This program has now ended, thank you for your interest.
DER3 will help Kootenay businesses:
DER3 will set you up with local Kootenay tech consultants who will:
After submitting your application, the appropriate DER3 delivery partner will reach out within 3-5 business days. These expert advisors will listen to the needs of your businesses, meet you where you’re at, and seek to understand where you want to go.
The program will build meaningful relationships and lay the foundation of successful hybrid (bricks & mortar, and online) business model development.
This program is open to any kind of business with any level of technology integration.
Innovate BC defines the digital economy as anything that’s based on using digital computing technologies within the core of your business. We used to call it the “Internet Economy” but increasingly the digital economy is intertwined with the traditional economy, and that’s what this program is all about. Digital technology includes digital tools a business may use throughout its business such as production, operations, finance, HR, training, sales and/or marketing.
The program is a no cost/no obligation program. The primary services of the program are free, and anyone living in one of the delivery regions can sign up.
For small-medium sized businesses (individuals and non-profits) there’s a lot the program can offer at no cost. However, if needed, engagements with digital service providers or consultants (as independent businesses) will have various costs depending on the scope of your requirements.
For example, we can tell you what digital tools or platforms may fit for your business, and in many cases we can tell you how to use them (DIY) but we can’t build your website for you. If/when you need to hire someone we can also offer advice to ensure you’re considering the right things in the right order. We can review your needs more specifically when you apply to the program.
Yes! Some of the biggest businesses of our time started in recession; Google and Facebook started during the dotcom crash and Uber and Airbnb started during the 2008 financial crisis. If you have what it takes, with a big vision or just a great small business idea, now might be a great time to start!
Any business can apply regardless if you have an existing online presence or not.
After you complete the application form, we will do an initial assessment of what we think you might want to consider and we will then contact you to learn more and see what’s possible. We work with you one step at a time to move you further along the path to digital transformation.
This program is delivered by a network of experienced mentors and subject matter experts in both business and the digital economy. With the help of our advisory team we’re confident that we can provide solid advice on almost any topic. We also can direct questions to various industry partners or other agencies (subject matter experts and digital service providers).
We have a wide variety of resources, guides, and best-practices for getting things done in the digital economy, which we can utilize to help you get started. We don’t offer skills training courses, but we can point you in the right direction for that too.
This program will not provide any grants for computers or equipment and cannot help with core infrastructure.
Your time commitments depend on you, and how much time you invest toward taking action on the solutions that we will provide you with. Our time commitments to your needs will depend on our assessments of your issues or challenges. If we can’t help you with implementing the actions we recommend, then we will make suggestions on who can.
At the end of the program, we require participants to fill out brief survey to report key metrics. Any information you report will be confidential and it will be used in aggregate form to determine regional outcomes and overall efficacy of DER3.
