Okanagan’s two leading technology organizations have agreed to merge to create a singular industry representative for the region’s tech cluster.
The Okanagan Research & Innovation Centre (ORIC) and the Okanagan Science and Technology Council (OSTEC) announced Wednesday that they have created a working group to facilitate the merger.
Mark Payne, entrepreneur-in-residence with the BC Innovation Council (BCIC), is taking on the role of merger director to see the organizations through the transition to a new single entity.
The two organizations said in a release that Payne’s ties to the BCIC, which is the B.C. government body responsible for cultivating innovation in the province, will help strengthen the new entity’s partnerships with key provincial bodies.
The organizations did not disclose what the new body would be called.
ORIC, which has locations in Penticton and Kelowna, received a $200,000 grant from the National Research Council - Industrial Research Assistance Program in June to support small and medium technology enterprises in the Okanagan Valley. OSTEC is located in Kelowna.