Why Are There so Few Black Entrepreneurs in the Digital Economy?
Disruptors21 Feb 2020

Why Are There so Few Black Entrepreneurs in the Digital Economy?

Today on RBC Disruptors, John Stackhouse sits down with two Torontonians who are working to ensure black entrepreneurs have access to more opportunities in the city’s thriving tech sector. They discuss the challenges unique to Canadian black entrepreneurs, the barriers they face getting their ideas off the ground, and why companies that invest in diversity and inclusion tend to be more successful.

Isaac Olowolafe Jr., who heads a Toronto-based asset management firm, is the founder of Dream Maker Ventures – a venture capital fund that invests in diverse founders from marginalized communities. He’s joined by Abdullah Snobar, the Executive Director of the DMZ – a tech incubator at Ryerson University. Dream Maker Ventures and the DMZ raised $1M to launch the Black Innovation Fellowship – a program addressing the lack of diversity in the startup ecosystem.

In light of Black History Month, Isaac and Abdullah called for Canadians to consider the importance of access and championing of black innovators. Increased opportunity and visibility will be key in advancing black entrepreneurship in the digital economy.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Episoder(222)

AI for Good? (June 6, 2019)

AI for Good? (June 6, 2019)

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning are moving at a staggering pace but big hurdles remain to dreams like self-driving cars and personalized medicine. What are the risks, opportunities, and t...

6 Jun 201932min

Disrupting the daily RITUAL Event Highlights (April 24, 2019)

Disrupting the daily RITUAL Event Highlights (April 24, 2019)

When Ritual CEO Ray Reddy was a product manager at Google, he learned a trick from Larry Page: the toothbrush test. If you can use a product twice a day, it will become habit-changing. A ritual. Reddy...

26 Apr 201939min

The Future of Shipping Event Highlights (April 3, 2019)

The Future of Shipping Event Highlights (April 3, 2019)

Global shipping ushered in the modern economy — but in 2019, it still has a 19th-century problem: too much paperwork. With growth in global trade contracting, there is tremendous pressure to find effi...

8 Apr 201937min

"Hey Alexa, What's Next for Voice Tech?" Event Highlights (March 28, 2019)

"Hey Alexa, What's Next for Voice Tech?" Event Highlights (March 28, 2019)

The most common question people ask their voice tech assistant isn't “How's the weather?" Not anymore. Today, it's “Alexa, will you marry me?" With 80,000 skills and growing, marriage is maybe the one...

2 Apr 201924min

Willing To Fail: The Disruptive Force of an Entrepreneurial Mindset Event Highlights (Feb. 27, 2019)

Willing To Fail: The Disruptive Force of an Entrepreneurial Mindset Event Highlights (Feb. 27, 2019)

Hauling away other people's junk, 1-800-GOT-JUNK? founder Brian Scudamore has seen it all: a mountain of escargot shells, a naked man and $400,000 in cash hidden under the floorboards. A lifelong entr...

1 Mar 201934min

BlackBerry's Big Pivot Event Highlights (Jan. 16, 2019)

BlackBerry's Big Pivot Event Highlights (Jan. 16, 2019)

John Chen didn't set out to be The Turnaround Guy. He just played to his strengths. He’s had plenty to fix at BlackBerry, the iconic Canadian tech company he took over as executive chairman and CEO in...

21 Jan 201931min

The Spin Master [Toy] Story Event Highlights (Dec. 4, 2018)

The Spin Master [Toy] Story Event Highlights (Dec. 4, 2018)

Spin Master was founded in 1994 by three friends fresh out of university. They had early hits with the Earth Buddy and Devil Sticks; but it’s when they started investing heavily in R&D that their toy ...

13 Des 201825min

RBC CEO Dave McKay in conversation with PayPal CEO Dan Schulman

RBC CEO Dave McKay in conversation with PayPal CEO Dan Schulman

Dan Schulman is President & CEO of Paypal, a worldwide online payments system that supports online money transfers and serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper methods like cheques and...

28 Nov 201826min

Populært innen Business og økonomi

lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
stopp-verden
dine-penger-pengeradet
e24-podden
rss-penger-polser-og-politikk
rss-borsmorgen-okonominyhetene
pengepodden-2
livet-pa-veien-med-jan-erik-larssen
finansredaksjonen
pengesnakk
tid-er-penger-en-podcast-med-peter-warren
utbytte
stormkast-med-valebrokk-stordalen
morgenkaffen-med-finansavisen
okonomiamatorene
liberal-halvtime
rss-politisk-preik
rss-markedspuls-2
lederpodden
rss-pa-konto