Launching into Canada's innovation ecosystem with Ronald Poon

In this episode of the Expat Playbook, we sit down with Ronald Poon, a Hong Kong-born, New Zealand-raised innovation program manager who spent four years living and working across Montreal and Toronto before returning to Melbourne. Ronald shares how a two-week university study tour to Canada about data science and AI sparked a journey that took him from Montreal to Toronto, where he joined a startup consultancy running hackathons and innovation programs for major corporates including McDonald's, HSBC, and BMO. His highlight was helping large companies "think like a startup" through running accelerator-style programs where employees pitched solutions to C-suite executives. We trace Ronald's path from a Bachelor of Law and Commerce at Monash, through his pandemic-era move to Canada, to his return to Melbourne's innovation space. We discuss the cultural differences between North American and UK business cultures, and why building a network in a new country takes time. Whether you're an early-career professional considering a move abroad or are curious about what working in Canada is like, we hope you'll enjoy the discussion. 🎧 Listen to the Expat Playbook to hear more about Ronald's journey. Join your hosts Alice Hong and Hayley Winchcombe weekly wherever you get your podcasts. ⏱️ Chapters: 1:02 Introduction & tennis talk 2:43 Growing up: Hong Kong to New Zealand 5:04 From Melbourne to Canada 10:16 Finding work & building a network 13:46 Business culture: North America vs Down Under 17:49 Innovation programs & hackathons 20:43 Looking ahead: next steps & Canada advice 24:24 Montreal's hidden gems 26:26 Rapid fire 30:42 Final advice & wrap-up #ExpatPlaybook #Canada #Innovation