Perspective London Globe and Mail 2019

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London | 2 0 1 9

Commerce

Culture And Innovation London Ontario

continues to Create Strategic Partnerships

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Huron University – Challenging students to be Leaders with Heart

PROTEUS innovation competition challenging entrepreneurs

Taking flight.

At Western, entrepreneurship isn’t about widgets – it’s about people.

For generations, we have shaped the kind of leaders who think, innovate and problem-solve as entrepreneurs for their entire careers – the kind of people who drive the future of Canada.

In 2019, substantial new investments in Western Entrepreneurship will ensure we remain the university that best develops entrepreneurs.

Find out today how you can take flight with us.

Learn more about how Western is the university that best develops entrepreneurs at: uwo.ca/entrepreneurship

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A message from the mayor W elcome to London – a city made rich by its innovation and diversity.

The stories you’ll find here are stories about just some of the people and businesses that make London a great place to live, work and play.

We are not a single industry city. Rather, we’re a community of 14,000 employers. We take great pride in our diverse business community, offering a well-balanced economy that embraces strengths across many industries – manufacturing, food and beverage processing, healthcare, professional services and digital creative services.

Ours is a community in which entrepreneurs can thrive and businesses can easily access development and training, mentorship, funding and space, and incubation to accelerate faster in our nationally recognized test market. A testament to our strength in working with businesses who want to call London home is the recent announcement that Maple Leaf has chosen our city as the location for their largest and most technically sophisticated processing plant in their history.

With more than 470 parks and open spaces, and more than 330 km of walking and biking trails, London is known as the Forest City. Our community offers a unique blend of small-town charm with big city appeal – something that has attracted global companies, investments and talents.

But London is about more than just work.

Arts, recreation and culture are key to our thriving community. In fact, our downtown is in the middle of an exciting transformation with the early phases of Dundas Place, our first flex street, marking the beginning of what will be a game changer in the core of our city. When complete, it will be a place where Londoners gather for play – whether it’s attending events, enjoying live music, tasting new foods or just plain fun.

I invite you to learn more about the exciting things happening here in London. I am confident you’ll love what London has to offer.

Kind regards, Ed Holder Mayor, City of London

About the cover

Commerce, Culture & Innovation. London Ontario has an established business community within the healthcare, food processing and advanced manufacturing sectors. London thrives with an exciting start-up culture.

P e r s p e c t i v e TM 1464 Cornwall Rd, Suite 5, Oakville, ON L6J 7W5 1-866-779-7712 info@perspective.ca perspective.ca

Publisher, CeO Steve Montague ViCe-PresiDeNT Ed Martin PerspectiveTM London was produced independently of the City of London. Contents are copyrighted and may not be reproduced without the written consent of Perspective Marketing Inc. The publisher is not liable for any views expressed in the articles and opinions do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher or the City of London.

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London Continues to Achieve Success in Business Trends to continue in 2019 and beyond

L

ooking at the history of business in London, familiar names like Labatt, London Life, Goodlife Fitness, and McCormick speak to a tradition of “made-in-London” success stories creating a strong foundation for the city and region’s economy.

While the city’s economy has evolved over many decades, that homegrown ethos has remained the same, and the companies that are positioned to lead the city’s growth in the coming years are ones that have started, grown, and thrived in London.

“Some of our top entrepreneurs were born and raised here, some came to London through Western University or

Fanshawe College, and still others arrived along with family and spouses.” says Marilyn Sinclair, President & CEO of TechAlliance. “Regardless of what brought them here, what they all have in common is that they knew London was the right place for their business to succeed”.

That success is being recognized at the national and international level more and more each year, as London’s tech leaders continue to rank among the best in Canada and North America. In 2018, Voices.com, Diply, Arcane, and Big Viking Games landed on Deloitte’s Fast 500: North America listing of the fastestgrowing companies in the United States and Canada, while Voices.com, Digital Echidna, Zomaron, and StarTech.com appeared on the Growth 500 listing of Canada’s fastest-growing companies.

Voices.com corporate office in London Ontario. Photo provided by Voices.com “Add to this numerous other awards and special recognitions that companies like Digital Extremes, Media Sonar, and Total Leader Solutions earned in the past year, and it was a banner year for London’s tech companies.” enthuses Sinclair.

Another prominent indicator of the sector’s continued growth are the number of businesses changing offices to accommodate their growing teams.

Zomaron, Northern Commerce, Start. ca, and Info-Tech Research Group are just some of the numerous companies that have moved into new, larger spaces

in recent years, and in some cases, the company relocations are making a positive contribution to neighbourhood revitalization efforts.

“We expect all of these trends to continue in 2019 and beyond.” says Sinclair. “More of our startups will be transitioning into a growth stage, more companies will be adding to their teams and expanding their operations, and we expect to see even more of our entrepreneurs representing the city on the national and international stage.”

Start-up Culture Thriving in Many Sectors.

London’s Next Big Thing.

A STMNT is changing the fashion game allowing you to rent your clothes via a peer to peer network. Shown are (Left to Right) Kristen Tomen, Kylie Gonsalves, Morgan Nettleton, Madeline Patenall,Valentina Vargas, Madison Olson, Amelia Nguyen Photo Credit: Avan Patel Photography

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vibrant tech sector is like a forest: first you might notice the tall, older trees, but in between are countless smaller trees, each reaching for their own sunlight. In London, the Forest City, an exciting next generation of digital startups are emerging and staking their claim to be the city’s “next big thing”, including: STMNT – Looking for a hot new outfit for a night out? STMNT is changing the fashion game by enabling its users to look great and save money by renting clothing items from the closets of people around them, and also to make their own clothes available to rent, all through easy, ecommerce transactions.

Dibbzz – Seeing your favorite band in concert, but wish you were closer to the stage? Dibbzz’s unique service lets concert goers, theatre attendees and sports fans upgrade their seats when they are at the venue, all through text messaging. No app required!

Orca – Supply chain management is an industry has resisted disruption by sticking to models from the 70’s and 80’s.

Orca is changing that by implementing modern technology and processes to help companies make their supply chains more efficient and cost-effective.

FotaFlo – A picture is worth a thousand words, and possibly more when it’s satisfied customers sharing images to rave about your services!

Fotaflo is boosting the adventure tourism industry by helping them turn customers into brand ambassadors with branded, shareable photos It’s not just the digital world that’s shining though, the life science sector is also seeing a tremendous growth in new entrepreneurs, thanks in part to TechAlliance’s BURST program, developed in partnership with FedDev and the London Medical Network.

“We developed the BURST program to help give life science

entrepreneurs a much-needed boost.” says Marilyn Sinclair, President & CEO of TechAlliance. “By supporting them in the early stages with crucial seed funding, training and mentoring, we are enabling them to seek market validation, continue research and development, and ultimately bring potentially life-saving technologies to the market.”

Through 2018, 30 early-stage life science companies have completed the program, with products ranging from unique online fitness programs to specialized surgical devices. The support they received through BURST is already paying dividends, with many of the companies already attracting outside investment, growing their teams, and generating revenues.

All of these companies, along with the next cohort of life science startups that will participate in BURST in 2019, are key members of a bright, diverse future for entrepreneurship in London.

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Researchers show their stuff at PROTEUS

T

he PROTEUS Innovation ComUniversity of Windsor. This year’s compeforward and that have engagement from technology interfaces with the business petition brings business and science tition includes one technological innovatheir creators. side. Scientists aren’t trained in nurturing a together in order to take research tion from each university: an antibody Teams provide an abstract in November, venture, or taking an innovation to market out of the lab and into the market. therapeutic, a gas exchange for newborns, a business plan in January and six finalists so it can come forward for the public PROTEUS is a reverse pitch compeand a new engineering methodology in present a pitch in March. Along the way, good.” tition open to anyone in which teams additive manufacturing. teams get business and entrepreneurship PROTEUS has resulted in commercreate a commercialization plan for three “We are expanding the community training. Winners – one for each technolcialization opportunities for a number of technological innovations. of innovation,” said Cechetto. Born out ogy – are awarded a $5,000 cash prize. the showcased technologies, including Along the way, it helps researchers see of a partnership between The University Adam Paish, a PhD student in medthe formation of spinoff companies, says their work come to life, hones business of Western Ontario, Robarts Research ical biophysics at the Robarts Research Cechetto. The researchers or institutes experience for competitors and accelerates Institute and Lawson Health Research Institute, was a member of a winning team that own the technology and the winthe commercialization process on discovInstitute, WORLDiscoveries acts as a last year. He and two others came up with ning teams have the opportunity, but not eries coming out of Ontario’s institutions. bridge between local discoveries and a business plan for a force-guided surgical the obligation, to work together post There is no limit on the sector, says global industry. navigation tool for joint procedures in competition.

Lisa Cechetto, executive director of “The objectives of PROTEUS are to which bones must be cut with precision.

Dr. Beth Gillies, a chemistry and WORLDiscoveries, the business developraise awareness of the great research and The technology was developed by chemical engineering professor at Western ment arm of London’s extensive research innovation coming out of research instiWestern professor Dr. Louis Ferreira, University, has seen her technology, a network and one of the PROTEUS tutes, to promote technology creators and who specializes in medical mechatronics. stimuli-responsive biodegradable polymer, partners. their work and the commercialization of His work has the potential to result in a form the foundation of a startup company “When we first set up the competition, research,” said Cechetto. smaller and less costly unit, to save time called GlycoPolymer Inc. that is focused we purposely didn’t focus on a sector. The “It’s also an opportunity for students in during surgery, and to improve bone shap- on using the technology in capsules to technology can apply to healthcare, energy, science and technology to build business ing before an implant is installed. release drugs to the colon and intestines. re a student ages of 15-29 you skills.” could receive an award of up to $3,000, hands onplans training, and mentoring “As to start yourI own water,between engineering.the It can be anything.”

Paish says he to pursue a medical a scientist, love tobusiness. see comPROTEUS began four years ago as a In picking the technologies for the innovation fellowship to bridge the space mercialization, but I have zero business partnership between local partners and for sector, PROTEUS’s selection commitbetween research and commercialization. expertise and little time. Connecting with the first time this year, Western has collab- tee looks for innovations that are ready “The competition was a great students who have that expertise has been orated with McMaster University and the for commercialization, have a clear path opportunity to understand how great for us.”

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Targeting the spread of cancer Researchers at Lawson Health Research Institute are using high-dose radiation to help improve survival in patients with cancer that has spread to other parts of the body.

W

hen someone has cancer, one of the biggest fears is hearing these words: “the cancer has

spread.”

When cancer spreads from an original tumour to other parts of the body, known as metastasis, it is generally considered incurable.

This long-held belief is now being challenged by researchers at Lawson Health Research Institute, the research institute of London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC). In an international study, researchers showed that high-dose radiation can improve survival in patients with cancer that has spread to five or less sites.

Led by Dr. David Palma, a researcher at Lawson and radiation oncologist at LHSC, SABR-COMET was the first randomized phase II clinical trial of its kind. It included 99 patients with oligometastatic cancer – cancer that has spread to a limited number of sites in the body.

SABR-COMET patients were those previously treated for a solid tumour cancer that had returned in up to five different places in the body. The majority of patients had a primary tumour that was lung, breast, prostate or colorectal in origin. Research participants were recruited from across Canada, Australia, the Netherlands and Scotland, including 51 patients from LHSC’s London Regional Cancer Program.

The study examined the use of stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) to improve patient outcomes through comprehensive treatment of oligometastatic tumors (COMET).

“SABR is a technique that precisely delivers radiation to a tumour in substantially higher doses than normal

with the goal of destroying cancerous cells,” says Dr. Palma, also a clinicianscientist at the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR).

Patients were randomly selected to receive either standard treatment, consisting of chemotherapy or radiation therapy, or standard treatment combined with SABR to target every known tumour in the patient’s body.

The research team found that patients who received SABR lived longer than patients who did not. After five years, 46 per cent of patients treated with SABR were still alive compared to 24 per cent of those who received standard treatment.

Median survival for SABR patients was 41 months compared to 28 months for non-SABR patients. SABR also doubled the amount of time patients lived without further cancer growth – a median of 12 months for patients receiving SABR and six months for those not.

“In the past, the spread of lung cancer to the bones or breast cancer to the brain was considered incurable,” says Dr. Palma.

“We’ve shown for the first time that if cancer has spread to only a few spots, we can target those tumours with high-dose radiation to increase how long a patient lives.”

Some patients receiving SABR developed additional tumours during the trial. Those additional tumours could sometimes be targeted and successfully treated. Because of this success, Dr. Palma is now planning a follow-up study that will assess the use of SABR in patients with cancer that has spread to up to 10 sites. The study, called SABRCOMET-10, will launch this year and is supported by London Health Sciences Foundation.

Dr. David Palma, radiation oncologist at London Health Sciences Centre and researcher with Lawson Health Research Institute, led the groundbreaking SABR-COMET clinical trial.

The SABR-COMET clinical trial included 51 patients from the London Regional Cancer Program at London Health Sciences Centre.

DEVELOP A GOOD

HEAD AND HEART,

SO YOU CAN LEAD WITH BOTH Come to a university that will never make you choose between the two.

Lead with Heart at Huron University.

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Huron University Grad featured in House and Home, Style at Home, and Martha Stewart Living.

Interior Designer Ali Budd is in high demand.

“

B

eautifully functional, functionally beautiful,” is the way Ali Budd, founder, owner, President and Principal Designer of Ali Budd Interiors, describes her design studio. But, this punchy description is also a great way to think of the Liberal Arts foundation that helped Ali develop a formidable combination of talent, character and heart.

Ali Budd is one of Toronto’s most in-demand interior designers. Her boutique firm focusses on high-end luxury residential buildings. Known for its timeless yet edgy designs, bespoke furniture and white-glove service, Ali Budd Interiors – and Ali’s designs – have been featured in countless publications including House and Home, Style at Home, and Martha Stewart Living. Her firm’s designs have also graced television screens on HGTV and Global News. The 2018 winner of the Interior Designer of the Year award from The Notable Awards, Ali takes nothing for granted and knows she’s worked hard, learned well, and given herself the proper foundation for success.

Confidence, too, also helps.

It was Huron University, Ali says, that helped her become the businessperson she is today: One that’s not afraid to take risks, stretch herself creatively, and push herself harder than she could ever have conceived of. Ali distinguishes herself as a businesswoman who sets her own rules, knows her value and never shies away from advocating for herself, her team members and what she knows is right.

Huron, she says, taught her everything and no one will ever tell her an undergraduate degree in the Liberal Arts – Ali majored in English – is useless.

“Now, I’m an interior designer running a firm in Toronto. Is that directly correlated

to what I did at Huron? Of course not, but my education formed the basis of my success as a human and educated person; I don’t think I actually could have done this in the way I have done it, without having Huron as my foundation to work off of,” she says.

Dr. Neil Brooks, one of Ali’s favourite English professors, says he’s flattered by her praise of his teaching, but asserts that all the success Ali is achieving is due solely to her initiative and drive. “Ali is the perfect illustration of how passionate commitment leads to success and satisfaction, regardless of where that passion is directed,” he says.

“Our English graduates have found success in an incredibly wide range of endeavours because engaging with literature helps our students to more effectively tell their own stories and

Ali Budd, founder of Ali Budd Interiors runs her fullservice design studio,Toronto-based but globally available.

Visit alibuddinteriors.com for more information. better empathize with and influence the stories of others.”

Not only did Huron help Ali develop the knowledge she needed to understand the world and the skills to shape it, but this unique university also encourages its students to recognize the importance of being good people – not just successful academics. Huron’s emphasis on Leadership with Heart rang true for Ali who had already begun to learn why heart matters in business. She explains, “Dad would always tell me, you talk to everyone the same. Whether you’re talking to someone cleaning garbage off the street or you’re talking to a CEO of a bank, it doesn’t matter: everyone is the same. And, I think that’s what a true Leader with Heart practices.”

While Ali may be focused on decorative appliances and functional elegance, she’s also well aware of the not-so-appealing glass ceilings that persist for women in business. This, alongside many other elements of her

personal and professional life, make being a businesswoman exhilarating. Ali says she sees barriers being broken and new opportunities presenting themselves constantly. The people (and pet) focused designer was “floored” when she recently read an article that stated only 3% to 5% of female-run businesses get to $1 million in sales. While she’s proud to have secured such significant success, she also looks forward to a time when more women will be empowered to push their passions toward unprecedented success.

In addition to encouraging young people to, “Work their asses off,” Ali also wants them to recognize that the Huron experience is unmatched. “I can’t imagine someone would end up there and think they’d made a mistake,” she says.

She encourages students to experience everything while receiving one of the most elite educations in the country.

Because, even if they’re not sure what it is they wish to do with the rest of their lives, “Huron is an incredible foundation.”

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Why Big & Small Businesses are moving to London.

Key sector growth include Agri-Food, Technology, Digital Media, Bio-Pharma and Manufacturing

L

ondon is front and centre for site selectors, investors, and small to medium-sized companies looking for a well-located, affordable city with great quality of life.

“It has big-city amenities with a smalltown feel,” says one veteran commercial realtor. “We are not going to compete with Toronto for Amazon, but we are the perfect place for companies of 500 to 3,000 people.”

Activity levels have been good across many sectors, says Peter Whatmore, senior vice president for southwestern Ontario at CBRE Limited.

“London offers a great value proposition. It has the least expensive industrial land in southern Ontario for a city its size.”

As well, the municipality has removed development charges for the manufacturing sector.

“The big story is London landing the Maple Leaf Foods plant. That will bring 1,450 jobs and many more spinoff jobs.”

Whatmore said the City has targeted agri-food investment for a number of years and he expects that to continue paying off.

London benefits from strong highway corridors to the GTA and the U.S. border, proximity to agricultural producers, and access to 50 million people within a day’s drive.

For years, serviced industrial lands were in short supply but the municipality has expanded two major artery roads south of Hwy 401 to unlock more industrial lands.

Another strong sector of growth is technology and digital media. A number of companies have invested in downtown office space, including repurposing heritage space. Mobile video game developer Big Blue Bubble and software developer Autodata Solutions have both moved into the core, largely due to employees who want an urban work experience, says Whatmore.

“It really has become a big employee retention issue.”

Tech startups are attracted by lease rates of $15 to $20 per square foot in London, compared to $40 to $50 a square foot in downtown Toronto.

Fanshawe College has also added to its presence downtown, adding a large addition on the former Kingsmill’s department store that is “nothing short of spectacular,” said Whatmore. Several thousand college students now study downtown, including those in hospitality, culinary, tourism, performing arts and information technology programs.

Downtown restaurants and shops are also benefitting from major investments in condo developments that are projected to continue for the next few years, says Whatmore.

Within the London office of real estate professionals CBRE, there are 17 sales representatives, 3 financial service professionals, and 8 support staff. In addition, within the Valuation and Advisory Services Group there is one accredited appraiser and two financial analysts.

For more information on moving or expanding your business to London Ontario please visit http://www.cbre.ca/EN/o/london Across the city, the commercial retail sector remains strong. A large big-box power centre is slated for the southwest sector and some major announcements are coming for Westmount Mall, says Whatmore.

On the residential side, the inventory of home listings is not enough to keep up with demand, says Earl Taylor, president of the London St. Thomas Association of Realtors (LSTAR).

“The market is still very strong in London. People are coming from the west, the GTA and the Kitchener area because home prices are more affordable.”

LSTAR expects to see the strong sellers’ market continue through 2019, due to immigration into the city, low interest rates and strong job growth.

The average home price in LondonSt. Thomas is $370,247, less than half of prices in the GTA.

“In the early spring of 2017, all of a sudden we were bombarded with calls from the GTA. Ninety-five per cent of our sales that summer were people coming from the GTA,” said Sue Westall, president of Westall Homes and president of the London Home Builders Association.

“It’s been very busy in multi-residential.

There are lots of new townhouses, which are hitting a good price point. They are affordable to many buyers.”

But Westall says there is much more to London than just affordability. The city boasts great schools and hospitals, a vibrant quality of life, and a strong local economy.

“London is also located in a great spot.

It’s an hour or less to Lake Huron and Lake Erie, two hours to Toronto and the U.S. border. London is just a great place to live.”

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Land a Job in London

London Jobs

Check out some of the great employment opportunities in a city packed with culture, music, dining and shopping.

L

ondon technology company Voices. com is hiring 18 people and boosting its already rapidly growing workforce by 15 per cent at once.

Voices.com is the largest marketplace for voiceovers in the world, says Trisha Beausaert, senior manager for public relations.

Member talent work on a wide and growing range of projects, including commercials, documentaries, web videos, podcasts, mobile apps, crowdfunding campaigns, video games, cartoons, virtual and augmented reality games, audio books, and corporate training videos.

Growth has been rapid. Beausaert was employee No. 23 in 2013 and the company now employs 120 in London and has clients in more than 160 countries. Clients include National Geographic, Shopify, Microsoft, The History Channel, Discovery Channel, The Los Angeles Times, Bell, GoDaddy, Cisco and Hulu.

“We are proud to be based in London, Ontario, especially as London offers our team a high quality of life and unique opportunities that may not be found in a larger city,” said Ann Walton,Voices.com’s director of operations. She says London is home to theatres, concert venues, hiddengem restaurants, and great education and health organizations.

“With Toronto two hours east and Detroit two hours west, London’s central location is an ideal base for anyone who wants to venture to larger metropolitan areas without paying big-city cost of living.”

Voices.com founders Dave and Stephanie Ciccarelli are Londoners who founded their company in a downtown recording studio in 2004.

In 2017, the company got an $18-million US investment from Morgan Stanley – believed to be the largest single investment in a London technology company – and the next year, bought a competitor from California and merged operations.

Recruiting employees has been easy, says Beausaert.

“The cost of living is very reasonable for younger people. It’s manageable for new grads or people who are mid-career and looking for a bigger house, bigger property, a smaller city or a different lifestyle.”

As well, the company designed and built a 45,000-square-foot open-concept office space in downtown London.

“For me, I had the option to go to Toronto or London. London feels like a city I can put my stamp on,” said Beausaert. “The lifestyle here is something can’t achieve in a larger city.You can have an amazing career and have a life after work.Your money goes so much further here.You can save here and still have a great life.”

Info-Tech IT research and advisory company InfoTech has been growing so fast, it physically couldn’t contain the new employees it needed. So, it stitched a group of heritage buildings together to create the 70,000 square feet of stylish brick and beam office space that it moved into in December.

It plans to fill it with about 140 new employees this year, adding to the 250 people already working in its London headquarters.

Forty employees started on one day in January and more hiring is expected throughout 2019, including 100 in sales and 40 research analysts.

Info-Tech works with companies of all sizes in 18 different industries across North America, the United Kingdom and Australia and is constantly expanding its product offerings for its 30,000 subscribers, says Sean Burkett, vice-president of strategy.

“We are proud to be part of a community of businesses and organizations revitalizing London’s downtown. The neighbourhood has rich amenities for employees during the day as well as a vibrant nightlife afterhours,” said Burkett.

“And we believe that as a city, London is able to showcase the best of what Canada has to offer while still remaining affordable for millennials and families.”

Cargill The 150-year-old Canadian agriculture company is hiring for eight positions in London, including millwright, general production and IT.

Digital Extremes The game developer has posted for 18 jobs, including artists, customer support, designers, and programming, to add to its current London workforce of 200.

Maple Leaf Foods The Canadian company is making the largest, single food industry investment in the country in a $660-million poultry plant in London. The plant is being built on new employment lands on the south side of Hwy. 401 at Highbury Avenue. Maple Leaf chose London because of its highway access, proximity to chicken farmers, its shovelready land and its skilled labour.

The plant will employ 1,450 people by 2021 and is expected to generate $1.2 billion in economic impact.

Labatt Canada’s largest brewer is synonymous with London, where it was founded in 1847. The company is now part of multinational giant Anheuser-Busch InBev. Labatt is hiring eight people for its London operation, including millwright, operations group manager and quality control.

Starlim North America The Austria-based silicone product manufacturer recently unveiled a new 160,000-square-foot addition to its London facility. The company creates custom silicone products for the automotive, healthcare and consumer markets. Starlim will add 75 highly specialized production machines and will double its workforce, hiring up to 120 skilled workers over the next five years.

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Why join us?

We’re committed to providing you with ongoing professional development, coaching, competitive products and personalized marketing support to help you build a successful business.

We support you every step of the way Building a business takes time. That’s why we provide an initial training allowance and the resources, tools and processes required for you to grow.

We have a robust training and development team in place to help you hit the ground running. Support doesn’t end once you’ve started at Freedom 55 Financial. We have support tailored to meet your needs throughout your strong and lengthy career.

Learn and grow Freedom 55 Financial provides industry-leading training when you join us, as well as considerable continuing education throughout your career – including a facilitated Certified Financial Planner (CFP) program.

We take your development seriously, we host annual training and development meetings to give you an opportunity to learn with and from peers.

Our support extends beyond coaching and development training from our talented Freedom 55 Financial leadership team, we have a world-class wholesaling organization to develop your product knowledge and provide you the support you need throughout the sales process.

Competitive compensation Commission-based compensation rewards the work you put into building your client base. Our competitive compensation package includes up-front commissions, productivity-based bonuses, benefit options and a share ownership plan.

Technology to support your practice Benefit from an organization that understands you need technology to do your job well, including specialized software and regular access to technical support. We’re always exploring and investing in tools and technologies designed to help you succeed.

You’ll challenge your entrepreneurial spirit, while having the ability to control your schedule and determine your success.

At Freedom 55 Financial, you’ll build a career for yourself, but you won’t have to do it by yourself. You’ll have the opportunity to grow your own business, backed by the support of a strong team. If you’re looking for a career that gives you the freedom to set your own schedule, push your limits and make a real difference in people’s lives, check us out.

-Abbie MacMillan Vice-President, Freedom 55 Financial

Learn more

Freedom 55 Financial @Freedom55Financial

@F55F Check us out on Glassdoor

Find a career that works for you.

Freedom 55 Financial and design are trademarks of London Life Insurance Company.

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To learn more about what it’s like to be a financial security advisor, please send an email to f55fselect@londonlife.com or check us out on social media and search #LoveThisCareer.

Understanding the value of advice Most things in life start with a goal, especially when it comes to your finances. By working with a financial security advisor, you can craft a plan tailored to your goals and track the health of your finances to ensure you’re on the right track.

Seeing the benefit According to the Investment Funds Institute of Canada, Canadians who work with advisors for 15 years or more accumulate almost four times more in savings than people who invest without advisors. Whether you’ve just landed your first job out of school or you’re just starting to think about retirement, an advisor can offer you the financial guidance needed to create a plan that fits your lifestyle and that will help you reach your goals.

The value of planning ahead Don’t settle for a one-size-fits-all approach to your financial future.

Just as you keep on top of your physical and mental health, working with an advisor can help you keep on top of financial plan.

Your financial security plan should be as individual as you are and should reflect your life stage, personal circumstances and future goals.

Many Canadians create a financial plan so they can start embracing today and feel more confident about protecting their family in the years to come.

An advisor can help guide you through every step of your plan, whether you’re saving up for your dream home or you simply want to keep on top of how your investments are performing.

An advisor will take the time to understand your current situation, help you identify your future needs and work with you to customize a plan to help you meet them.

Your partnership with your advisor is built on the needs, advice, recommendations and ongoing support and maintenance of your financial plan, at all points of your life.

We have the experience to help you build a foundation of financial strength and the expertise to help you maintain your long-term strategy as your life circumstances evolve.

When thinking about your financial plan consider the four cornerstones to a financial foundation. These areas of focus are the key building blocks for a financial plan.

• Cash flow: Do you have cash when you need it? Most Canadians haven’t saved the three to six months of income that experts recommend we set aside for emergencies.

• Income protection: What would happen if your health failed? Having living benefits coverage could ensure the support is there if you need it in the event of a disability or critical illness.

• Retirement: You’ve worked hard your whole life, which means you deserve the retirement of your dreams. By working with an advisor to invest your money, you can build and protect your savings to enjoy your retirement years the way you want.

• Estate planning: Planning for your future can also mean planning for your

Learn more Find out how working with a Freedom 55 Financial advisor can help you achieve your goals at all stages of life, to learn more or find an advisor, visit us at: https://www.freedom55financial.com/advisor.html

Freedom 55 Financial and design are trademarks of London Life Insurance Company.

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family’s future. An advisor can help you prepare your finances so you can protect your loved ones when you’re no longer here.

Perspective

TM

L o n d o n

Flip your thinking

Reinventing education to meet the needs of today’s busy working adults

By: Nicole Laidler

I

magine if there was a roadmap that could help you successfully tackle a complicated issue at work, or finally resolve a reoccurring challenge. The Certificate in Innovative Thinking at Western Continuing Studies offers just that. The program teaches learners new and creative ways to approach almost any situation.

Innovative Thinking offers a new way to solve old problems “There’s never been a time when change has been more rapid,” says Western Continuing Studies instructor Anna Foat.

Organizations no longer have the luxury of investing large amounts of time and money to research and develop a new service or product, she explains, so the old ways of thinking may no longer apply.

Foat teaches Design Thinking, one of the courses that make up the Innovative Thinking curriculum. She brings almost two decades of experience working in Canada’s high-tech sector to the classroom, beginning her career at BlackBerry in 1999.

Today she serves as Director, Global Digital Transformation Office at SunLife Financial.

“Design thinking starts from a position of trying to understand what is important to the user,” Foat says. “We start from scratch and ask: Who are we serving?

What matters to those people?

It sounds like a simple thing, but it’s not the way organizations generally tend to think.”

Peter Sherriff completed the two-day Design Thinking workshop and has applied what he learned to his role as a Western Continuing Studies instructor.

He currently teaches The Power

of Strategic Questions, and Problem-Solving, DecisionMaking and Creativity, which is also part of the Innovative Thinking curriculum.

“I was looking for inspiration.

Instead of approaching things from the perspective of an instructor I wanted to shift my thinking to focus more on the student,” Sherriff says. “Design Thinking gave me a holistic approach that allows me to close the loop.” Sherriff found the workshop’s Empathy Map process particularly powerful. The mind-mapping tool is something he now incorporates into his lesson-planning. “I love it because it’s visual, it’s quick, and it helps me break down each step to make

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sure I get the best results for my students,” he says.

The Certificate in Innovative Thinking is about continuous improvement, he notes, and it attracts a wide range of students – from organizational leaders and managers to small business owners and entrepreneurs.

With only three required courses that are delivered inperson and online, the certificate offers a focused, practical way for busy professionals to learn new skills they can apply immediately.

“It encourages you to be flexible in your thinking and it allows you to recharge your batteries,” Sherriff says. “It really kick-starts the process of looking at things in a totally different way.”

With rapid innovation and constant change in business and technology, there is not only a need for organizations, but also for individuals to continuously evolve and adapt to sustain success. Finding time for learning can be a challenge with our increasingly busier the fast pace of our lives.

Until now.

These six accelerated certificates consist of just three courses, focusing on the skills employers want in a format that takes less time to complete.

Our fast-track certificates were developed specifically for working adults who are serious about achieving their career goals. They provide the skills to boost your confidence in the job you have today, while preparing you for the job you want tomorrow.

Innovative Thinking Learn innovative ideas to apply to your current and future business challenges.

Innovative Learning & Design Thinking Our courses are designed with your career and life aspirations in mind. wcs.uwo.ca

In a world where change is the only constant, the need to be innovative has never been more crucial. Learn flexible, transferable and collaborative methods and tools for approaching problems in creative ways. Inspire others to develop and exercise innovation and creativity in problem-solving.

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Sparking Creativity and Engagement March 20, 9:00am to 12:00pm Design Thinking April 8 & 9, 9:00am to 4:00pm

Problem-Solving, Decision-Making and Creativity May 16 & 17, 9:00am to 4:00pm ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Save 15% when you register for all three courses. Use coupon code BUNDLE when you register for all three courses. Price adjusted at checkout.

London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) provides compassionate, high-quality care to patients and their families while improving the lives of people everywhere. With a distinguished legacy of pioneering medical innovations for almost 145 years, LHSC has achieved more than 75 medical firsts and breakthroughs in Canada, North America, and the world.

Saving lives and changing lives; we are here to help when you need us most.