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Ottawa Business Journal

A star of the hit television series Dragons' Den will be the afternoon keynote speaker at the Ottawa Business Summit on Feb. 4.

Robert Herjavec, a self-made millionaire who is acknowledged as a pioneer in the network security business, will share his success story, behind-the-scenes anecdotes from Dragons' Den and practical advice for business and technology companies looking to rapidly expand.

While Mr. Herjavec has sold two technology companies - one to AT&T and another to Nokia with reported price tags surpassing $325 million - he comes from very modest beginnings. The son of Croatian immigrants, he waited tables in the tony neighbourhood of Yorkville before recognizing the potential for success in the technology industry.

Mr. Herjavec now heads a company bearing his name, The Herjavec Group, which was named as one of Canada's fastest growing IT security and infrastructure integration firms. He lives in a 50,000-square-foot mansion in Toronto's Bridle Path, where he regularly hosts celebrities such as Mick Jagger and Michael Buble.

Mr. Herjavec is one of five multimillionaires on CBC's business television show, Dragons' Den. The show invites Canadian entrepreneurs to pitch their business ideas to the panel of 'Dragons,' who often mercilessly poke holes in the business plans or sometimes invest hundreds of thousands of their own dollars in the ideas.

PITCH THE DRAGON CONTEST

Immediately following Mr. Herjavec's keynote at the Business Summit, conference organizers will convene a panel of 'Dragons,' including Mr. Herjavec and two local business leaders to hear from entrepreneurs.

They will hear from three local entrepreneurs who have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to pitch the Dragons' Den star and win more than $2,000 worth of professional services to help execute on the business idea.

For ticket information and details on how to "Pitch the Dragon," visit OttawaBusinessSummit.com. The deadline for registration is Jan. 30.