Vancouver Tech Journal

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The Techies: Vancouver Startup Week’s past and present, BC Place looks dashing in teal and coral and the PNP Tech Pilot lifts off

www.vantechjournal.com

The Techies: Vancouver Startup Week’s past and present, BC Place looks dashing in teal and coral and the PNP Tech Pilot lifts off

The tweets you may have missed while you were attending Community Crawls or streaming live sessions.

James Matthews
May 31, 2021
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The Techies: Vancouver Startup Week’s past and present, BC Place looks dashing in teal and coral and the PNP Tech Pilot lifts off

www.vantechjournal.com

Remember events? Remember gauging a room to figure out who to talk to and drink tickets and trying to perfectly time the navigation needed between sessions and cold pizza? In a world flipped upside down and deeply digitized, it’s hard to replicate. Events and event planning seem to be defined by “before” and “after” COVID-19 reared its ugly head.  

Vancouver Startup Week, appropriately condensed to VSW, bridged the gap between both those last week. Community Crawls paired with fantastic zoom sessions, a resplendent union between introvert and extrovert. As always, the VSW team pulled out all the stops to make the event a marquee offering for Vancouver’s tech community.

With the event still mostly virtual some of the best commentary came on social media. We’ve dusted off the Techie trophy and compiled our favourite tweets. Here are the Techies for VSW 2021.

Best nostalgia

Twitter avatar for @marsgoatzz
Siddharth Molleti @marsgoatzz
During my convo with @jimmermatthews, I remembered that in 2019 when I attended @vanstartupweek, the first session was with @farhanmohamed which was hosted by @kathleenreid_. It was also the best session of 2019 IMO 👍🙌 @notionport @vantechjournal
11:13 PM ∙ May 20, 2021
Twitter avatar for @farhanmohamed
Farhan Mohamed @farhanmohamed
@marsgoatzz @jimmermatthews @vanstartupweek @kathleenreid_ @notionport @vantechjournal @kathleenreid_ and @hayleywoodin were the A team, I was just there for support
11:25 PM ∙ May 20, 2021

Cue the music: The a-team was assembled once again. Kathleen and Hayley kicked off Tuesday’s slate of sessions with an engaging seminar on PR and storytelling for startups. As for that Farhan guy, he has been building an a-team of his own, I'm pretty sure…

...anyways, Siddharth’s fond recollection of his inaugural VSW is a tad more—ahem—pure than my own. One of the first events I attended in the space was the kick off to Vancouver Startup Week 2016: the BCIC-New Ventures BC Competition. Microdermics received the top prize that evening. I, too, had hoped to come out ahead. I remember trying to use one of those aforementioned drink tickets for a top shelf cognac. The bartender gave me history’s wryest ever smile. He uttered a simple “no” and I accepted a Heineken as my consolation prize. 

Best new fashion

Twitter avatar for @Lorenzy17
Logan Lorenz 🏳️‍🌈 @Lorenzy17
Enjoying my @vanstartupweek mask
Image
8:44 PM ∙ May 27, 2021

Best #patioszn

Twitter avatar for @goodlifevan
Cassandra Anderton - Good Life Vancouver @goodlifevan
That's a lot of outdoor dining!
Twitter avatar for @vanstartupweek
Vancouver Startup Week @vanstartupweek
😎It’s the long weekend and the sun is out! Our #VSW2021 community crawl is a bit different this year, but we’re just as excited to be supporting local businesses! @downtownvan had compiled a map of restaurant patios for you to dine at safely! Bon appétit! https://t.co/DZ9HF2KKah
4:01 PM ∙ May 25, 2021

Best activation of a local landmark

Twitter avatar for @bcplace
BC Place @bcplace
BC Place will light up teal and coral today for Vancouver Startup Week ✨ #VSW2021 builds momentum and fosters connections among entrepreneurs, investors, leaders, and friends within the Greater Vancouver startup community. Learn more at vanstartupweek.ca @vanstartupweek
Image
5:00 PM ∙ May 28, 2021
9Likes3Retweets

Attending events seems to build a deepened intimacy to the city you’re in. Routines are changed and commutes vary as you bounce around to different sessions. It seems one takes heed of your surroundings in an increased capacity. For a mostly virtual event, it was fun to see how this manifested for VSW. Their pre-event swag included masks. Dining options were limited (or perhaps improved) to outdoor seating. BC Place joined the squad. All of these seemed to be distinctly Vancouver and distinctly VSW and distinctly event-esque.

Best influencer pro tip

Twitter avatar for @vchan
Vivian Chan 🦄 @vchan
I learned, from influencers, how to put objects in front of my hands on screen. 🤣 Here I am, showing a can of Nude Watermelon Vodka, without it disappearing into my bright teal @vanstartupweek zoom background. LOL.. #VSW2021
Image
1:32 AM ∙ May 22, 2021

Best DM receipts

Twitter avatar for @jkhoey
Kelly Hoey @jkhoey
Thank you 🙏 @vanstartupweek - loved 🥰 today’s session! #BYDN #networking #networks #buildyourdreamnetwork
Image
3:32 AM ∙ May 26, 2021
4Likes1Retweet

Best Schitt’s Creek gif usage

Twitter avatar for @jkhoey
Kelly Hoey @jkhoey
Psssss use the code VSWFans to get 20% off the ticket price for @vanstartupweek 7 Jam-packed days + 90+ Virtual Events + Endless possibilities for meaningful connections = worth investing in your venture's future by attending #VSW2021 #VSWRecruit #VSWOnline
schitts creek flirt GIF by CBC
Twitter avatar for @jkhoey
Kelly Hoey @jkhoey
Looking forward to sharing online networking success tips with the 🇨🇦 @vanstartupweek #startup community on May 25 Yes, networking virtually can be enjoyable and not an isolating complete time suck. https://t.co/ihhFxsxsXQ #BYDN #networking #womenintech #femalefounders https://t.co/9qtybkDQ01
1:37 PM ∙ May 5, 2021
2Likes2Retweets

VSW’s co-chair Vivian Chan definitely earned a beverage or two. Overseeing, promoting and supporting an event of this scale is no small feat. It was nice, also, to see the receipts of an overwhelmingly joyous DM thread to warm the heart and body perhaps more than a vodka soda could do. Even David and Moira Rose agree that VSW would be a treat. 

Best takeaways

Twitter avatar for @TheWrkCo
Wrk @TheWrkCo
"People buy stories, not products," 📖 @mohannadB #VSW2021
6:11 PM ∙ May 26, 2021
2Likes1Retweet
Twitter avatar for @TheWrkCo
Wrk @TheWrkCo
"In a B2B world where everyone looks, acts, and talks the same... you need to stand out." You need to embrace the "weird" and "different." Insights from @mohannadB! 🙌 #VSW2021
6:23 PM ∙ May 26, 2021
1Like1Retweet
Twitter avatar for @TheWrkCo
Wrk @TheWrkCo
Building for work culture is like building a marriage. You have people who are very different, with different personalities and talents, but are connected by a set of core values. This is a great analogy from @michaelhsc of @LumenFive! #VSW2021
4:10 PM ∙ May 28, 2021
1Like1Retweet

Wrk, in a heroic social media display, became something of an aggregator this week, hand picking a few highlights from the sessions. It’s perhaps not the hero we deserve—I’m sure we all wish we could’ve attended every single session—but the hero we needed. 

Best stop the presses!

Twitter avatar for @notionport
William Johnson @notionport
🚨Breaking: @BrendaBaileyBC just announced on a @vanstartupweek panel that the BC PNP Tech Pilot, which provides an expedited immigration pathway for people with tech skills, has now been made permanent.
5:21 PM ∙ May 28, 2021
42Likes11Retweets

Fire up the dulcet tones of breaking news. An orchestral swirl of Muzak building suspense to indicate that the freshest of information is mere seconds away. A session on Friday deserved this musical interlude. Brenda Bailey, MLA, went off-script. The smiles on the faces of the other panelists at the session—Ray Walia, CEO of Launch Ventures, and Jill Tipping, CEO of BC Tech Association—were profound. I think I still hear them clapping as I type this. 

Bailey was too excited to wait for the scheduled announcement set to come later that afternoon to share that British Columbia’s Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) Tech Pilot would be made permanent.

Isn’t this what events, virtual or digital, are supposed to drive? Conversations that lead to more conversations, all acting as fuel to a collective fire. Perhaps it was a past event and past conversations that ignited the initial spark rejoiced upon in real time as the PNP Tech Pilot received a permanent promotion. 

Best put a bow on it

Twitter avatar for @vanstartupweek
Vancouver Startup Week @vanstartupweek
Thank you everyone for joining us for #VSW2021! To our team of volunteers, VSW partners and sponsors and attendees, thank you for the support!! We can’t wait to see you (in person?!!) next year at #VSW2022! P.S. did you catch @bcplace lit up in VSW teal and coral last night? 👀
Image
2:01 PM ∙ May 29, 2021
16Likes1Retweet

VSW can be seen as an event acting as a microcosm of the Vancouver tech community at large. Dedicated individuals create space for dialogue, connectivity and teaching. Announcements and awards are presented, a culmination of weeks, months and years of moving the needle forward by Vancouver’s best and brightest. Innovators eager to break into the space are paired with entrepreneurs to learn from and patios to unwind on. 

I’m sure we’ll all see news, innovations and partnerships stem from VSW 2021. I can’t wait. 

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The Techies: Vancouver Startup Week’s past and present, BC Place looks dashing in teal and coral and the PNP Tech Pilot lifts off

www.vantechjournal.com
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