Entrepreneurial Innovation | Deepak Wanner (BASC 1986)

Deepak Wanner (BASC 1986) has known his career trajectory since he was a kid. His father once informed him of exactly what his career path would be, stating, “you are going to go to Waterloo for engineering and one day you'll graduate. From there, you do an MBA and at some point, you'll start your own company.” Deepak may have held ideations of rebellion in his youth, but they remained at bay as he followed his father’s advice. “I graduated with an engineering degree from the University of Waterloo, and I went on and did an MBA at McMaster University,” he observed. After earning his second degree, Deepak's path turned toward entrepreneurism and began the pursuit of many different innovative technical pathways, all the while wondering, "What else is there in life and what am I, really?” In Deepak’s journey, that's where his experience of Grebel came in. “I was always searching for some sort of meaning, value, or reason of existence,” he explained.

When Deepak began studying at Waterloo, he initially lived at Renison College. “I remember looking across the grounds and wondering, wow, those Grebel students look so cool,” he recalled. “That's why I applied, and it refocused me in many ways – it changed the way I viewed life because I realized I was part of a much bigger picture.” Deepak was “blown away” by some of the service to society that Mennonites are involved in, stating in awe, “how can such a small group of people in the world have such a huge impact?” Deepak continued, “in the end, it comes down to the question: who are you?”

Deepak said many of the best moments of his life took place on the College’s grounds. “Grebel has this neat tradition of Community Supper that gives dinner importance,” Deepak explained. “I still do that in my family – it is important to have dinners together and the tradition started at Grebel.” During the dinners he spent at the College, Deepak thrived on learning from and talking to as many people as possible, and he was intentional about sitting at different tables to talk to different people. “The dinner would last and last and last, and I'd hate to see it end,” Deepak shared. “We’d come together, from all walks of life, and I would learn so much. I used to always be among the last ones to stand up and put my chair away because the maintenance staff were cleaning up.”

Deepak was also impressed with the level of commitment to action his fellow Grebelites had. “There are people who complain and there are people that do something about it, and Grebel was all about people who wanted to do something,” Deepak expressed. Living at Grebel, Deepak knew that he was working and interacting with people who would make a big difference. “When I was at Grebel, everybody had a plan to make the world a better place, and that was a huge perspective shift for me,” he explained. “I still go to church, and that's important because I find that church is an interesting opportunity for reassessment – you can show up and listen to a sermon and reaffirm your values.”

“Grebel opened my eyes to see the world in a completely different way,” Deepak continued. “Growing up, you think everyone else’s life is really cool, and Grebel helped me realize that everyone’s going through something similar and it helped formulate my confidence in my skills and who I am – that I could compete with the best of them. I realized how important I was.”

Deepak is currently discerning where his retirement path will take him. “I'm planning trips, going to Mexico City soon – when you're young, the opportunities are endless and you can do anything you want, but as time goes on, the window of opportunities closes a bit,” he said. “There are different phases in life, and I'm at that phase now where I have to look at work as done and figure out what is it that's going to take me to the next level.” Deepak is now taking on various new challenges, such as learning how to swim, playing piano, and taking golf lessons.

Planning for retirement is a big adjustment for Deepak because in his business career, he was constantly developing or designing something radically new and different. “I made a chip with Samsung, designed a world-class passport reader and the payment systems for huge hotel chains like Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt,” he explained. “Now I manage screens on gas pumps. I sold my last venture recently, so now I'm part of this larger company, which will be my last act.” This was also why, if someone were to ask him if he would do it all over again, Deepak would say no. “Because what I didn't know, and the naivete of being young, was the reason I was successful.”

Deepak believed that the naivety of his youth was a factor that propelled him toward his many successes, “coupled with the fact that I've never had a failure," he added. “Something I’ve learned is that if you look at the edge of failure, there’s always a way to make a success out of it.” The reason Deepak started his latest and last company, Wannlynx Technologies, which manages screens and tracking real time data to identify theft at gas pumps, was because the path to success was one that he knew quite well. “I was supposed to retire, and so I stayed at home and was quickly bored,” Deepak explained. “I knew that I could do it again because I knew the formula.” Advising current students, Deepak stated, “One of the biggest strengths you have is that you are naive, so don't waste it! Take advantage of naivety, take on opportunities. Push yourself way beyond what you think is possible.”

Deepak’s businesses ventures began with Ibex, a management consulting company which worked on Government of Canada accounts. He then founded Wann Connection Devices, networking IBM cash registers for Interact Debit in Canada and passport readers in 32 countries, later selling to Canadian Bank Note. His next venture, Precidia Technologies, a fabless semi-conductor company, worked with Samsung to develop internet connectivity before being sold to Shift4. Most recently, Wannlynx Technologies was sold to Couche-Tard/Circle K.

Regardless of his many innovative successes, Deepak’s family is what he is most thankful for. “I'm proud that they have the values that I've given them, and I am mesmerized by how we think alike,” he described. “They challenge me to think better.”

Deepak Wanner (BASC 1986) is a serial entrepreneur who started five technology companies throughout his dynamic career. Deepak lived at Grebel while earning his BASC at the University of Waterloo, and the values he picked up around the dinner table stuck with him as he became a prominent leader in his technological endeavors. He takes pride in his family and the strong values of community, sharing, and social responsibility that he has passed down.