Nicole Verkindt is passionate about leveraging the talents of entrepreneurs. The founder of OMX (Offset Market Exchange) and a Dragon on CBC’s Next Gen Den, she believes in the role of entrepreneurs to grow the economy and help solve global issues. Last week Verkindt was named “Canada’s 2017 woman entrepreneur of the year” by Startup Canada.

Shortly prior to that she spoke with BetaKit’s Startup Canada Podcast Show about investing in Canadian startups:

It’s no surprise founders can attribute some of their success to their network of colleagues and friends. Nicole Verkindt knows that if you want to become the best you can be, who you engage with can make all the difference.

“The five closest people you hang around with have a huge influence.”

Nicole Verkindt is one of the newest Dragons on CBC’s Next Gen Den. She launched her first startup, a manufacturing business selling to government, when she was just 23.

Four years later at the age of 27, she founded Offset Market Exchange (OMX), a tech company that supports businesses to be more efficient, reduce costs, and reap the highest economic benefit from government procurement contracts.

Today, she is highly involved in Canada’s entrepreneurship community, and even joined Startup Canada on International Women’s Day 2017 to share her story with entrepreneurs and policymakers.

In this week’s #StartupPodcast, guest host Janice MacDonald talks to Verkindt about growing up in the tech industry, procurement for small businesses, and the impact of policy on Canada’s entrepreneur-driven economy.

To listen to the podcast visit BetaKit.