Event category: BetaKit Keynote Stage

Events

November 18, 2021

03:55 PM - 04:00 PM EDT

BetaKit Keynote Stage 2021-11-18 5 MINS

AYDIN MIRZAEE

CEO + Co-Founder

Fellow

03:15 PM - 03:55 PM EDT

BetaKit Keynote Stage 2021-11-18 40 MINS

Round-Up of Canadian Soonicorns

We have had an unprecedented run of Canadian unicorns in the last 18 months.  We all heard about these great organizations – they had been putting in the work for YEARS but were often under-celebrated until they finally got anointed with their Unicorn valuation, often due to foreign investment.  

Are we going to wait another 5 years to acknowledge the next great wave of Canadian Unicorns that are already being built right here in Canada now?  We say no!   

SAAS NORTH is proud to round-up a select panel of ‘Soonicorns’ on the BetaKit Stage in 2021.  You don’t need to wait to celebrate these Canadian Soonicorns – and you will remember that you saw them on stage at SAAS NORTH!   Join them to learn about the strategic growth and scaling plans that are helping drive the trajectory of these soon-to-be-unicorns.  

Moderator

DOUGLAS SOLTYS

Editor-in-Chief

BetaKit

LLOYED LOBO

Co-Founder & President

Boast.ai

MIKE POTTER

Co-Founder & CEO

Rewind

STEPHANY LAPIERRE

Founder & CEO

Teal Book

03:05 PM - 03:15 PM EDT

BetaKit Keynote Stage 2021-11-18 10 MINS

AWS PitchFest Final Throwdown

The 4th annual SAAS NORTH PitchFest presented by AWS is back for another epic year! This year we expect up to 100 companies to apply – but only 8 finalists will be selected by our judges to pitch live at SAAS NORTH!

At SAAS NORTH, four of the finalists will present to the official SAAS NORTH judging panel each day, in front of the SAAS NORTH audience. A winner from day one and two will be selected, culminating in an exciting grand-finale at the end of Day 2. The two winners will compete head-to-head in a dramatic winner-takes-all rapid  pitch-off!

The SAAS NORTH audience of leading SaaS investors and entrepreneurs will decide the grand prize winner by live people’s choice voting! 

Moderator

PATRICK WHITE

Managing Director

L-SPARK

12:20 PM - 01:05 PM EDT

BetaKit Keynote Stage 2021-11-18 45 MINS

AWS PitchFest – Round 2

The 4th annual SAAS NORTH PitchFest presented by AWS is back for another epic year! This year we expect up to 100 companies to apply – but only 8 finalists will be selected by our judges to pitch live at SAAS NORTH!

At SAAS NORTH, four of the finalists will present to the official SAAS NORTH judging panel each day, in front of the SAAS NORTH audience. A winner from day one and two will be selected, culminating in an exciting grand-finale at the end of Day 2. The two winners will compete head-to-head in a dramatic winner-takes-all rapid  pitch-off!

The SAAS NORTH audience of leading SaaS investors and entrepreneurs will decide the grand prize winner by live people’s choice voting! 

Moderator

PATRICK WHITE

Managing Director

L-SPARK

KIMBERLY YOUNG

Partner, Strategic Investments & Women in Technology Venture Fund

BDC

MOHAN MARKANDAIER

Managing Partner

Good News Ventures

NEHA KHERA

Partner

2048 Ventures

09:30 AM - 10:00 AM EDT

BetaKit Keynote Stage 2021-11-18 30 MINS

Lessons From Carol Leaman: Optimizing a Revenue First Growth Strategy

Carol Leaman isn’t your typical leader. She’s driving a revolutionary approach to employee knowledge, but she’s also a doors-open, come-see-me-anytime kind of executive.  Join us for this intimate fireside chat where Carol shares her insights on what is true for growth revenue at different stages in the life of the business at – $0 – $10M, $10M – $30M and then $30M – $100M. She will share tips and lessons learned along the way.

Moderator

KRISTA JONES

Vice President, Venture Services

MaRS

CAROL LEAMAN

CEO

Axonify

09:05 AM - 09:30 AM EDT

BetaKit Keynote Stage 2021-11-18 25 MINS

Building SMB SaaS Unicorns: The strategies and Benchmarks Emerging from Best-in-Class SMB SaaS Companies

SMB is a quickly maturing category of SaaS, with new companies constantly emerging to solve new issues and address new verticals of small and medium-sized businesses (SMB) customers. SMB SaaS companies are able to grow rapidly and capital efficiently by servicing specific niches or underserved segments of customers, and by discovering new distribution mechanics. The metrics that matter for these companies are slightly different than true enterprise SaaS, and represent a blend of best-of-breed consumer and enterprise metrics. SMB SaaS companies that reach unicorn status are usually able grow beyond their initial markets by moving to new verticals, going upmarket, or layering on additional services like embedded fintech (many do all three!). Come and learn the strategies and benchmarks they used to make it happen!

ALEXANDRA SUKIN

Investor

Bessemer Venture Partners

09:00 AM - 09:05 AM EDT

BetaKit Keynote Stage 2021-11-18 5 MINS

AYDIN MIRZAEE

CEO + Co-Founder

Fellow

November 17, 2021

04:15 PM - 05:00 PM EDT

BetaKit Keynote Stage 2021-11-17 45 MINS

When Unicorns Fly: Billion Dollar Lessons from the Inside

Canada’s tech landscape is buzzing with venture financing and a record number of unicorns popping up. Here from inside Canada growing stable of unicorns: how they got there, critical lessons learned, new challenges and practical perspectives to help fellow SaaS leaders bust into the unicorn stable.

Moderator

DOUGLAS SOLTYS

Editor-in-Chief

BetaKit

KELLY SCHMITT

CEO

Benevity

MIKE MURCHISON

Co-Founder & CEO

Ada

ANNA SAINSBURY

Chairman & Co-Founder

GeoComply