The Rural Economic Development (RED) Program has been Renewed!

The Rural Economic Development (RED) program was put on hold in 2011 because of “fiscal circumstances” said Rural Affairs Minister Jeffrey Leal, but is being renewed as part of Premier Kathleen Wynne’s initiative to invest in rural Ontario. – Laura Armstrong, Ottawa Citizen

The RED Program has up to $4.5 million funding per year for three years to help rural communities remove barriers to community development and promote economic growth to support sustainable rural economies and regions, while developing capacity, tools and flexibility they need to become stronger, more prosperous communities.

Eligible Applicants must demonstrate how the project will benefit rural Ontario and have the experience and knowledge to complete the project. Eligible applicants include: municipalities, community or not-for-profit organizations, industry and economic development associations, regional organizations, businesses, corporations, First Nations, Metis, Inuit, and other broader public sector organizations.

The RED Program has two streams:
1. Planning Stream: Rural, regional and community projects that help rural communities and regions build a foundation for economic growth and investment.
2. Implementation Stream: Strengthening rural and regional economic competitiveness to support the implementation of projects that have been identified through some form of evidence-based planning processes and to contribute to economic competitiveness.

Eligible Projects:
Planning Stream: Rural, Regional and Community
1. Economic Development Plans/Strategies
2. Research and/or Analysis to Support Planning and Priority-Setting

Implementation Stream: Strengthening Rural and Regional Economic Competitiveness
1. Business/Sector Development and Diversification
2. Regional Marketing, Promotional and/or Branding Activities
3. Human Capital and Skills Development, Attraction and Retention

Funding:
RED projects are cost-shared, with the provincial government investing up to 50 per cent of the project’s eligible cost, or up to 90 per cent in limited circumstances. There is no cap on the amount of funding per approved eligible project under the RED Program. However, the total funds available under the Program are limited to up to $4.5 million per year. Funding may be awarded at the full amount requested, or at a reduced amount, based on the funds available or an assessment of the project.

Application and Review Period for 2013: Program start (now) to October 31, 2013; November 1 to December 31, 2013.

Contact Onager Solutions today for more information and check out our One-Page summary on the program!
Onager One Pager – RED Program

Mike made the news! Check out this article in Kawartha Lakes This Week!

Summer Company past participant pays experience forward
Onager Solutions Inc. president Mike Janke in third year as a mentor with youth entrepreneurship program
August 02, 2013
By: Catherine Whitnall

(LINDSAY) Mike Janke hasn’t been on a wakeboard for a while, but the lessons he learned teaching others the skill continue to serve him well.

Eight years ago, Mr. Janke became a Summer Company participant, running a wakeboard school; his first business.

Supported through the Kawartha Lakes Small Business & Entrepreneurship Centre and funded by the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Employment, the Summer Company encourages students to start and run their own business, while receiving hands-on coaching and mentoring from local business leaders.

The program not only helped offset the risks of being an entrepreneur – participants can receive up to $3,000 in funding assistance – but also helped Mr. Janke pay for his economics studies at the University of Waterloo.

After graduating, he worked for a marketing firm for two years before launching his own business, Onager Solutions Inc. The company supports companies that are looking to grow their businesses and leverage government funding, assisting with everything from concept development and grant writing, to project management and compliance reporting. Since 2010, the company has secured roughly $2 million in alternative grant funding for clients.

“My first experience with dealing with government grants actually came from being involved with the Summer Company,” he noted.

Three years ago, Mr. Janke decided to share his experiences with other budding entrepreneurs and became a program mentor.

“it’s a very valuable experience to be a mentor. I look at it as, not just a volunteer, but I get a lot out of it too,” said Mr. Janke. “It’s a team approach…It’s been educational for me, too, talking to and listening to the other mentors.”

Carter Gooch, one of 10 students selected to take part in this year’s Summer Company program, is glad to have Mr. Janke in his corner.

What started off as a hobby quickly developed into a business idea for the 17-year-old.

“I developed a website for someone and it just went from there,” said Carter of Ink. Creative Design that provides creative services, such as web design, branding, graphics, visuals and marketing, to businesses and individuals.

“It’s providing me with good skills for the future,” said Carter, who plans to continue running the business after he returns to I.E. Weldon Secondary School with post-secondary plans of studying graphic communication.

Ultimately, Carter would like to work for a software company, but isn’t ruling out becoming an entrepreneur like his mentor; he already has helped two clients launch websites.

“This program can help anyone who is planning on starting their own business make the best decisions because you already have first-hand experience. You’ve already mitigated that risk fact. You look back and say, I’ve done this before. I can believe in myself,” said Mr. Janke, noting his summer experience even helped him while at university. “When I’d be sitting in class…I would always come back to my experience in the program and when I was running my own business.”

Invest Canada-Community Initiatives (ICCI) – Funding Program

Invest Canada-Community Initiatives (ICCI), part of the Global Commerce Support Program established in 2008, is designed to help Canadian communities attract, retain and expand Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). ICCI supports not-for-profit and public-private partnerships at the local community level.

The program follows three basic principles: Focusing on supporting the attraction, retention and expansion of Foreign Direct Investment, Work through partnerships, and Sharing costs.

Eligible activities supported by ICCI include: investment training for economic staff, conducting Business Retention & Expansion projects, and identifying strengths and local assets.

ICCI will be open to accept applications in early September 2013 and closing late October 2013 for 2014 projects. ICCI will support 50% of eligible expenses in the form of non-repayable contributions ranging from $3,000 to $300,000 for one year (Jan 1-Dec 31).

Please review Onager’s one page summary of the program or contact us for more information.
ICCI – One Pager

New Program – Growing Forward 2

A new 5-year federal-provincial initiative worth $417 million, designed to encourage innovation, competitiveness and market development is now being rolled out to the Ontario agricultural industry.

Flexible and practical programming has been developed for producers, processors, organizations and collaborations to grow profits, expand markets and manage risk. Additional information will be provided as the programs are further developed in the coming months.

Capacity Building Projects include: skills development & training, assessments & audits, marketing plans, market assessments, feasibility plans, succession plans, labour productivity assessments and business analysis for traceability.

Implementation Projects – Evaluation Criteria: degree of project novelty, significance of benefits, risk associated with project, knowledge transfer and dissemination and how it drives sector competitiveness.

Check out our One Page Summary of the Growing Forward 2 Program for more details.
Growing Forward 2 – Summary

AIME Recipients

AIME – Recipients
Achieving Innovation and Manufacturing Excellence

Last week the list of AIME Initiative Global Recipients was posted. Onager would like to acknowledge all recipients and wish them the best of luck with their projects! It has been great to work with a few of these organizations and see them succeed.

The AIME program is in larger partnership with the Yves Landry Foundation and is intended to strengthen Ontario’s manufacturing capabilities by encouraging training initiatives. Check out one of AIME’s success stories:

Job Opportunity for a Funding Specialist with Onager

The time has come to add a new member to the Onager team. If you have writing experience, great attention to detail, some project management skills and an entrepreneurial spirit, we are interested in speaking with you.

Please find the full job description here: Funding Specialist

We are aiming for a January 7th start date. And applicants must fit the following criteria:

| between the ages of 15 and 30 (inclusive) at the time of selection;

| post-secondary graduates;

| out of school;

| Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or persons who have been granted refugee status in Canada;

| legally entitled to work according to the relevant provincial/territorial legislation and regulations; and

| not in receipt of Employment Insurance (EI) benefits.

Hiring eMarketing Intern

Are you a College or University student (between the ages of 15-30 and returning to school in the fall) looking to gain valuable business experience this summer?  Onager Solutions is looking to hire a B2B eMarketing Intern!

The job description can be found here: B2B eMarketing Intern Job Description.

Experience in Adobe CS, iWeb, Microsoft Office and content management systems for websites.

Please apply via email to Mike@onager.ca

Federal Budget 2012 Released – $110 Mill. / Year to IRAP program

The Federal Budget is committed to building on the Economic Action Plan with steps to address structural challenges and take advantage of new opportunities:

• Supporting Entrepreneurs, Innovators and World-Class Research by adopting a new strategic approach to enhancing support for business innovation and providing additional funding to help Canada reinforce its leadership in fundamental research.

• Improving Conditions for Business Investment by streamlining the Canadian regulatory system, particularly for major economic projects; continuing to invest in our natural resources; expanding trade to open new markets for Canadian businesses; keeping taxes low for job-creating businesses; and further developing our financial sector advantage.

• Investing in Training, Infrastructure and Opportunity by strengthening incentives for employment and skills training;  building a fast and flexible economic immigration system; and continuing to invest in public infrastructure.

Mirroring the Duncan Report and Ontario’s approach to building Canada’s economy the federal budget is investing in businesses innovation and creating jobs through:

• $400 million to help increase private sector investments in early-stage risk capital, and to support the creation of large-scale venture capital funds led by the private sector.
•  $100 million to the Business Development Bank of Canada to support its venture capital activities.
•  $110 million per year to the National Research Council to double support to companies through the Industrial Research Assistance Program.(IRAP)
•  $14 million over two years to double the Industrial Research and Development Internship program.
•  $12 million per year to make the Business-Led Networks of Centres of Excellence program permanent.
•  $67 million in 2012–13 as the National Research Council refocuses on business-led, industry-relevant research.
•  Streamlining and improving the Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SRED) tax incentive program.