John Baker, Founder, President & CEO, Desire2Learn, walks us through his entrepreneurial journey. John describes how to build a strong and sustainable business, and emphasizes the importance of setting a clear strategy, building a passionate team and being persistent. Presentation video: https://vimeo.com/58711874.

1. The
Desire2Learn
Story

3. My first venture…
My biggest business before I started my company was selling
Kool-Aid as a kid

4. My first venture…
My biggest business before I started my company was selling
Kool-Aid as a kid

5. My first venture…
My biggest business before I started my company was selling
Kool-Aid as a kid

6. About Me
Early Childhood:
• Grew up with a calculator toy
• My first computer (Grade 2 or 3) was the IBM PC Jr .
• Played games, typed notes, and even learned to program (from
magazines)
• Loved science fairs
High School:
• Participated in Math contests
• Was a bit of a nerd (for a while)
University:
• Went into engineering thinking
I would eventually be a doctor

7. University Experience
uWaterloo – Systems Design Engineering:
• Couldn’t get enough of the design
projects and competitions
• Online Micro Electronic Thermal Analyzer
• Personal ECG monitor
• SYDEArms (Reinvention of crutches)
• The design projects sparked my entrepreneurial drive

8. Passion

9. Problem
Finding

10. We offer innovative
technologies that transform
the learning experience

11. Driving Change
Technology
Pla-orm
On
Premise,
Desktop
1 In
the
Cloud
(SaaS),
Mobile
Delivery
Model
Brick
and
Mortar
2 Online
&
Blended
Courses
Content
Delivery
Books
and
Paper
3 Digital
Content
InstrucDonal
Model
One
Size
Fits
All
4 Personalized

13. TRANSITION FROM
PRINT TO DIGITAL

14. Flip classroom and webcasting

15. Learning is built
around a community

16. 1000 Women Program

19. Experiential
Learning

20. Today

21. The Early Years

22. play video

23. Setting a clear strategy

24. What’s the best play?

26. Some of the
Challenges

27. Competition

29. Perseverance

30. Scaling Up
• Supporting learners lifelong • Focused on enduring relationships
• 24/7 service and support • 600+ people worldwide
• 14 available languages • 750+ clients and 8+ million users
• Global SaaS capabilities • >98% client retention

31. Securing Investment

32. Future Full of Possibility