Whether it is your first business or your tenth, entrepreneurs know that one of the secrets to success is having a strong community of supporters. It is something that Adriana Scali, founder and Chief Talent Strategist at Link HR Inc., knows well.
Link HR is an outsourced human resource team for organizations that do not have the need or budget for a full-time human resource professional. They support businesses and nonprofits to help them attract and retain the right talent to grow and achieve their business goals.
Before starting Link HR, Scali had built a strong network while working as a human resource professional for over a decade. When the spark came to Scali to go out on her own for the first time, she knew that finding the right small business support would be critical.
“I had decided to pursue my dream of consulting and starting my own business, but I had no idea how I was going to do it. I went to school for HR — not for entrepreneurship — so the first place I went was the Markham Small Business Centre,” Scali said.
The Markham Small Business Centre provides new and experienced entrepreneurs with high-quality one-on-one management consulting, educational training, and business resources. Scali participated in workshops and seminars on topics ranging from the ins and outs of incorporation to marketing basics to bookkeeping.
She said the support was instrumental in setting Link HR up for success and helping her build a new network in the small business community. At the Markham Small Business Centre, Scali was first introduced to the Markham Board of Trade’s Young Professionals Network.
“It is another wonderful community of like-minded professionals, and it was just the support I needed. When I went off on my own, I still had a community of amazing HR professionals, but I didn't have relationships with people in the same place that I was at the time, which was starting a new business and becoming an entrepreneur,” she said.
The Young Professionals Network connected Scali to other small businesses that helped her get Link HR off the ground. Her first website was built by another small business she met through the organization. She also met the lawyer who helped with Link HR’s incorporation process through one of the network’s events.
As with any community, you get back what you give to it. Scali served as a Director on the Markham Board of Trade and volunteered with the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA). She is also connecting with new community programs and resources to continue growing Link HR. Scali participated in two Entrepreneurship and Leadership Learning Alliance (ELLA) accelerator programs at York University in 2021 and 2022, programs she learned about through the Markham Board of Trade.
“It's an accelerator program for women-owned businesses with the mission to empower women to start and grow their businesses. It was something that couldn’t have come at a better time. The program helped me grow as a leader and a business owner through the downturn during the pandemic,” Scali said.
Beyond the business and community support, building her business in Markham also made sense to Scali because of the size of the small business community. Link HR’s ideal client has between 10 and 100 employees and can run from tech startups to nonprofit organizations.
“I've always been interested in the tech space, and I knew that Markham is one of the largest tech hubs in Canada. There’s so much room to grow my business here,” Scali said. “Building Link HR in Markham has been a great experience for me. I have felt nothing but positive support. There are so many opportunities to grow and propel my business forward.”
