises available to entrepreneurs looking to find companies that support social-minded products and services.

Quotes

"The Government of Canada recognizes the enormous and important contributions small business owners make to our country. As minister of Small Business and Tourism, I salute the hard work of entrepreneurs and small businesses that support the middle class, grow the economy and create the jobs we need."

– The Honourable Bardish Chagger, Minister of Small Business and Tourism

"For 37 years, the Business Development Bank of Canada has organized BDC Small Business Week in recognition of the contributions and achievements of Canada's entrepreneurs. This year's edition kicks off under the theme ‘Measure Up! Shape Your Future' and aims to give Canadian businesses an edge on the competition. We are excited to launch the world's most comprehensive productivity benchmarking tool at bdc.ca and help entrepreneurs compare their productivity levels to those of their industry peers."

– Michael Denham, President and CEO, Business Development Bank of Canada

Quick facts

  • Every year, during the third week of October, the Business Development Bank of Canada organizes Small Business Week to celebrate and promote Canada's entrepreneurs and SMEs.
  • Founded in 1969, the University of Ottawa Telfer School of Management is home to some 4,300 students, 200 faculty members and over 25,000 alumni and is recognized as one of the world's top business schools.
  • The Canada Business Network (CBN) provides small businesses and entrepreneurs with single-window access to reliable, up-to-date information and tools from federal, provincial and territorial governments. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada is responsible for the online delivery of the CBN via www.canadabusiness.ca.
  • Small and medium-sized enterprises are the foundation of the economy, accounting for 99 percent of all businesses in Canada. In 2015, SMEs employed approximately 10.5 million Canadians in the private sector. SMEs with fewer than 500 employees account for 39 percent of Canada's gross domestic product.

Associated links

Follow Minister Chagger on social media.
Twitter: @MinofSBT
Instagram: minofsbt

Contacts

James Fitz-Morris
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of Small Business and Tourism
343-291-2700

Media Relations
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
343-291-1777
ic.mediarelations-mediasrelations.ic@canada.ca


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