“Leverage the strengths of your employees. I found that employees dictate the direction that company is going a lot more than the other way around.”
To face challenges, it’s often important to first analyse the problem.
As the owner of ISOSPARK Analytical Solutions, Yan Morin distributes specialized machines to serve the diverse needs of his customers, who include scientists measuring greenhouse gases, metallurgists measuring metal alloys, municipal staff testing drinking water and even police testing counterfeit bills.
For Morin, this has meant not only being an expert in the science behind the analytical machines he sells, but building long-term relationships with clients.
He says this means understanding how to best find the right equipment for the task and support the clients before and after the sale, sometimes even troubleshooting over a satellite phone connection for projects in remote areas such as climate studies north of the Arctic Circle.
Time at Concordia
“I got a very strong and analytical chemistry background out of Concordia and that helped me in my career to move up through the ranks and eventually own my own company.
“By pure chance, I took an environmental biochemistry and that helped me a lot in my first job because I worked for an environmental-testing company that measured contaminants in soil. From the real-life examples in classes at Concordia, I understood the whole process from start to finish and a lot of my peers around me did not.”
Proudest career moment
“My proudest professional moment was founding my own company in a field that I enjoy working in.”
Best career advice
“To succeed as a business owner, you should leverage the strengths of your employees. I found that employees dictate the direction that company is going a lot more than the other way around.”
What people say about him
“I always explain my reasoning behind making a decision. I explain all the pros and cons of why I came to a conclusion. I think when you explain what you're doing, it reassures people that you are making the right choice for them, or at the very least some thought was put into it.”