Jon French

Worth knowing

He decides and oversees the funding programs U of T founders apply to, and he knows a decade's worth of young Canadian entrepreneurs by name from recruiting them into accelerators. Few people can connect a student company to money, mentors and alumni as quickly. Write to him if you are a student founder looking for first capital, or an investor or operator who wants early access to university spinouts.

Story

Jon studied business at Wilfrid Laurier and joined The Next 36 in 2011 as its marketing and communications director, becoming the public voice behind each year's cohort announcement and the launch of the NextAI program in Montreal. Over nine years there he moved from communications into global recruitment, community and alumni, finding the founders the program would bet on. In 2020 he took over University of Toronto Entrepreneurship, where he now oversees the internal and external funding programs available to U of T founders and hosts the Desjardins Speaker Series. On the side he runs a wine import agency.

In Jon's words

Born in Kitchener-Waterloo. Have spent most my adult life supporting early-stage, student-led or university affiliated startups in the Greater Toronto Area. Side-hustle wine import agency. Work at University ofToronto.

Highlights

• Director, University of Toronto Entrepreneurship, since 2020
• Senior Director, Global Recruitment, Community & Alumni, NEXT Canada
• MBA, Schulich School of Business, York University
• Executive certificate in artificial intelligence, Rotman School of Management