It is perplexing to see the contrariety between the performance of knowledge-based small enterprises in Canada and similar ventures in the US despite the two counties having so much in common. Canada’s potential to create disruptive innovation is demonstrated by individual success stories that are few and far between. However, there is apparently no dearth of talent and entrepreneurial risk taking when it comes to tech startups or innovative social enterprises. What lacks in almost all cases is the ability of the businesses to organically grow by leveraging a partnership-based innovation ecosystem. The reason is simple; one doesn’t exist.
