I was recently asked to speak at an event that featured an MOU signing between five local business incubators in Edmonton. I was asked because of my experience working through several incubator programs in Alberta over the past ten(!) years… here was my speech:

“My name is Ken Bautista, an Associate Creative Director at RED and CEO of Hotrocket, a producer of original interactive entertainment properties. I’ve been an entrepreneur for over ten years. I’d like to think I’ve gained wisdom and experience, because it’s been quite the ride with plenty of highs and lows. During that time I’ve been fortunate to have had the support of incubators in Alberta, including NABI, the Accelerator Program at the Banff New Media Institute, and TEC Edmonton.

These organizations have provided my company with more than cheap rent or free marketing. They’ve empowered us and accelerated our development through mentorship, resources, and connections. They’re among our biggest champions and we’re lucky to have them behind us as we continue our development.

Now, I was asked to share my entrepreneurial experiences which I’ve divided into three acts:

The first act I call “wide eyed excitement”.

It was 1998, my third year of university, writing my first business plan for an interactive media business. I was a 21 year old education student… what did I know about business? All I know is that I wanted to use this fancy digital media stuff to engage students somehow. So I took the plunge and got a $10,000 loan from the Canadian Youth Business Foundation to buy a computer, some software, and do some marketing. After graduating, I set up shop at NABI (then called the St. Albert Business Development Centre). Office 2236. Right next to the conference room and pop machine. Prime spot. We grew to 6 people and 2 offices in the 14 months during our stay.

St. Albert was a great community to start up in. It was here that I learned to network, starting with all the other companies at NABI. They came from a wide range of sectors, including engineers and florists. As the youngest in the building, there was no shortage of stories and experiences to be gained from the entrepreneurs around me. Business was business, no matter the industry. And I was a sponge, taking it all in.

The second act is about “being great, not big”.

Hotrocket graduated from NABI in 2000, raring to take things to the next level. And things definitely advanced. At our peak we grew to 13 people. We had a healthy roster of clients and projects, and earned a bunch of creative and business awards along the way. But we also had big overhead and plenty of pressure. My entrepreneurial life had become more about financial objectives than other non financial priorities. Around this time, I discovered the Accelerator Program at the Banff New Media Institute and got connected to our provincial and federal trade offices. I was introduced to an international market where being great was more important than being big. Where it was about making creative products that people around the world wanted to buy and use. Through workshops and market access programs, I quickly expanded my creative and business network, establishing new partnerships and channels. We simplified everything. We downsized to two and partnered when needed. I traveled more and met new people. We said no to projects, so we could focus on things we wanted to work on.

The third act is called “the next startup”.

Over the next three years, my business partner Jason and I fully embraced the “great, not big” approach. We enjoyed being profitable, with no debt, projects we enjoyed, and building a global network of colleagues, mentors, and partners around us. Last year, things came full circle as I was engaged to mentor emerging games companies through a new pilot program at the Banff Centre focused on digital content entrepreneurs. Later that year, our interactive services division was acquired by RED, a fast growing marketing agency based in Edmonton and Vancouver. This move allowed us to continue client-driven interactive work, but also gave us a runway to get our next start-up to market – a new kids property called CIE: Seek Your Own Proof.

In CIE, kids ages 9 and up are challenged to investigate history as agents of the “Central Institute for Exploration”. CIE is an online community where kids participate in immersive fiction that takes web-based episodic games to a new level. It also lets kids experience real-world activities at real museums and locations around the world. Think Carmen Sandiego for a new generation.

To refine our business plan and market strategies, we engaged with TEC Edmonton to provide mentorship and market research. This helped us get ready for a public launch in April 2009. Even before that launch, we were named Most Promising Company at the Canadian New Media Awards, were the first TELUS Innovation Fund recipient in Canada, won an international pitch competition at KidScreen in New York judged by senior executives from Nickelodeon and Disney, and won Best in Show at last year’s Fusion Digital Media Venture Forum in Vancouver.

To wrap:

I like to think we’re a creative province, with no shortage of ideas. But then again, every other country in the world has people with ideas. Bottom line, it’s a race. I’ve learned that being a start-up entrepreneur is more than being an ideas guy – it’s about constantly adapting, refining and executing to win that race. I’ve also learned that the best entrepreneurs don’t do it alone. I’ve seen too many stubborn entrepreneurs operate in a silo – heads-down, grinding it out – alone. I believe in incubators and mentors. They’re the support, the catalyst, the vehicle, the environment, the champion, and the competitive advantage that I think every entrepreneur should have access to in this province.”