I attended the New Brunswick knowledge industry’s KIRA awards in Fredercton on Thursday evening. It was a a well-organized event, with comedienne Bette MacDonald as MC, which was a rare treat. There were many deserving recipients, including export category winner Engage Interactive, an elearning company; most promising start-up Ensemble Collaboration; and Christian Couturier, of the National Research Council, who is also responsible for the elearning research group in Moncton.
I still have some difficulties with the term "knowledge industry", especially as it’s used in this region. It seems to be interchangeable with "information technology sector". Many of us can honestly say that we are knowledge workers, and work in a knowledge-intensive industry, without being in IT. Our fascination with technology may take us away from the real task at hand – innovation for the betterment of society.
Other deserving recipientsI’d like to add that there were two elearning companies among the winners at the 2004 KIRAs – Engage Interactive and Ensemble Collaboration, a most promising start-up indeed. Engage has been quietly innovating since its inception and is once again on the verge of some major innovations.
Gary
Thanks, Gary and Harold.
IThanks, Gary and Harold.
In my excitement, I neglected to read the speech I had prepared on behalf of the Engage team and spouted something from the top of my head. Fortunately, I was told it sounded more like something from the bottom of my heart. Whew!
However, I did forget to mention the people who’ve been with us in the past on the way to the KIRAs: organizations like IRAP that made it possible for us to develop the innovative technologies that are making us competitive on the world market, and BNB and Enterprise NB for showcasing us to the world, and Red Hot Learning and CSTD NB (and LearnNB) for helping give us a unique sense of being a New Brunswick technology company…and not being alone.
Next time, I’ll tatoo the speech on my forehead and take a mirror.
Finally, yes…it was good to see some eLearning companies in the winner’s circle, and if you think our accomplishments this year were impressive…wait till you see what’s coming next year!
Thanks again!
Biff