Tag: Accelerator Program

WATERLOO, ON, CANADA, Oct 29, 2013 – iNotForProfit, an emerging leader in smartphone app creation for the philanthropic sector, announced last night that it would be providing mobile apps to the Ontario Volunteer Centre Network (OVCN). This newly formed partnership was unveiled during the 2013 OVCN INNOVATION and ACTION! Conference.

OVCN is the voice of volunteerism in Ontario. Their goal is to take Ontario volunteerism to the next level. Through their network, Volunteer Centres can build upon their capacity, enabling them to increase the quantity and quality of their programs. The OVCN is constantly looking for new ways to elevate Ontario volunteerism, from engaging youth to seniors to inspiring entire communities.

iNotForProfit will help OVCN members develop their mobile marketing and communication strategy through the development of apps designed to reach next generation, skilled professional and boomer volunteers. iNotForProfit apps, free to users, and available for iOS, BlackBerry 10 and Android platforms, will now be offered to all OVCN endorsed Volunteer Centre Members OVCN apps will offer a dedicated section where volunteers can easily access Volunteer Centre information, volunteer opportunities, along other things such as push notification to send reminders and update messages. Push notifications have been shown to double retention rates.

“Noticing the rising prevalence of mobile users, the increasing youth dependence on mobile, and given Ontario’s mandate to provide a provincial network and voice to strengthen the individual and collective ability of Volunteer Centres in Ontario to promote and develop volunteerism, we partnered with OVCN to help make an impact. Together we are offering a new way to help volunteer organizations increase volunteer engagement and make getting involved easier and more accessible,” says Jonathan Grover, CEO of iNotForProfit. “The OVCN is clearly a leader in transforming volunteerism and pioneering a new digital age of philanthropy. For close to a year we have been actively working with two members of OVCN, the Volunteer Action Centre in Kitchener-Waterloo and Volunteer Halton, to lead the way. Both organizations have already had great success in piloting their own apps, created for them by iNotForProfit,” says Grover.

“We saw a need in the community,” says Manon Germain, Network Manager, OVCN. “Our members needed a better approach to engage the growing mobile community, and their constituents. They wanted an easier method to stay connected and up-to-date with opportunities. Our goal is to increase impact and awareness of volunteerism. And with the 7th Change The World – Ontario Youth Volunteer Challenge being extended to 6 weeks to engage high school students in volunteerism, we knew the time was now to make the move to introduce a mobile app to our membership,” says Germain.

About Ontario Volunteer Centre Network (OVCN)

The OVCN is an unincorporated network of 24 Volunteer Centres in Ontario, guided by a volunteer steering committee. The OVCN’s mandate is to provide a provincial network and voice to strengthen the individual and collective ability of Volunteer Centres in Ontario to promote and develop volunteerism.

The purpose of OVCN is to increase support for Ontario’s Volunteer Centres; build Volunteer Centre capacity to deliver quality programs and services, manage and govern their organizations, and generate revenue; influence social policy as it relates to Volunteer Centres and volunteerism; increase public awareness of the value and impact of volunteerism in Ontario. To learn more, please visit www.ovcn.ca.

About iNotForProfit (iN4P)

iNotForProfit is a social enterprise using next-generation technology to create accessible solutions for the philanthropic sector. Social media has changed the way we engage; just as online donations has changed fundraising. Mobile apps are not only a part of this change, but also the future of impact. Our mission is to help them spread their message, connect communities to their cause, and fundraise more effectively.

We believe this is the age of philanthropy, of social good and social change. We’re here to be a catalyst. We’re here to help nonprofit, charities and NGOs connect, fundraise and engage in today’s online world. We’re here to change the world. For more information please visit www.inotforprofit.com.

Social Media Links

Facebook www.facebook.com/iN4P-Inc-iNotForProfit
Twitter @inot4profit
LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/company/in4p

Waterloo (Ontario) CANADA, October 23, 2013 – BlackBerry employees facing layoff are getting a much-needed helping hand from Waterloo Region tech startup Cream.HR.

The Communitech HYPERDRIVE graduate announced today it is offering up its online talent assessment solution to all displaced Blackberry staff for free, providing these new job seekers with an opportunity to go beyond the resume and use CREAM.HR’s behavioral science-based solution to showcase their strengths and talents, while proving their cultural fit with prospective employers.

“We’re a closely knit technology community in Waterloo Region and it was important to us to step in and offering a helping hand to our BlackBerry colleagues,” says Cream.HR CEO, Caitlin MacGregor. “Our platform uses the science of psychology to uncover each applicant’s problem solving abilities and priorities so they can position themselves with prospective employers. And we can help employers surface the highest potential candidates for a company’s culture and position and go beyond gut instinct to know how a candidate will perform on the job.”

“Cream.HR’s platform is like a crystal ball,” says Gerald Valdez, a former BlackBerry employee who is now happily employed at Desire2Learn. “It highlighted my passion for technology and for building business relationships, and strongly pointed me toward a technical sales role, which had never crossed my mind as an engineer. Cream.HR helped me articulate a strong set of credentials and insights allowing me to approach my job search with laser focus and differentiate myself within a large pool of applicants.”

Former BlackBerry workers who wish to take advantage of Cream.HR’s free assessment offer can sign up today at cream.hr/bb.

On October 29th 2013, from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM at the Accelerator Centre, Meeting Room 2, Cream.HR will host a Job Seeker Assessment Workshop sponsored by Communitech. The event will assist former BlackBerry employees uncover their innate strengths and talents and best position themselves with future employers.

On November 27, 2013 Cream.HR will join with Communitech, the Human Resources Professional Association (HRPA), Right Management, the ITEC Group and the Dean Group for a panel discussion and workshop. The evening event, to take place at the Tannery Event Space and moderated by Accelerator Program HR mentor and Leadership & Culture consultant Jackie Lauer, will focus on practical strategies and advice to assist former BlackBerry employees in their job search.

For further details, please contact:
Christine Bird, COO Cream.HR
Tel: +1-610-800-1137, Email: Christine@cream.hr
@Cream_HR

About Cream.HR

Cream.HR identifies job applicants with the highest potential, matching them to your company culture and position. Using the science of psychology, our cloud based hiring solution assesses each applicant’s problem solving ability and priorities, before a resume is read.

Go beyond gut instinct, find the hidden gems and finally know how each candidate will perform months after being hired. Start using Cream.HR today to establish a standardized benchmark for hiring, build great team dynamics, and scale your culture.

The next army of unmanned drones are scurrying beneath the ocean’s surface.

Hundreds of small camera-equipped robots developed by a range of companies are sending video and other data to laptop and tablet screens above.The next army of unmanned drones are scurrying beneath the ocean’s surface.

What began as a niche industry for wealthy hobbyists has matured into a fast-growing market catering to a wide variety of industries and government agencies.

A VideoRay underwater vehicle equipped with a camera and radiation detector inspects the hull of a ship.

Unmanned marine vehicles have been around for years-the U.S. Navy and the Coast Guard, for example, use them to help detect mines and thwart drug smugglers. Big military contractors such as Boeing Co. BA -1.97% and General Dynamics Corp. GD -1.17% offer torpedo-like underwater vehicles for the military and other government agencies.

Now, a new wave of independent companies are developing cheaper, smaller models-typically the size of a football-meant for commercial and recreational use, from inspecting oil rigs and fish farms to helping hunt for sunken treasure.

But as the industry grows, drone-making companies are also running into hurdles. The companies must figure out how to market these technologies for applications beyond traditional uses, compete with bigger defense contractors, and keep costs low enough to appeal beyond deep-pocketed buyers.

Operating machines underwater is no easy task. Motors sometimes malfunction, causing the robots to sink, or a previously undiscovered crack can cause critical leaks. Last week, a team from Memorial University in Newfoundland lost contact with an autonomous underwater vehicle that looks like a yellow torpedo and was worth about $165,000.

Then there is the prey. Two years ago a shark attacked a sea-gliding robot piloted by Liquid Robotics Inc., causing the device used to collect data for BP BP.LN -1.25% PLC to malfunction. Sam MacDonald, co-founder and president of Ontario company DeepTrekker Inc., said a barracuda “took a quick bite” out of a demo device in Antigua “but decided against making it meal.” The robot survived.

“Because of the dangers of doing things underwater you’re going to see these robots do more practical things,” said Durval Tavares, the chief executive of AquaBotix Technology Corp.

His company sells an underwater remote-operated vehicle, or ROV, called the HydroView, which can be controlled from a laptop or mobile device and cost between $4,000 and $8,000. Mr. Tavares, who started the Fall River, Mass., company in 2011 after 20 years working at the U.S. Navy Laboratories, says he has sold near 200 devices to customers including a Florida police department that used them for underwater inspections.

One of the bigger companies in this field is VideoRay LLC, which sells its ROV to coast guards, the U.S. Corps of Engineers and other commercial and military bodies. The Pottstown, Pa., company’s devices have been used to search for underwater mines, assess hurricane damage and make hull inspections for oil companies.

VideoRay uses specially made software, joysticks or smartphones to pilot its robots. Stripped-down ROVs sell for $7,000, but the versions sold to governments and oil companies are priced around $150,000. Scott Bentley, VideoRay’s co-founder and president, says the 40-employee company sells from 200 to 400 underwater drones a year and makes about $10 million in sales annually.

Both Aquabotix and VideoRay are working on their own version of “automated underwater vehicles,” which don’t require someone remotely controlling them the whole time.

Another sign of popularity in the devices is a growing community of ROV builders who want the technology to be open sourced, available for scientists and explorers who can’t afford more expensive models.

OpenROV sells an underwater ROV kit for $850. Co-founder David Lang said the Berkeley, Calif., company has sold several hundred so far to scientists and hobbyists. The project is “like making a smartphone waterproof and giving it thrusters,” Mr. Lang said.

“We want to be able to have an ROV that is approaching the performance of some of these more expensive commercial ROVs at 1/10th of the cost. “These ROV makers are finding a diverse group of interested customers.

Deep Trekker, which makes an 18-pound ROV starting at $3,000, has sold devices to customers such as Florida Power and Light Co. to examine inside a nuclear reactor and Disney DIS -1.93% World to inspect water filtration systems.

At a recent military trade show in Canada, Deep Trekker’s Ms. MacDonald said several military agencies approached her about the ROV. One agency asked if she could put a weapons deployment system on it. The company is working on that request.

Ms. MacDonald has also had more nefarious-seeming inquiries. One potential customer asked questions about Deep Trekker’s maximum payload and whether the ROV could be operated from 10,000 feet away. Ms. MacDonald suspected they might be drug-runners, but they never made an offer.

Write to Will Connors at william.connors@wsj.com

A version of this article appeared June 25, 2013, on page B4 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Unmanned Drones Take a Dive.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

June 24, 2013