SUMMIT PROGRAM – BFUTR 2025 Innovation Leadership Big Ideas
In a world where technology evolves faster than ever, how can you build a career that stands the test of time? Join us for a dynamic panel discussion featuring visionary tech founders and ecosystem developers who are shaping the future of work, innovation, and talent. Whether you’re a student exploring your path or a professional looking to stay ahead, this session will offer actionable insights on the skills, mindsets, and opportunities that will define the next generation of tech careers.
What to Expect:
Ideal for: Students, early-career professionals, aspiring entrepreneurs, and anyone passionate about building a future-ready career in tech.
Brought to you by IDEA Mississauga powered by invest Mississauga, Black Entrepreneurship Alliance (BEA) and Visit Mississauga
Hiring talent is hard. Keeping them is harder. In this era of rapid transformation, companies that win are those that invest in their people. This session explores how Obsidi® Academy is helping organizations upskill, empower, and retain emerging tech professionals through customized learning pathways and leadership development.
You’ll discover:
Pick up practical skills and tools to help you become more “change adaptive” in your work life, and in how you can be a better “Change Champion” to help your team and organization move through ongoing change and transformation challenges.
Join CIBC’s leading tech innovators and industry disruptors as they reveal how fintech is breaking down systemic barriers and driving financial inclusion, wealth creation, and leadership opportunities for all communities. Through candid stories and actionable strategies, our panelists will share their journeys on how the enterprise aims to tackle challenges in building an equitable financial future. Whether you’re a student, executive, or entrepreneur, you’ll leave inspired and empowered to become a catalyst for change in the evolving world of fintech.
The strongest networks in tech aren’t built in boardrooms — they’re built in communities.
Across North America, Employee Resource Groups, grassroots founders, and local organizers are redefining what it means to create space, access, and belonging in an industry that’s still catching up. They’re not waiting for permission—they’re building ecosystems that move talent, culture, and opportunity forward.
This conversation spotlights the leaders behind the movement — those shaping how tech communities connect, grow, and thrive. Together, they’ll unpack what it really takes to turn awareness into access, and access into collective progress.
You’ll walk away knowing how to:
Collaborate with community builders to grow authentic, long-term relationships with tech talent.
Activate spaces where culture and opportunity intersect.
Build ecosystems of belonging that drive visibility, loyalty, and impact far beyond hiring.
If you believe that community is the future of talent, this is where your next great partnership begins.
In business and in life, leadership is rarely granted; it’s earned, tested, and ultimately claimed. Drawing from her upcoming CEO-sponsored white paper Permission to Lead and years advising global investors, Kuma Sordzi explores what it truly means to be seen as “ready.” This session dives into the moments when talent is overlooked, the tension between confidence and competence, and the power of sponsorship to unlock both human and financial potential. Through vivid stories from private equity and beyond, Kuma invites attendees to rethink how they show up, how they advocate for themselves and others, and how to lead with clarity, courage, and conviction—especially when the system has yet to catch up to their brilliance.