October 21, 2021: St. John’s – techNL is excited to announce the successful presentation of the inaugural Tech Industry Awards, celebrating the contributions and achievements of five notable member companies. These doers and dreamers have helped position Newfoundland and Labrador on the global stage and their work inspires others to do the same.
“These awards recognize and honour the impact, successes, and tenacity of our member organizations,” says Paul Preston, CEO of techNL. “Celebrating these leaders together with the rest of our sector is the perfect demonstration of the collaborative spirit that marks the Newfoundland and Labrador tech ecosystem as special and unique.”
Today’s awards ceremony saw techNL Board members and key sponsors recognize five deserving recipients. The award categories and winners are as follows:
- Tech Company of The Year Award: Winner – Verafin
- Champion of Youth Award (Sponsored by Keyin College): Winner – ClearRisk
- Women in Tech Advocate Award (Sponsored by Hatch): Winner – Sequence Bio
- Community Leadership Award: Winner – Bluedrop Learning Networks
- Startup of the Year Award (Sponsored by Genesis): Winner – Milk Moovement
“In addition to these industry awards, techNL also presented scholarships to three deserving students who have a very bright future in tech,” said Dan Brake, techNL Board Chair. “Encouraging and empowering our youth is one of the critical steps needed to help fill the talent gap we know exists in the sector. We have seen tremendous support from our member companies in creating opportunities for students, including providing internships through our techNL High School Internship program.”
The 2021 techNL High School Technology Immersion Internship connected grade 11 and grade 12 students with paid internships at local tech companies and enrolled them in a Python programming course at Keyin College. Participating employers nominated students who demonstrated entrepreneurial spirit, community-mindedness and a passion for technology. The techNL-ClearRisk Scholarships are valued at $1000 each and were presented to Evan Vokey and Sophia White. The Keyin-ClearRisk Scholarship is valued at $4000 and was presented to Jarod Chambers Geng.
“We hope these Awards get bigger and better every year, keeping pace with the continued growth and success of the tech ecosystem,” adds Preston. “Capping off Innovation Week 2021 with our inaugural awards is just an incredible way to end a productive, collaborative and inspirational week.”
techNL is a not-for-profit industry association that works closely with members, industry and government to help shape policy and advocate for those issues that matter most to members. As the voice of the $1.6 billion technology sector in NL, techNL’s mission is to help members grow and scale through work on talent development, programming, technology advocacy, digital transformation, and strategic partnerships. More information can be found on the website technl.ca.
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Media Contact
Marlayne Hardy
marlayne@technl.ca
(709) 330-7122