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The 3^rd annual Essential Physician Study reveals that adoption of smartphones and iPads among physicians is on the rise, signalling a shift towards increased application of clinical information and tools to support Patient Point-of-Care decisions.

“The indication from physicians is that their use of smartphones and iPads is displacing their use of laptops and desktops,” stated researchers at Essential Research.   “The mobile devices give them ultimate flexibility in accessing information and applications they can use at the precise moments they need them in their clinical practice:  at Patient Point-of-Care, both during and between patient visits.”

Ownership of smartphones among Canadian primary care physicians has increased from 55% to 62% in the past 12 months, with 86% of physicians using their smartphones for professional purposes. Moreover, 65% of physicians indicate their year-over-year usage is increasing.

Although physician iPad owners are a relatively small group for now, “we expect that iPad adoption will follow a similar adoption path as smartphones,” said the researchers.  17% of physicians now own an iPad, with the majority (56%) using it for professional purposes.

For Healthcare marketers, this mobile shift has implications for development of communications and programs targeted to physicians.  Essential Research will be closely monitoring professional use of mobile technology among Canadian physicians in order to identify new opportunities for healthcare companies and organizations wishing to more effectively communicate with and engage physicians.

IMD, a top-ranked global business school based in Switzerland, today announced the findings of its annual World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY), which places Canada in seventh place, retaining its position from last year. Neighboring USA, along with Hong Kong, were on the top of list as the most competitive countries, both slightly ahead of last year’s winner, Singapore.

Published since 1989, WCY ranks and analyzes how an economy manages the totality of its resources and competencies to increase the prosperity of its population.

IMD’s WCY indicates that Canada’s top key attractiveness indicators include the country’s stable policy, skilled workforce, reliable infrastructure and high educational levels. Canada’s competitive strengths lie in its high level of resilience, efficient financial system and dynamic business culture. The country also ranks first for its ‘Image Abroad.’ In terms of weaknesses, there are concerns about relocation threats and vulnerability to commodity-dependency.

Additional 2011 WCY findings:

• Sweden jumps to fourth place from sixth, highlighting the competitiveness of the Nordic model
• Germany shines and gains six ranks to tenth position thanks to increased exports and a more flexible labor market
• Qatar, Korea and Turkey continue their ascent in competitiveness

IMD also released its first Government Efficiency Gap results, which compares a country’s government and business efficiency to determine whether countries have “the government they deserve.”

According to the findings, there is little gap between government and business efficiency in Canada, showing that the two reinforce one another and are well synchronized. On the contrary, overall competitiveness in the US was ‘rescued’ by its business efficiency. Read the rest of this entry »

Social networking sites have become a popular platform for youth to stay connected. Although these sites have many positive benefits, some tweens and teens are using these channels as weapons to facilitate cyberbullying.

A new study from Norton Canada called The Norton Cyberbullying Survey polled parents from across the country about their children’s online experiences. One quarter of parents polled (26 percent), said their child had been involved in a cyberbullying incident. Of these, nearly three out of four (66 percent) parents said their child was the victim of the incident, 16 percent admitted that their child was the actual bully, and 18 percent said their child was a witness to a cyberbullying incident. In addition, a staggering 32 percent of parents stated they don’t completely know what their child does on the internet, but fear their child’s behaviour online could involve coming into contact with an online predator (44 percent).

The Norton Cyberbullying Survey also found that girls are more often involved in cyberbullying incidents than boys. In fact, 86 percent of parents revealed their daughters were victims of cyberbullies, compared to 55 percent of sons.

• Mobile access: Cell phones were another vehicle for cyberbullying, with 22 percent of girls experiencing it more than boys (14 percent); cyberbullying via cell phone was also most common with middle schoolers (ages 13-14) (52 percent)
• Social Networking: 43 percent of parents said they were comfortable with tweens (ages 8-12) having an account, as long as they were supervised by parents. (You have to be at least 13-years-old to access most social networking sites legally)
• Top vehicles driving cyberbullying: According to the survey, the top three channels children are using to cyberbully are social media (63 percent), email (25 percent), and phone (19 per cent) – boys are more likely than girls to become victims of cyberbullying through social networks.
• Lines of communication: 49 percent of parents claim to have a very open dialogue with their children about their online behaviour, but 32 percent of all parents feel that there are environments they can’t control (i.e. friend’s homes, what children do at school or Internet activity on his/her phone)
• Controlling the situation: More than 50 percent of parents claim to use online parenting software to monitor their children’s internet use. Meanwhile 42 percent of parents said they check their child’s browser history to get a sense of what they are looking up online.

The survey was conducted online with a random sample of 507 men and women in Calgary, Halifax, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver who have a child between the ages of 8-18, all members of the Impulse Research proprietary online panel. The Impulse Research proprietary online panel has been carefully selected to closely match Canadian population demographics and the respondents are representative of Canadian men and women who live in those cities. Research was conducted in February 2011. The overall sampling error rate for this survey is +/-3% at the 95% level of confidence.

Almost half of Canadian executives still say the amount of information they have overwhelms them, showing no statistical improvement from last year, though there has been some change at the provincial and industry level, with some showing improvement while others are facing an uphill challenge. These are just some of the findings from a SAS/Leger Marketing survey released yesterday. Overall, 45 per cent of executives in 2011 said they are overwhelmed by information, compared with 47 per cent last year.

This year, executives from Ontario and British Columbia are far less likely to say they suffer from information overload. In 2010, 52 per cent of B.C. and Ontario-based executives said they faced information overload, versus 38 and 44 per cent (respectively) this year.

While most provinces and business sectors showed little change, there were a few that saw things deteriorate. Those in the academic and education sectors were far more likely to say things have gotten worse – 42 per cent in 2010 versus 61 per cent in 2011 saying they suffer from information overload.

“Organizations often need to make significant procedural changes to effectively address information overload,” said Kathryn Brohman, Professor, Management Information Systems, School of Business, Queen’s University. “For organizations to be successful combating information overload they need both the right technology and the right procedures.”

Canadian executives understand that in today’s information age it is not about having all information, rather having the right information. Eighty per cent said they’d make better informed business decisions if they had the right tools in place to analyze information more effectively, yet 1 in 4 (24 per cent) say they do not have the right information to make effective business decisions about their business performance. Read the rest of this entry »

The commercial value of unlicensed software installed on personal computers in Canada reached US$1.066 billion in 2010 as 28 per cent of software deployed on PCs during the year was pirated. These are among the findings of the Business Software Alliance (BSA) 2010 Global Software Piracy Study, which evaluates the state of software piracy around the world.

“At 28 per cent, Canada’s piracy rate is at an all time low, dropping six percentage points since 2006,” said Michael Murphy, Chairman of the BSA Canada Committee. “While these findings show that progress has been made in reducing the software piracy rate in Canada, there is still more work to be done on behalf of Canadian businesses and consumers alike. The further we reduce software piracy, the better it will be for the Canadian economy.”

This is the eighth study of global software piracy to be conducted by BSA in partnership with IDC, the IT industry’s leading market research and forecasting firm, using a methodology that incorporates 182 discrete data inputs for 116 countries and regions around the world. This year’s study also includes a new dimension: a public-opinion survey of PC users on key social attitudes and behaviors related to software piracy, conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs.

The opinion survey found strong support for intellectual property rights in Canada, with 68 per cent of respondents saying we should reward inventors for their creations to promote more technology advances.  Strikingly, the global survey found that support for intellectual property rights was strongest in markets with high piracy rates.

The survey also found widespread recognition among Canadians that licensed software is better than pirated software when it comes to technical support (92 per cent), security (83 per cent) and reliability (81 per cent).

However, across the globe the survey found that many PC users lack a clear understanding of whether common ways of acquiring software, such as buying a single program license for multiple computers or downloading a program from peer-to-peer network, are likely to be legal or illegal. In Canada, a majority of respondents said that peer-to-peer, lending software and street markets are illegal, but 59 per cent believe that auction sites provide legal software.  Almost two-thirds said installing multiple copies at home is legal. Read the rest of this entry »

Are you a ‘Cameo’-style volunteer, who wants occasional, flexible opportunities to develop your skills?  Or are you a ‘Type A’, a highly motivated leader, driven to contribute to a cause that means the most to you?

Volunteer Canada, together with Manulife Financial, is introducing a new digital tool that categorizes Canadians into six distinct volunteer types and recommends available roles suited to their volunteer profiles and specific interests. The Volunteer Quiz, or VQ, is the latest addition to a suite of digital assets that is part of a national two-year campaign. This national campaign is aimed at enriching the volunteer experience of Canadians and strengthening the country’s voluntary sector in order to build and sustain healthy communities.

According to the landmark Bridging the Gap research study, led by Volunteer Canada in partnership with Manulife, technology is creating an opportunity to address a disconnect between what Canadians look for in volunteer experiences and what organizations offer.

“Today’s volunteers are more goal-oriented, autonomous, tech-savvy, and mobile,” said Ruth MacKenzie, President and CEO of Volunteer Canada. “It’s essential that organizations recognize the changes that technology brings and adapt to meet the needs of the next generation of volunteers.”

Rookie, Roving Consultant, Type ‘A’, Groupie, Juggler, and Cameo are the six volunteer types identified by the VQ, and are based on the Bridging the Gap research findings. The VQ is the first online tool in Canada to provide volunteer opportunities best suited to the individual’s profile. The ‘Groupie’, for example, enjoys the camaraderie of group volunteering activities, and is best suited to large organizations with short-term or one-day volunteer activities, while the ‘Roving Consultant’ is better suited to work on specific short-term projects with real need for a specialized skill set.

“All Canadians have a role to play along a broad spectrum of engagement – everything from quick bursts of volunteering on mobile handsets to front-line volunteer aid in war-torn regions of the world,” said MacKenzie. “The VQ can help boost volunteer engagement, but it’s essential to maintain a balance between episodic and long-term volunteering.”

“As the leading corporate supporter of this campaign, Manulife is committed to building tools and resources that inspire Canadians to get involved in their communities and help the not-for-profit sector respond to the unique needs of today’s volunteers,” said Nicole Boivin, Senior Vice President, Human Resources and Communications at Manulife Canada.  “The VQ is an interactive tool that helps people identify their unique volunteer style, which in turn allows them to focus their search on experiences that they’re likely to find most rewarding.”

Canadians can access the VQ as a feature on the interactive campaign website. The resource connects individuals to suitable volunteer opportunities made available through a powerful volunteer matching tool, sponsored by Manulife Financial.

The research is in and the message from Canadian shoppers is clear – Hell hath no fury like a consumer scorned. According to the Colloquy Word of Mouth (WOM) study of 2,960 Canadian shoppers, bad news about bad brand experiences travels fast — even faster among Canadians than Americans, in fact. More than eight in ten (84 per cent) Canadian consumers say they advise family or friends about a bad experience with a product or service, compared with three quarters of American consumers who do the same.  Comparatively, just six in ten Canadian consumers say they recommend products or services to others.

“The best managed brands know exactly who their advocates are, and they’re usually found in the membership rolls of a loyalty program,” said Colloquy Managing Partner Kelly Hlavinka.  “But this study shows that advocates can just as easily become “madvocates” if their experience with a brand turns sour. Like a guard dog, these advocates are loyal until the owner gets careless, and then they bite.”

Advocates and Madvocates

According to Colloquy’s study, consumers can be broken into three categories or mind-sets:

• Three in ten (31 per cent) are word of mouth super-Advocates, or “WOM Champions,” who intend to recommend their favourite brands.
• Almost one quarter (24 per cent) are described by Colloquy as “Madvocates,” who are predisposed to engage in negative word of mouth practices after suffering a bad experience.
• Fortunately, “Pure Madvocates” — consumers who say they will never be advocates and are oriented to negative word of mouth only – are a rare breed, making up just seven per cent of the general population.

The Loudest Voices

• Canadian women are the most likely to be word of mouth champions (47 per cent); and twice as likely to advocate as “madvocate” (22 per cent).
• Almost half (44 per cent) of all affluent consumers earning $125,000 are word of mouth Champions, but an almost equal portion (38 per cent) are Madvocates.

In 2011, word of mouth Champions made up 31 per cent of the Canadian general population. This group is especially important to the marketers looking to arm themselves against the large proportion of the Canadian population prone to sharing their negative experiences. Marketers trying to locate these brand Champions should look no further than their own loyalty database. WOM Champions make up a third of total reward members, and only account for 18 per cent of those not participating in any program. In essence, there are almost double the Champions within reward programs members then there are among non-member population.

“Loyalty marketers must accept the responsibility for the impact their programs can have on generating both positive and negative word of mouth,” said Hlavinka.  “The best defence against negative conversations about your brand is a good offence – engage and empower the Champions within your own rewards programs”

Colloquy’s study also focused on how Champions differed in their communications methods from less engaged consumers, as well as Madvocates, by examining loyalty programs members. The following trends emerged:

• For both general members and Champions, there is a lot of staying power in “old school” methods — with face-to-face communications, phone calls and email topping the list of communication methods used by reward program members.
• However, the study also showed that Champions are much more engaged than regular consumers when it comes to “new school” methods, which include social networking communities, mobile messaging, and product review sites. Overall, Champions are 50-100 per cent more engaged across these platforms than other non-Champion members, making their involvement in a word-of-mouth campaign essential to its success.

“Marketers need to know that Madvocates are just as connected across multiple communication platforms as Champions,” said Hlavinka. “Madvocacy is an attitude possessed even by a proportion of a brand’s best customers. So, while you have a highly connected group of Champions engaged in word-of-mouth, you also have those ready, willing and able to discuss negative experiences within your program.”

Advice for Marketers

1. Find the word of mouth Champions and treat them well. Your Champions are also your potential Madvocates.
2. Don’t abandon traditional communications. While social media platforms are popular, email and good old phone calls and conversations top the list for brand discussions.
3. Concentrate on delivering on your brand promise. Please customers with excellent products and a rewarding experience and they’ll talk about you – in their channel of choice.
4. Don’t discard the Madvocates. They have the energy and inclination to tell positive stories if treated right.
5. Build community forums. Build a single, authoritative go-to place where customers can talk about your brand.

Colloquy is a provider of loyalty marketing publishing, education and research and is owned by Toronto-based LoyaltyOne.  Colloquy’s WOM survey, featuring completed responses from 2,960 Canadian consumers nationwide, was conducted in December 2010.  A white paper presenting the complete results of the study, as well as additional tips, is available online free of charge.  Colloquy previously published a 2009 study titled The New Champion Customers: Measuring Word-of-Mouth Activity Among Reward Program Members.

Reminder: Today is the final day for submissions to apply for the Shaw Rocket Fund Digital Progam.

A new survey from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) of 8,900 businesses shows that, if given the opportunity to start over, the vast majority (83 per cent) of entrepreneurs would choose the same career path.

It should come as no surprise then that 78 per cent of business owners would recommend small business ownership as a career option for young people. Unfortunately, business owners’ comments all point to the same common denominator: Schools are not promoting entrepreneurship as a career option. “Schools are set up for kids to start a career, not start a business,” said one member from Alberta.

And, according to CFIB research, the education system hasn’t fully embraced entrepreneurship as a viable career option for young people, with 56 per cent of business owners indicating that they did not feel as though there was enough of an emphasis on starting a business as a career option in schools today. “Given the many opportunities and rewards that entrepreneurship has to offer, it is only natural that business owners would recommend it as a career option and believe that schools should do more to encourage it,” reasoned CFIB’s vice-president of research, Doug Bruce.

CFIB Sr. VP of Research, Economics and Western Canada, Laura Jones, was also quick to point out that 92 per cent of business owners indicate running a business is a rewarding career. “Entrepreneurs are happy to go to work every day because they have the freedom to be their own bosses and tailor their line of work toward their own strengths and interests,” she explained. Adding, “If entrepreneurial skills and aptitudes were sufficiently encouraged in the education system,  the next generation of business owners will be in  for a great career which not only permits them to build on their talent and expertise, but also fulfill them personally and professionally as well.”

Entrepreneurs have no regrets is the second in a series of short reports on entrepreneurship. The first report is titled “The Secrets of Entrepreneurial Success” and the series commemorates CFIB’s 40^th anniversary and celebrates 2011 as the federally designated Year of the Entrepreneur.

A report on emerging technology companies released today by PwC shows that for the second straight year, angel investors have taken over as the primary funding source for these companies, with venture capitalist fundraising at a 16-year low. Angels typically invest their own funds, unlike venture capitalists, who manage the pooled money of others in a professionally-managed fund.

Overall, 53% of respondents to its survey who raised money last year received their funding from angels, compared to 8% who received funding from venture capitalists. This presents a challenge that limits Canadian technology businesses from competing in the global market, the report says.

“Fundraising trends are an important predictor of innovation and growth in this sector,” says Peter Matutat, Partner and National Emerging Company Practice Leader at PwC. “Our report shows that companies who successfully raised capital in 2010 were 3.5 times more likely to adopt an aggressive approach to business reinvestment compared to businesses that were unsuccessful. One of the problems in our market is that Canadian companies receive only 39% of the dollars that go to their US competitors ($3.2 million vs. $8.2 million on average in 2010).”

The 50-page report polled over 160 CEOs of emerging Canadian software companies on a variety of topics including growth, marketing, raising capital, research, talent recruitment and mergers. Overall, revenues in this sector are increasing and forecasts are back at pre-recession levels. Overall revenue growth was approximately 32% in 2010, just slightly behind the survey’s historic average of 35%.

Other findings from the report include:

• Over 60% of CEOs expect revenues to increase at least 25% in 2011
• 73% expect their companies will be acquired in the next 5 years
• 84%  are using cloud computing in some form
• More than 80% are taking a more aggressive approach to business planning Read the rest of this entry »

A $3.5-million grant announced today by Premier Christy Clark will generate jobs and promote innovation by creating new research opportunities in the province.

The grant – awarded to MITACS, a Vancouver-based research network which creates and manages unique research and training programs – will enable B.C. graduate students and new PhDs to connect with businesses and apply their research to real-world challenges and attract top international undergraduate students to local universities.

“Research and innovation are key to economic growth in our province, and to providing jobs for B.C. families into the future,” Premier Clark said. “With this announcement, we are working with our partners to take great ideas from our university labs and turn them into excellent jobs, driving progress in every sector of our economy.”

The funding will create up to 300 new graduate internships through the MITACS-Accelerate program and 19 fellowships for recent PhD graduates through MITACS-Elevate, as well as foster better linkages between BC’s universities and some of the brightest international talent through the Globalink program.

Established in 1999, MITACS is a not-for-profit research organization which partners with government, universities and industry to recruit, train and retain graduate students in B.C.

“MITACS has far exceeded our expectations by connecting almost 1,000 graduate students with B.C. businesses and organizations to create innovative products and practices,” said Pat Bell, Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation. “Today’s investment will help build the highly-educated workforce we need to be a leader in innovation and commercialization.” Read the rest of this entry »