Innovation at SMART Technologies

When I started my job search a few months ago, I was looking for a position that would allow me to learn about the process of innovation in a real world setting. In particular, I wanted to learn how to take novel ideas and bring them to product.

My PhD has focused mostly on invention: coming up with novel ideas and pushing the boundaries of what can be done with computers. While I had taken courses on innovation, starting a business, and marketing ideas I wanted a venue where I could apply these skills in practice.

After a long period of deliberation and negotiation with people from companies all around the world (including U.S.A., Holland, Japan, and Finland) I have decided to accept a position at Smart Technologies. I strongly believe that Smart Technologies will provide an excellent opportunity for me to learn how to transition novel ideas from conception to actual product. Check out this post by Executive Chairman David Martin on innovation.

In addition, I have decided to accept the Alberta Ingenuity Research and Development Associates award. As reflected in my previous post, we already have significant external validation about our future collaborations.

Dr. Gerald Morrison (External Research Manager at Smart) was instrumental in collaborating with me on the Alberta Ingenuity award and the job offer from Smart. I would like to express my deepest thanks to him for his support.

On that note, Gerald was interviewed by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) today. When asked about the benefits of Smart's collaboration with our lab, Gerald mentioned the recent hire of Edward Tse. If they use this clip on national television, this will be a very public announcement of my new position!

AI Research Associate Approved!

Good news! I just got my Alberta Ingenuity Industrial Research Associate application approved with glowing results. Alberta Ingenuity uses the ProGrid evaluation system to rank candidates who apply for a particular scholarship. I learned that my scholarship was one of the top ranked in terms of benefits and initiative. Chart 1 is a 2D plot of my ranking (square) to all other applications of this scholarship. It is the highest in terms of benefit and tied for second in terms of initiative.
When I looked at the proposal profile I found that all four categories relating to the candidate (letters of reference, academic record, career track record, and candidate suitability) were given the maximum possible relative strength.
A quote from an Evaluator's comment on my application:

Edward has glowing letters of refrence commenting on the knowledge, skills, and ability relevant to this opportunity. He is an outstanding, award-winning researcher with numerous competitive awards and independent media response to presentations and achievements. He is quickly emerging as a star player in this field and is a strong match for this opportunity.

Now I need to decide if I will accept this grant or not...