This interactive workshop will give attendees an opportunity to participate in team-building activities, attend skill-share presentations and network with other McMaster students. Skill-share presentations will be delivered by upper-year iBioMed students and will be followed by a Q&A session and networking opportunities. Interactive activities and presentations will all relate to innovation and entrepreneurship.

While all McMaster students are invited, this workshop will be of most interest to:

• Students in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), Health Sciences or Biomedical Engineering program
• Students interested in networking with other STEM or Health Sciences students
• Students interested in entrepreneurship and commercialization within a Health Sciences and/or Biomedical Engineering context

A free pizza lunch will be provided!

Space is limited for this event, so registration is required.

The Forge Startup Survivor Summer Program and Pitch Competition is giving out a total of up to $75,000 in cash prizes, with $30,000 of that buried treasure being awarded during the Pitch Competition.

Fueled by their grit and resilience during the summer, these entrepreneurs have secured the top scores in a series of challenges focused on defining their business problem, understanding their target market, and forming novel and scalable solutions as a basis for their ventures. The challengers will pitch their startups to an esteemed panel of judges, demonstrating that they have what it takes to grow their venture into a success.

Join us to find out who will be crowned at The Forge Startup Survivor, taking home the Grand Prize of $15,000, taking the largest share of the buried treasure and moving one step closer to making their dream a reality.

If you are currently working on an innovative idea or are just curious about entrepreneurship in the healthcare and life sciences sector, you are welcome to attend our monthly Connections @ The Clinic sessions to learn from Hamilton-based entrepreneurs and connect with other health innovators.

These sessions will be hosted by Lianna Genovese, CEO of ImaginAble Solutions Inc., who will be joined by Ron Galaev, CEO and founder of EmergConnect Inc. The session format is an informal panel-style discussion with opportunities for attendees to ask questions of the entrepreneurs, with an open time for Q&A at the end of the session. Please join us for networking at 2:00 until 2:30 when the panel discussion begins.

Presenter: Ron Galaev, CEO and founder of EmergConnect Inc.

Learn how to approach problem solving with an innovative mindset and set yourself up for success. Discover how to approach the process of innovation by starting off on a solid footing: focusing on the right problem will save you time, heartbreak and provide a defined pathway of success for your innovative endeavour.

In this workshop, you will learn how to define a problem, how to validate the problem with your target market and the necessary tools to help you along the way.

Food will be provided!

Presenter: Riley Moynes (MBA), Incubator Manager, The Forge

The Proteus Innovation Competition is a four-month competition that will challenge individuals to create a viable commercialization strategy for 1 of 5 promising technologies, in hopes of winning a cash prize of up to $5,000!

This three-part competition allows contestants to hone their business skills, work with a variety of experienced advisors, and accelerate the commercialization process of discoveries coming out of Ontario’s institutions. This year, 5 technologies from 5 universities will be included in the competition: Western University, McMaster University, the University of Windsor, the University of Waterloo and the University of Guelph.

The launch event will introduce you to the competition, key dates and deadlines and a presentation about each technology. You will then have the option to move into breakout rooms where you can talk to each innovator about their technology so you can choose the best one for you and your team.

You have great ideas. You’re passionate. And by adopting an entrepreneurial mindset, you could start making a profit from the activities you love doing.

Turn Your Passion into Profit is a panel-event-meets-networking-opportunity where you can get inspired by passionate innovators in the McMaster community. Learn how they traced the path from passion to profit: the ideas that started it all, the challenges they had to overcome, the resources they used and the skills that helped them build resilience and achieve success.

In the formal panel event (one hour), we’ll start the conversation with the entrepreneurs and incorporate questions from the audience. Then, during the networking period (30 minutes), you’ll get to make connections, ask deeper questions and discover some of the resources available to help you with finances, business development, experience building and more.

Are you innovative? Interested in entrepreneurship? Curious what it’s like to be the founder of a startup? Join us for a cozy chat by the bonfire with The Forge and Toques From The Heart! There will be games, snacks, giveaways and prizes! This is your opportunity to win a free toque from Toques From The Heart, a McMaster startup who has absolutely crushed the consumer goods game and did it all while they were Commerce students! Come chat with the founders about their story and get inspired to be your own boss — because that’s where the real money is.

This event is open to all students living in residence.

Presenters:

• Matt Carter, Co-Founder and President of Toques From The Heart
• Matthew Milne, Co-Founder and Vice President of Toques From The Heart

Note: If there is inclement weather, the event will be held in Ravine Room, Hedden Hall. All registrants will be contacted prior to the event in this case.

Have you ever wondered how the start-up ecosystem functions? How does a start-up come to life? How can you be a part of this ecosystem?

Come join the DeGroote Entrepreneurship Club (DEC) at learn from founders, entrepreneurs and leaders across various industries.

Presenters:

• Michael R. Jones, Manager, Ontario Centre of Innovation
• Kelly McBroom, Partnership Manager, Neo Financial
• Vishar Yaghoubian, CEO & Co-founder, U Corp
• Hazel Walker, Business Operations Associate, ODAIA

Where do you go to bring your innovative idea to life? This session is designed for those wishing to better understand the McMaster University and local Hamilton innovation ecosystems. By the end of the 60-minute session you will i) describe various types of organizations and the ways in which they contribute to idea exploration and development, ii) identify key members of the McMaster University and Hamilton innovation ecosystem, and iii) understand types of resources that are appropriate for different stages of innovation development, using Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs).

Presenters:

• Sarrah Lal, Innovation Coach, The Clinic @ Mac, Assistant Professor of Health Innovation at Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine, Director, Health Ventures Development, CEO and Co-Founder, Kultura Diagnostics
• Frances Lasowski, Innovation Coach, The Clinic @ Mac, Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Booth School of Engineering Practice and Technology, CEO of 20/20 Optimeyes Technologies

Do you have questions about starting a side gig? Join us at this event to learn about:

• How to get started
• Budgeting
• Branding
• Other resources