Editorial - 23-11

Ontario's decision to rationalize its commercialization programs is good news for companies seeking to capitalize on the province's large and growing stock of promising S&T. With a strong client focus and proposed reward system for the most effective organizations, industry will be relieved from navigating the current maze of programs on offer.

Over the summer, officials at the Ministry of Research and Innovation will bring their new minister up to speed, populate a new advisory board and finalize four new core programs out of the 12 that currently deliver the province's commercialization services.

Ontario's action to reduce programs and simplify access mirrors the rationale and response taken by Alberta earlier this year (R$, March 30/09). As Dr John McDougall, head of the Alberta Research Council, so aptly put it at the time, "We tend to go overboard slicing and dicing the pie. Too much variety probably gives you indigestion."

So far the MaRS Discovery District and the Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) have been identified as key delivery agents, building on their progress in consolidating provincial S&T programs and branching out with federally funded initiatives. The OCE, however, will have to do it without the leadership of Mark Romoff, who has announced his intention to leave the organization this fall.

With two of Canada biggest provinces working to improve our weak commercialization performance, it's incumbent upon Industry Canada to strengthen its commercialization efforts and prompt other governments to follow suit.