[This opportunity is not affiliated with the Department. We share this opportunity at the request of the organizers in case it is of interest to our student body. Participation is as the sole discretion of the individual.]
From humble beginnings to billion-dollar valuations, startups such as Airbnb, SpaceX, and Tencent have become major success stories and inspired a generation of self-starters. However, scandals like the intimidation tactics used by biotech startup, Theranos, to conceal its operations, and reports of toxic work culture at Uber, have led some to question whether startup culture is a sustainable way to work.
Startup culture has been defined as a workplace environment that values creative problem solving, open communication and a flat hierarchy. Detractors of startup culture have characterized it as being a high-stress environment that encourages workaholism, cut-throat behaviour, and an unbalanced lifestyle. In an environment where over 90% of startups fail in their first 3 years, is startup culture here to stay?
Hart House Debates and Dialogue is proud to host “Startup Culture: Fad or Future?”, a panel discussion and Q&A featuring Dr. Ann Armstrong, the Director of Social Enterprise Initiative at Rotman Commerce; Mr. Mark Pupo, the editor in chief of Reader’s Digest Canada; and Mr. Quinn Underwood, the CEO and co-founder of Animo.
Join us as we lead a thought-provoking discussion on the advantages and disadvantages of the startup working model, and whether or not the millennial tendency towards working for smaller companies will continue to push against more traditional modes of employment. If startups are the future, how will the landscape of the conventional workforce change?
=== Speakers===
Dr. Ann Armstrong
Ann Armstrong serves as the Social Enterprise Initiative Director; she is responsible for engaging students in the social economy, developing curriculum, and doing research. Ann teaches in the MBA, B.Comm and EDP programs. In 2009, she co-authored a text on Canada’s social economy with Jack Quarter and Laurie Mook. She has also co-authored texts in the fields of organizational behaviour and organization theory. Her research focuses on the social economy, with an emphasis on social and green businesses.
Mr. Mark Pupo
Mark Pupo is the editor in chief of Reader’s Digest Canada, the most popular magazine in the country, reaching more than four million readers, and has an even greater digital reach. Pupo previously held leadership positions at the high-growth SaaS startups “Top Hat” and “Vision Critical”, responsible for content marketing and brand. He currently serves as a contributing editor and chief restaurant critic at Toronto Life magazine, which published his feature story “Animal House,” a critique of workplace culture at tech companies. He is working on a food history and memoir for Penguin Randomhouse, to be published in fall 2021.
Mr. Quinn Underwood
Quinn Underwood is a University of Toronto alumni, and entrepreneur focused on building organizations with scale and social impact. He is the co-founder of several companies, operating in domains ranging from health tech and diagnostics; to social network analysis and marketing; to quantifying mental health, Quinn has prolific experience building successful ventures centred around social impact. His most recent project, Animo, is a platform built to help individuals and organizations measure and predict their psychological well-being through use of A.I.
=== Run of Show ===
6:30pm: Doors open
7:00pm: Opening remarks
7:15pm: Moderated panel discussion
8:15pm: Q&A Period
8:45pm: Closing remarks
=== Tickets and Tri-Campus Accessibility ===
Tickets are free.
Given that we are hosting this event at the University of Toronto Downtown Campus (UTSG), all non-UTSG students have the opportunity to be reimbursed for their travel expenses. Please get in touch with us at hhddc.communications@utoronto.ca if you are interested.
For other accessibility inquiries and requests, please contact marco.adamovic@utoronto.ca.
=== Additional Notes ===
For any additional queries, feel free to connect with us at hhddc.communications@utoronto.ca.