Shadi McIsaac 
Co-Founder & CEO | Ownr
Toronto, ON, CANADA
Shadi is the Co-Founder & CEO of Ownr, a platform that offers a simple and convenient way to start, manage and grow your business.
Media
Publications:
Documents:
Videos:
Audio/Podcasts:
Biography
Shadi is the Co-Founder & CEO of Ownr, a platform that offers a simple and convenient way to register or incorporate, as well as other tools to help entrepreneurs launch and grow their businesses.
Prior to joining RBC Ventures in 2017, Shadi worked as the Director of Digital Transformation with RBC’s Personal & Commercial Banking where she was responsible for the strategy development of a transformation to engage clients and prospects through data insights. Shadi began her career at IBM, where she spent five years in a pricing and sales capacity. She was also a senior manager in the Strategy and Business Architecture group supporting the development of strategies across Personal & Commercial Banking.
She is a graduate of Western University, earned a Master of Business Administration from the Rotman School of Management, and has completed the Angel Academy program through Female Funders.
Industry Expertise (1)
Business Services
Areas of Expertise (9)
Entrepreneurship
Innovation
Small Businesses
Business Incorporation
Strategy and Business Architecture
Business Growth Strategies
Strategy Development
Digital Transformation
Digital Innovation
Accomplishments (1)
Business Woman of the Month, Canadian SME Small Business Magazine
2019
Education (3)
Angel Academy: Program, Female Funders 2019
University of Toronto, Rotman School of Management: M.B.A. 2014
Western University: B.A. 2008
Affiliations (3)
- RBC Ventures : Senior Director, 2019 - Present
- RBC : Director of Digital Transformation, 2017 - 2019
- Ownr : Co-Founder & CEO, 2017 - Present
Links (2)
Languages (1)
- English
Media Appearances (17)
Ownr report suggests more entrepreneurs placing faith in digital over brick-and-mortar
BetaKit
2021-08-17
“Amid widespread lockdowns across the country, many new businesses were born online while small business owners focused on investing in building their digital presence,” according to the survey. Ownr, a business formation and legal management platform, found that three out of four (76.9 percent) of entrepreneurs said their businesses had an online presence, with 46.6 percent of entrepreneurs operating both online, and brick-and-mortar. Overall, entrepreneurs whose businesses operated exclusively online made up 30.3 percent of the people Ownr surveyed. Of those, more than half (56.4 percent) do not plan to open a physical retail location in the near future. The report said that pointed to a “potential risk in the revival of the vibrant storefronts that make up our communities.”
Pandemic Hits Women Hard; Female Entrepreneurs Strike Back with Ownr-ship Support
WhatsYourTech
2021-08-16
It’s been dubbed the “she-cession”, a nod to the uncomfortable fact women are among the demographic groups hardest hit by COVID and the responses to it. But some women are striking back against the specific economic impacts of the global contagion that hits them so hard: they are identifying new business possibilities in the pandemic. That’s the experience of a Toronto-based company called Ownr: it operates as a Business Incorporation Platform established to help entrepreneurs formulate their business and overcome some of the common barriers faced in entrepreneurship and business ownership.
Shifting business priorities during pandemic
CTV News
2021-02-18
Pivoting Business Plans During Pandemic
Shadi McIsaac of Ownr on Spike in New Businesses Started During Pandemic (Ep. 29)
Inspired Leadership Podcast radio
2021-05-13
This podcast celebrates real-life examples of inspired leadership to create more of it in our workplaces. Co-hosts Tyler Bayley and Susan Power interview guests on Inspired Leadership. "Inspire" means to excite, encourage, or breathe life into. Inspire comes from the Latin word that means to inflame or to blow into. When you inspire someone, it is as if you are blowing air over a low flame to make it grow. Shadi McIsaac is the CEO of Ownr, an RBC Ventures company that offers a simple and convenient way to register or incorporate a business as well as other tools to help entrepreneurs manage their businesses.
Homegrown Business: Ownr, helping entrepreneurs start up!
Toronto Guardian
2021-02-22
What is your business called and what does it do? The short answer is Ownr is a platform that helps entrepreneurs launch and grow their businesses. The slightly longer answer is that our main products are around business formation and simplifying the legal side of owning a business—we help folks make things official. We also have a series of complementary products that focus on boosting new business owners and helping them get off on the right foot (think branding and marketing).
22% of Canadian businesses had to pivot during COVID-19: Survey
Toronto Sun online
2021-03-08
Nearly one-quarter of Canadian business owners had to pivot during COVID-19 as the virus put a dent in their finances, according to a survey. The study, by RBC Ventures company Ownr, found that 22% of businesses made changes or discovered new ways to operate in Canada. We spoke with Shadi McIsaac, head and co-founder of Ownr, which helps entrepreneurs incorporate quickly and inexpensively.
Entrepreneurship spirit is high during the pandemic
CBC Listen radio
2021-05-27
CBC workplace columnist Rubina Ahmed-Haq says more Canadians now are willing to start a business than before the economic shutdowns started.
Despite COVID-19, some small businesses are keeping community alive
Global News -
2021-06-12
While it’s no secret that small businesses have encountered considerable hardship due to closures and restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, some business owners are remaining optimistic and finding ways to continue fostering communities.
'No regrets': New businesses are opening during COVID-19 pandemic — without government help
CBC online
2021-02-05
While much attention is rightfully given to the struggles of existing businesses, such as restaurants, Ownr co-founder Shadi McIsaac says the pandemic has created some positive circumstances for new ventures to launch. She points to growth in fields such as e-commerce and health-care products and believes people are seizing on opportunities there. As well, closures and layoffs caused by the pandemic may also be leading former employees to start their own businesses. "You can almost see a need opening up for people to turn into entrepreneurs to support themselves," McIsaac said. "From that lens, I don't think the volumes are surprising."
'Let's do it': How these entrepreneurs braved the pandemic to open new businesses
Financial Post online
2020-10-09
“There are two things we can attribute to this,” said Shadi McIsaac, co-owner, who has been surprised by the uptick in numbers. “One is the impact on employment and the number of individuals that need or want to start their own business venture. The second hypothesis is the growing demand for digital businesses.”
New Canada Starts grant aims to support entrepreneurs
Ottawa Life online
2020-10-02
“Canada Starts is the successor of an earlier (albeit smaller) initiative called Ownr Grants. Once the pandemic took hold in March, small businesses from across the country needed support. We launched a grant program shortly after, focused on supporting businesses that had pivoted in light of the economic challenges presented by COVID-19,” says Ownr co-founder Shadi McIsaac.
Ownr by RBC Ventures acquires leading legal tech platform Founded
Cision online
2020-09-30
"At Ownr, every decision we make is grounded in how we help small business owners start and succeed. With this acquisition, we're solidifying our current strengths in business formation while building towards our broader goals—helping entrepreneurs at every stage of their journey," said Shadi McIsaac, co-founder, Ownr. "And at a time when small businesses need digital resources and support the most, RBC Ventures is bringing together these two leading platforms to further its commitment to the small business community."
Ownr, Staples, Shopify, Moneris launch $200000 fund for entrepreneur hopefuls
BetaKit online
2020-09-15
“Small businesses are the heart of the Canadian economy, employing almost 70 percent of the private labour force in Canada. Now more than ever, it’s crucial that we do everything we can to support them,” said Shadi McIsaac, co-founder of Ownr. “Canada Starts is one way for us to provide direct financial assistance to new Canadian entrepreneurs,” McIsaac added. “For many of these applicants, $5,000 could be the difference between dreaming and doing.”
How Ownr Is Helping Micro And Small Businesses
CanadianSME Small Business Magazine online
2020-05-20
Shadi McIsaac is the Founder of Ownr, a platform that offers a simple and convenient way to register or incorporate a business as well as other tools to help entrepreneurs manage their businesses. Prior to joining RBC Ventures in 2017, Shadi worked as the Director of Digital Transformation with RBC’s Personal & Commercial Banking where she was responsible for the strategy development of a transformation to engage clients and prospects through data insights. She was also a senior manager in the Strategy and Business Architecture group supporting the development of strategies across Personal & Commercial Banking. Shadi joined RBC in 2014, and previously, she earned an MBA from the Rotman School of Management.
Business Woman Of The Month Shadi McIsaac
CanadianSME Small Business Magazine online
2019-06-05
Co-Founder of Ownr and Director, Digital Innovation at RBC Ventures, Shadi McIsaac had a chat with us to discuss her inspiration behind founding Ownr, the benefits for new businesses that are just starting out and how RBC is helping the small business industry. Shadi is the Founder of Ownr, a platform that offers a simple and convenient way to register or incorporate a business as well as other tools to help entrepreneurs manage their businesses.
Canadian entrepreneurs don't understand how business structure affects their taxes, according to a new survey from Ownr
Newswire online
2019-04-17
"It's no surprise that many small business owners aren't applying for the available tax benefits when so many of them find the process of filing their taxes complicated in the first place," said Shadi McIsaac, co-founder at Ownr. "As we approach the April 30th deadline for filing personal income tax returns, it's important for business owners to understand the implications of how their business structure might impact their return. For business owners focused on growing their companies, this could lead to a lot of extra money in the bank if they know how to make use of Canada's many small business tax incentives."
2018 Brands of the Year: RBC banks on the next generation
Strategy Online online
2018-10-05
Many of the companies were created by RBC’s own staff: Ownr, which helps users start a new business, was co-founded by Shadi McIsaac, RBC’s former director of digital innovation before being brought into the Ventures team, and Jacqueline De Sousa, a product analyst. Get Digs allows tenants to pay their rent through various methods and was founded by Megan McQuillan, RBC’s manager of strategy and transformation, and Rachael Carswell, who previously worked on the account team at Brightworks and Mirum before being hired as a director for the Ventures team last year.
Event Appearances (1)
Ladies Who Launch
Toronto Tiff Bell Lightbox, 350 King Street West, Toronto, Ontario, M5V 3X5.
2019-09-25
Articles (1)
Business Ideas for Small Towns
www.ownr.co/blog/Shadi McIssac
What do small towns and successful restaurant menus have in common? Rather than jamming a whirlwind of shops onto sprawling sidewalks or cramming too many culinary creations into a 10-page menu, small towns and good restaurants thrive when they perfect the essentials for their residents and customers. For those who grew up in a big city, moving to a small town can be a bit of an adjustment, especially if the end-goal is to start a new business venture. But, with fewer competitors in the market space than in a metropolitan city, small business owners stand to turn a fast profit if the idea fits.
Social