CBIZ: Established to foster innovation in Caledon

Jith Dravin, Business Development & Research Officer at the Town of Caledon, provides his insights on innovation and what CBIZ offers to entrepreneurs.

Innovation is one of the most clichéd buzzwords currently in use at the workplace. But what exactly is innovation and how can it benefit Caledon? I define innovation as the ability to create value through new and improved processes, services or products. In this regard, CBIZ was established to foster innovation in Caledon by supporting the commercialization or expansion of the value creation process, also known as business.

By solving a problem the purpose of a business is elevated from a single-focus on being a profit-seeking undertaking to including solutions to economic, environmental, health and social issues that challenge our world. Unfortunately, the general school of thought to measure success in business is to come up with the next great idea and commercialize it to make an unfair profit for investors and funders at the cost of environmental and social harmony. However, at CBIZ we view a business beyond simply a profit-making activity to one that adds or creates value through solutions that contributes to the well-being of the environment and society.

One can argue that being able to start and grow a successful business is the ultimate test of an individual’s creativity, courage and strength. There are very few ‘meanings to life’ comparable to the reward that comes with such an endeavour, yet there are many that have gone off-track in their attempt to start/run a successful business. A significant barrier to start a business is the lack of knowledge of how to get started. The typical advice given would be to write a business plan, raise funding and execute. With CBIZ, however, we go above and beyond the industry standard and get clients to first develop their business model > validate their concept in the market > produce a minimum viable product > test > revise > test > sell > raise capital > revise > promote and market > and sell. While this process may seem daunting, it’s the best way to avoid the business from suffering an expensive failure that could have personal consequences, as well. Navigating this process by yourself requires immense resources of time and effort and this is where CBIZ comes in to help in the journey.

CBIZ is where energy, ideas and passion converge to solve the challenges facing Caledon and beyond. At CBIZ you learn how to avoid, limit and overcome failure (aka life’s valuable lessons), get access to resources, validate your business model and grow using tried and tested business know-how in a collaborative environment with other like-minded entrepreneurs and businesses. If you or someone you know is going to be the next great problem solver, get in touch with us ensure the successful launch or growth of your business.

Caledon.ca/business | business@caledon.ca

905.584.2272 x. 4286 | @YourCaledon