InceptionU - Origin Story
It all started in a boardroom at Work Nicer in 2017.
Three Calgary professionals were witnessing the downturn of Calgary’s economy and knew the narrative needed to change. Calgary and Alberta had a wealth of talent, but the future could no longer be tied to just the oil and gas industry.
Margo Purcell, a facilitator and team performance coach, Jill Langer, a facilitator and learning experience designer, and Greg Hart, a long-time entrepreneur and designer, all met serendipitously through mutual contacts in the Calgary ecosystem. It didn’t take long for them to realize they saw the world through a similar, but different, lens.
From their various vantage points, they observed dysfunctional workplaces and an education system that wasn’t adequately preparing people for the future of work. Margo could see employees who weren’t passionate about their work and teams who couldn’t collaborate or innovate. Jill heard employers saying they wanted to be more creative and innovative, yet their company cultures weren’t encouraging this way of thinking and working. Greg, a super connected entrepreneur, was being approached by local startup founders, to create a school that would teach computer software developers to think and not just code.
The three had been talking about building a foundation to foster innovation, creativity, systems thinking and learning. They knew the time had come to act on their idea.
They started meeting regularly to whiteboard ideas around a school, an un-university, that would teach people how to learn - a skill they all saw as essential in a future economy. It would take them back to “inception” - they would need to unlearn, and then start again with a new skill set and attitude for the digital economy. For a while, they simply called it Project X.
Each would bring a different set of “essential skills'' to the table. Margo was an expert in team work, collaboration and career exploration, Greg was becoming recognized for his expertise in critical and design thinking and Jill had become Canada’s only certified bikablo® visual trainer. With this unique blend of skills, they launched InceptionU starting with unconventional one-off courses which received great feedback - WILD Thinking, Figuring SH*! Out and Work Life Redesign were some of the early experiments.
InceptionU really started to gain traction when it started leading the EvolveU Full Stack Developer program, which was being run by a small group of forward-thinking individuals and made possible through funding from the Hunter Family Foundation. After a series of planning meetings and roundtable events with industry, it was decided a six-month Full Stack Developer program was needed in the city and InceptionU was the organization to do it.
The six-month program delivered the technical competencies and essential skills that were needed in the marketplace. InceptionU recruited some of Calgary’s top software developers to become tech facilitators and brought in project-based learning specialists to round out the team. Over 230 people have successfully completed this program and most have found employment in Calgary’s growing tech sector.
Beyond the Evolve Full Stack Developer and new Designer program, InceptionU has now become the education partner for Thin Air Labs and also delivers the Essential Skills training for SAIT’s DX Talent Hub.
As more companies became interested in the Essential Skills components for their teams and employees, the organization expanded to start offering short form programming (Shorts), which can be delivered to various groups and organizations who are craving new ways of thinking, innovating and building.
In addition, InceptionU now offers Deep Dives, a series of online learning courses that will be widely available to those who are curious and ready to expand their ways of thinking. InceptionU also has a Marketplace, featuring resources and other learning tools and a very active Alumni community (Involve) which hosts events throughout the year.
InceptionU has many community partners, including the Calgary Public Library, where we have our learning and office space. We have also aligned with Calgary technology company, Nureva. Together, we’ve created a unique design studio space in the 3rd floor location at the Central Library in Calgary where individuals and teams can come to pursue their design challenges from software, to services, to devices, and beyond. Teams can operate locally - building on analogue and digital platforms - While the Nureva Wall and Span™ Workspace make global real-time collaboration a reality.
It has been a wild ride and our story isn’t over yet. There are many people and organizations we wish to thank - those who took a chance on our unconventional ideas, which turned out to be just what the market needed. We’ve been blown away by the positive feedback we’ve received from industry, employers and the Calgary ecosystem. Our programs are constantly evolving, but we know we’re on the right track to helping people in our city - and beyond - become competent and confident in dealing with uncertainty and meeting the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
