Press release
Innovation: encouraging small businesses to invest more
Montréal, September 22, 2011 – Invited to take part in a Science, Technology and Innovation Council press conference to discuss the state of innovation in Canada, Michel Leblanc, President and CEO of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal, said: “The Board of Trade is constantly reiterating the economic importance of innovation, particularly for small business.”
“We have made the choice to better fund our universities, which can now train more graduates and researchers who can hold their own against those from around the world,” Michel Leblanc said. “We can do better, in particular when it comes to cooperation between research centres and small business. Plus, we can draw inspiration from successes in local sectors such as aerospace, which invests massively in R&D and is the leader in its field.”
“Plenty of work remains to be done, in particular by small and medium-sized businesses,” Michel Leblanc added. “To conquer new markets, small businesses have to be bolder, develop partnerships with universities and integrate new technologies to their processes.”
The Board of Trade is holding, with partners, the Rendez-Vous du Savoir on October 5 and 6. This event is meant to drive home the importance of collaboration between universities and businesses.
The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal has some 7,000 members. Its primary mission is to represent the interests of the business community of Greater Montreal and to provide individuals, merchants, and businesses of all sizes with a variety of specialized services to help them achieve their full potential in terms of innovation, productivity and competitiveness. The Board of Trade is Quebec’s leading private economic development organization.
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Source:
Sylvie Paquette
Advisor, Media Relations
Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal
Tel.: 514 871-4000, ext. 4015
sylvie.paquette@ccmm.qc.ca