Increase your innovation

How can you fund innovation? There are both public and private routes to fund innovation.

The Government of Canada has created an online resource, Canadabusiness.ca  that will help you navigate through a number of government-sponsored programs by province. Alternatively, one excellent resource to visit is the FundingPortal – a funding services and solutions provider that helps companies and organizations get funded.

“Its unique SaaS (software as a service) tools power its own platforms – Fundingportal Canada, US and UK –and provide cloud-based solutions for licensees,” says the FundingPortal website. “Founded in 2011, it has served over one million users on its platform and licensed its cloud-based solutions to dozens of licensees, including business incentives advisory firms, economic development agencies, industry associations and accelerators.”

There is lots of money in Canada available for winning companies. Canada has vibrant angel, accredited investor and venture capital markets and, in accordance with the Jenkins Panel Review of Federal Support to R&D, the second highest level in the world of public sector incentives to support R&D.

Rather, Canada has an access to capital challenge. With its wealth of public and private sector programs for funding R&D, a vast geography, and treasure trove of start-ups and SMEs, companies have trouble sourcing the right funding, and investors and funders are often overwhelmed by pitches and applications. Some say you need a software solution to sort it all out.

Fundingportal is a made-in-Canada online services platform that matches companies to capital and helps them to get funded. Companies can move along the “green track” to secure public-sector grants and incentives or the “blue track” to pursue private sector debt, equity and capital markets.

For larger companies seeking in-house tools to source and apply to grants and incentives, the company also provides a Software as a Service (SaaS) solution, Fundsuite. A popular and proven out-of-the-box (OTB) solution, Fundsuite enables your company to search and secure matches to funding.

7.1.1 Online resources to finance innovation

Here are five online resources to help your company finance innovation:

• Fundnews. Subscribe to this free weekly digital newsletter that delivers news, tips and information for companies on how to fund their R&D and innovation objectives.
• Fundsearch. Use Fundsearch to instantly match your company to the right funding.
• FundingSources. Purchase a custom FundingSources Report on the right sources of funding for your organization and how to get it.
• Watch these two three-minute YouTube demos on “How companies can move along the ‘green track’ to secure public-sector grants and incentives” and “How to follow the ‘blue track’ to pursue private sector debt, equity and capital markets.” Watch
• Watch highlights of CEO Teri Kirk’s TEDx Talk on “Financing Innovation: From Capital Markets to Crowdfunding”. Watch

7.1.2 Importance of commercialization

Within innovation markets there is often a creative tension between the research and the development side of R&D.

Research, often called pure research or science, is highly valued within large organizations such as universities and global innovation firms. With its focus on experimentation, it presents more risk for investors and firms, and more reward when researchers hit on a money-making creation.

In today’s financing market, investors and most R&D funding programs are seeking to limit risk by attracting companies that are further along the commercialization continuum, with products that are already deployed and generating revenues.

Here are five Canadian funding programs that help to fund commercialization activities across a broad array of regions and sectors:

• Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF): This $1.26B federal fund helps Canadian businesses of all sizes and from every industry sector to accelerate the commercialization of their innovative products and services. Learn more
• Investing in Business Growth and Productivity (IBGP): This initiative provides established businesses in southern Ontario with up to $20M per project to develop and expand their markets. Learn more
• Western Innovation Initiative (WINN): WINN provides SMEs with up to $3.5M per project to move their innovative ideas, products and services from R&D to commercialization. Learn more
• Quebec Economic Development Program (QEDP): This program helps SMEs and businesses in Quebec to market and export their products and services. Learn more
• SD Tech Fund: This national program, administered by Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), provides businesses with grants to develop pre-commercial products and solutions in the clean tech sector. Learn more