BDC welcomes Dominic Gagnon as its first Entrepreneur in Residence
Montreal, QC — April 7, 2026 — The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) today announced that Dominic Gagnon—founder of technology company Connect&GO—is joining the organization as its first Entrepreneur in Residence.
This six-month pilot builds directly on BDC teams’ on-the-ground experience with entrepreneurs. It adds a complementary lens by bringing an entrepreneur inside the organization to review how we work and challenge assumptions across priority internal and external initiatives—building on insights already gathered through surveys, roundtables, and thousands of conversations with business owners each year.
“Our Entrepreneur in Residence initiative brings real-world experience from Canadian business leaders straight into our work—enriching our understanding of entrepreneurs’ needs and grounding us even more in their realities so we can create meaningful impact, faster.”
— Diane Lafontaine, Chief Marketing and Corporate Strategy Officer, BDC
Mr. Gagnon will work with BDC teams over a six-month mandate to help move priority files from insight to execution. His contribution will complement BDC’s ongoing engagement with entrepreneurs across sectors and regions, with a focus on business growth, strategic pivots, technology and innovation (including applied AI), as well as leadership, resilience and mental health.
A Canadian founder
Over the past two decades, Dominic Gagnon has founded, scaled and sold several companies, including three exits before the age of 30. He is the founder of Connect&GO, a global technology company in attractions and smart ticketing, with more than $1 billion in transactions processed to date. It was recently acquired by a California-based company where he continues to play an active role as VP, Strategic Accounts. A recognized speaker (250+ conferences), he is the author of five books, and a mentor and investor. Mr. Gagnon is known for challenging assumptions, simplifying complexity, and driving decisions grounded in execution and real-world business constraints.
About the pilot program
The Entrepreneur in Residence role is designed to inject lived entrepreneurial experience and ways of thinking into key strategic work at BDC. It is intentionally scoped and time‑bound, serving as one additional feedback loop alongside BDC’s research, consultations, client interactions and roundtables with entrepreneurs across the country. The focus is practical: helping teams test ideas, sharpen execution, and move faster on priority files.
About BDC, Canada’s bank for small- and medium-sized business owners
BDC focuses on small- and medium-sized business owners, providing them financing, investment, and advice. As Canada’s development bank, we also support entrepreneurs who don’t fit the traditional mold working with a network of partners and help develop underserved markets to unlock economic potential. Our mission is to build strong, resilient businesses that drive Canada’s economic growth. BDC is a perennial Canada’s Top 100 Employer and B Corp certified. Learn more at bdc.ca or connect with us on social media.
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