A strong community can promote new ideas and ensure accountability. It can also act as motivation, support, and even provide a little friendly competition. The power of community is undeniable and the Okanagan tech community is no exception.

Our community is strong and growing with record speed and maintaining connection through a period of growth like this can be a challenge. Nobody panic, we’ve got a plan.  

Introducing, The Faces of #OKGNtech (@OKGNtech). A showcase of Okanagan tech entrepreneurs, partners, supporters, and cheerleaders designed to fuel more connection, more growth, and more excitement. Follow along (on the blog and on Instagram @OKGNtech) to learn more about our growing community and what makes them awesome.

Meet Dan Rink, Founder and CEO of iTel Networks. You won’t find Dan on Instagram but you will find him on a snowboard… or in a canoe. We recently caught up with Dan to learn more about his love of Kamloops, canoes, and cross-country network connections.

What do you love about #OKGNtech?

“The Kamloops tech community is working really hard to emulate a lot of the success we’ve seen from #OKGNtech. What we’ve noticed over the past couple of years is that regions like ours are starting to have a gravitational pull and we are attracting talent from across Canada.”

“You sort of have a choice — you can make where you live great or you can move.  Our company really cares about culture. We wanted to create a family-like environment and Kamloops really supports us in being able to do that.  I am not sure that we would have this kind of community and employees if we weren’t here.”

Who helped you get to where you are today?

“I have always taken advantage of mentorship opportunities and our company has worked with amazing mentors from Accelerate Okanagan and Kamloops Innovation. As a team, we had the drive to succeed we have. We’ve built a world-class sales organization but we didn’t do it alone.”

What’s your favourite thing about the Okanagan? (Kamloops included of course!) 

“I love living in Kamloops and I can honestly say that I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. I am a canoer, a boater, and I love snowboarding so those are the kinds of things that keep me busy while I am not working.”

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received? 

“My dad used to always say ‘slower is faster’. You know, measure twice, cut once. It’s advice that has served me well in building this business.”

Who inspires you?

“We love to hire people who are smarter than us and we’ve done a really great job of doing that lately. I’m excited to come in every day because I know there are people here I can learn from.”

What’s something most people don’t know about you? 

“I’m a bit of a man-child, in that I’m an avid collector of Lego. I have a lot of it. If you are looking for me after hours, you will likely find me at home, playing Lego with my son.” [Editor’s note: classic entrepreneur, always building]

What’s your key to success? 

“I am a big believer in planning. I know it is important to have drive but being methodical, really planning things, has been my key to success.”

Connect with Dan. Learn more about the iTel Networks. Hungry for more? Meet Carly. 

Are you following our new #OKGNtech faces Instagram?