The Business Leadership Podcast episode

TBLP104 | Michael Denham: Entrepreneurship and Innovation Leader

Are there ways to help connect corporate Canada to innovators and entrepreneurs?

This question has been on Michael Denham’s mind for a long time. In this conversation, you will discover the answer to that.

Michael is the President & CEO of BDC, Canada’s only bank devoted exclusively to entrepreneurs. He is the driver of the organization’s positioning as the number one ally of Canadian entrepreneurs.

Michael is born and bred a Torontonian, moved to Montreal, back in 2001. His work experience started at McKinsey in Toronto. Michael also worked at Bombardier in the early two thousand. He had a long stretch at Accenture where he was the president of Accenture’s business in Canada. About four years ago, he started at BDC, the business development bank of Canada.

When Michael is not working, he likes to spend time with his three boys. He still plays hockey a couple of times a week. He was also the chairman of the kids’ school for a number of years; he is on the foundation board of one large hospital in Montreal.

In today’s episode, Michael discussed how BDC supports Canadian companies in scaling up and becoming meaningful global export-oriented businesses.

Further, find out the challenges start-ups face, and how BDC is instrumental in providing anchors to the eco-system.

Even better, you will hear Michael sharing his decision-making style when it comes to replacing a leader with another leader.

Are there ways to help connect corporate Canada to innovators and entrepreneurs?

Enjoy!

What You Will Learn From This Episode

What is BDC (Business Development Bank of Canada) and how it helps small businesses and entrepreneurship in Canada
What is BDC (Business Development Bank of Canada) and how it helps small businesses and entrepreneurship in Canada
Important things to consider when making a senior level appointment so you don’t get it wrong
Focusing on purpose and not profitability to lead and make a change
Two things Michael do to continue to grow as a business leader
BDC as a high-profile B Corp bank and why other companies should be “B Corpish” in nature