Resilience and inspiration the theme for this year's awards

VANCOUVER, BC, June 17, 2021 /CNW/ - With British Columbia's tech sector powering the province's economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, the BC Tech Association (BC Tech) is proud to announce the finalists for the 2021 Technology Impact Awards (TIAs).

"Throughout the COVID-19 crisis the province's tech sector pulled together to support our communities, help small business to adopt technology, provide reskilling programs and put workers displaced by Covid into new jobs in the tech sector," said Jill Tipping, BC Tech President and CEO. "BC Tech companies built the resilience of British Columbia this year and the stories are inspiring! With more applicants than ever before, the TIAs celebrates a community of bold optimists and innovators that is transforming BC's economy."

This afternoon, Tipping joined Hayley Woodin from Business in Vancouver, in announcing the finalists live via Zoom. A video recording and photos of the celebration are available here. "I'm proud to be involved in the announcement of the TIAs finalists this year, especially given the compelling theme," Woodin said.

"BC's tech sector is built on the strength, perseverance and passion of tech trailblazers and I continue to be impressed by the caliber of people driving our tech sector forward and delivering solutions that help make lives better for people throughout British Columbia and around the world," said Kristine Steuart, CEO of Allocadia and Chair of the BC Tech Board.  

The theme of the BC's largest and longest-running tech awards program this year is the inspiration that comes from resilience and community pulling together, which is particularly fitting given the extensive work being done by BC Tech companies to address the challenges of the pandemic. The "Spirit of BC Tech" award shines the spotlight on five companies that went above and beyond in 2020, contributing their energy and innovation to building the resilience of British Columbia and Canada in the face of COVID-19.

"We've seen 7 unicorns emerge in BC so far this year, we are announcing 44 inspiring Technology Impact Award finalists and there are many more tech companies with that potential in the pipeline," said Tipping. "We just need to support them to grow and scale in the coming years. That's why BC Tech is advocating for federal and provincial investment in the ScaleUP BC Partnership platform to support the scaleup of 800 companies across BC."

On the virtual announcement Tipping singled out the partners and sponsors that make the TIAs possible every year for a special thanks. "The TIAs is the biggest fundraising event of the year for BC Tech and more necessary than ever to support our work," said Tipping.

"The entrepreneurial spirit of the BC Tech community and its economic vibrancy combined with one of the most active tech IPO markets in recent times was inspiration enough for Canaccord Genuity to participate as Silver Sponsors." Said Jamie Brown, Managing Director, Head of Investment Banking – Western Canada, Canaccord Genuity Corp. "As an avid cheerleader for BC's growing tech companies, we are delighted to support the BC Tech Impact Awards and look forward to celebrating the success of all the nominees this year."

 "As a startup, we needed events like the TIAs to gain recognition in the tech community for hiring and drawing attention to potential investors," said Keith Marett, President – Services for Generac Clean Energy Solutions. "Now, as part of a larger company that's hired over a hundred engineers in the last 18 months, we sponsor the TIAs to give back and support our local tech community and keep our new brand front of mind for top talent."

TIAs sponsors include Platinum Sponsors CIBC and Telus, Gold Sponsors Amazon and Finning Digital, Silver Sponsors Canaccord and Generac, Bronze Sponsors KPMG and Low Tide Properties as well as award sponsors Absolute Software, Accenture, Clio, Deloitte, EDC, MDA, Microsoft, Osler, PwC, and SAP. Other partners that contribute to the success of the TIAs include BC Business, Betakit, Business in Vancouver, Daily Hive, Inventa, Switchboard PR and Vancouver Tech Journal.

The 2021 Technology Impact Award Finalists are:

Excellence in Technology Innovation
Canexia Health
Dapper Labs
FORM
TraceSafe 

The 2021 Excellence in Technology Innovation award is presented in partnership with MDA.

Excellence in Technology Adoption
Advanced Intelligent Systems
Boast.ai
HSBC Canada
Limage Media Group

The 2021 Excellence in Technology Adoption award is presented in partnership with Accenture.

Company of the Year - Startup
ehsAI
Ideon
Live It Earth
Matidor.com

The 2021 Company of the Year – Startup award is presented in partnership with Microsoft.

Company of the Year - Growth
Acuva
Launchpad
PrecisionOS
Riipen

The 2021 Company of the Year – Growth award is presented in partnership with Osler.

Company of the Year - Export
Boast.ai
Geocomply Solutions
Invinity Energy Systems
LMI Technologies

The 2021 Company of the Year – Export award is presented in partnership with Export Development Canada.

Company of the Year - Scale
Canalyst
East Side Games
Jane Software
Thinkific

The 2021 Company of the Year – Scale award is presented in partnership with Clio.

Company of the Year - Anchor
AbCellera
Absolute Software
Cymax Group
WELL Health

The 2021 Company of the Year – Anchor award is presented in partnership with Deloitte.

Spirit Of BC Tech: Resilience
Copperleaf
PressReader
Seaspan Shipyards
Thrive Health
Traction on Demand

The 2021 Spirit of BC Tech: Resilience award is presented in partnership with Absolute Software.

GameChanger - Diversity & Inclusion
Broadband TV
Clio
East Side Games
Stemcell Technologies

The 2021 GameChanger - Diversity & Inclusion award is presented in partnership with PwC.

Tech Culture of the Year
Freightera
Klue
Lumen5
Rival

The 2021 Tech Culture of the Year award is presented in partnership with SAP.

Person of the Year
Dr. Carl Hansen
Laurie Schultz
Hamed Shahbazi

About the BC Tech Association

BC Tech is the largest member-led technology non-profit in British Columbia, and we're dedicated to turning startups into scaleups. Our work accelerates growth by helping members expand and diversify their talent pools, acquire new customers, and access capital. Tech is a key industry for BC's future and builds resiliency in every sector. Today, every company is a tech company.

Media Contact
Kathleen Reid
T: 604-724-1242
E: media@wearebctech.com

SOURCE BC Tech Association