What RDP Associates does

RDP Associates Inc. is a privately held Canadian management consulting firm founded in 1987 by Brian Cookson, CPA — a Chartered Professional Accountant who previously worked as a tax specialist at EY from 1979 to 1987. The firm specializes in three integrated service lines: Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax credit consulting, government grant advisory, and innovation management consulting, serving Canadian businesses engaged in research, development, and commercialization activities. Since founding, RDP has prepared more than 10,000 SR&ED claims and describes its customer base as thousands of Canadian businesses across verticals including software, AI, fintech, cleantech, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, digital health, digital media, and agriculture. The firm is headquartered at 401 Bay Street, Toronto, with a secondary office at 366 Bay Street, and operates with an 11-50 employee headcount. Leadership includes Brian Cookson (Managing Director), Andrea McPhail (Vice President, Operations), and A.K Hajee (Director of Technical Services & Business Development, United Kingdom), indicating a UK cross-border presence beyond Canada.

The firm's flagship offering is the Innovation Connection Program (ICP), a structured proprietary methodology designed to identify, document, and maximize SR&ED claims while minimizing client staff time. ICP is used in conjunction with a complementary 'Maximizer Checklist' and is positioned to deliver comprehensive claim coverage and defensibility during Canada Revenue Agency audits, with management citing audit rates 'well below industry averages.' Despite the 'platform' framing on its website, ICP is fundamentally a codified documentation and review process rather than a software product — RDP exposes no public API, SDK, or SaaS application and does not maintain dedicated mobile apps. Customer evidence (DSPA Software, Cleanslate UV, Canada Cordage, Vision Knit) confirms SMB-tilted engagement across software, technology, manufacturing, and textile sectors.

RDP operates a sales-led B2B distribution model. New engagements begin with a complimentary eligibility assessment, after which paid professional services engagements cover claim preparation, CRA review support, and government grant application filing. Project-level pricing is not publicly disclosed. Demand generation is driven primarily by content marketing — an active blog, newsletter, organic social (LinkedIn, Facebook, X), webinars, and a referral network that includes accounting firms, law firms, and business advisors. Distribution partnerships with Innovance.ai and Connective Intelligence extend the firm's reach into IP strategy and innovation execution respectively. The company is self-funded, has no institutional investors or parent company, and reports no public funding activity.

Name

RDP Associates

Legal name

RDP Associates Inc.

Website

https://rdpassociates.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

RDP Associates is a privately held, Toronto-based Canadian management consulting firm founded in 1987 that helps businesses obtain SR&ED tax credits, access government grants, and improve innovation management, serving thousands of clients across software, AI, cleantech, life sciences, and manufacturing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. SR&ED Tax Credit Consulting: RDP provides comprehensive SR&ED tax credit consulting services to Canadian businesses, including claim preparation, CRA audit support, and ongoing advisory. The firm guides clients through the entire SR&ED claim process from project identification through claim submission and CRA review.
2. Government Grant Services: RDP identifies relevant government grants for clients, prepares grant applications, handles queries from grant programs, and files grant claim reports to receive funding. Services cover innovation/R&D grants, hiring and training grants, market access grants, and business expansion funding.
3. Innovation Management Consulting: Customized innovation management consulting solutions focused on improving efficiencies within new product development cycles, implementing innovation management plans, and transforming theory into sustained growth and returns.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

RDP Associates is a Canadian management consulting firm that helps R&D-active businesses identify, prepare, and file Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax credit claims and access government grant funding. The firm's flagship offering is the Innovation Connection Program (ICP), a proprietary methodology designed to maximize SR&ED claim outcomes while minimizing client staff involvement, supported by complementary advisory on innovation management and CRA audit defense.

Product overview

RDP Associates is a consulting firm offering a unified portfolio of government funding services centered on their proprietary Innovation Connection Program (ICP) platform. Their core offerings include SR&ED tax credit claim preparation services, government grant application services, and innovation management consulting. The ICP serves as their flagship methodology for maximizing SR&ED claims while minimizing client administrative burden. They serve businesses across Canada from sectors including cleantech, agriculture, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, fintech, digital health, digital media, AI, and software.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Innovation Connection Program (ICP): RDP's flagship SR&ED platform designed to connect innovation with clients' bottom line by maximizing SR&ED claims while minimizing client staff time. The program ensures clients receive every dollar of SR&ED tax credit they deserve.

Products and services

• Innovation Connection Program (ICP) RDP Associates' flagship proprietary methodology for delivering SR&ED tax credit advisory engagements end-to-end, designed to maximize recoverable SR&ED credits while minimizing the time and documentation burden on client staff. Targeted at Canadian R&D-active businesses that lack in-house SR&ED expertise.
• SR&ED Tax Credit Claim Preparation and Filing End-to-end preparation, technical narrative drafting, financial cost compilation, and filing of Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax credit claims on behalf of Canadian businesses, including handling of CRA technical positions and claim submissions.
• CRA SR&ED Audit and Reassessment Defense Specialized advisory and representation service for clients whose SR&ED claims have been selected for CRA review, reassessment, or objection, providing technical and financial defense of the claim.
• Government Grant Identification and Advisory Identification, assessment, and advisory support for Canadian businesses pursuing federal and provincial government grants and non-dilutive funding programs, complementary to SR&ED tax credits.
• Innovation Management Consulting Advisory engagement focused on helping Canadian businesses formalize R&D and innovation processes to maximize both SR&ED eligibility and broader innovation outcomes, using the firm's ICP framework as the engagement backbone.
• Maximizer Checklist (R&D Activity Identification Tool) Proprietary diagnostic tool used by RDP Associates as part of its SR&ED engagement to systematically identify qualifying R&D activities and expenditures within a client's operations.

Quantifiable outcome

• 35% refundable federal SR&ED tax credit for CCPCs on qualifying expenditures up to $6 million (increased from $3 million per Budget 2025)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Innovance.aiminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 November 2024RDP partnered with Innovance.ai to host a webinar covering SR&ED tax credits, government grants, clean tech tax credits, and IP strategy. Innovance.ai's Nilay Goyal discussed intellectual property strategy and how grants can strengthen IP strategies, drawing from experience advising and investing in over 100 companies.
• Connective IntelligenceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRDP Associates partnered with Connective Intelligence to help clients execute business innovation. RDP specializes in helping businesses across Canada access government funding programs while Connective Intelligence provides execution capabilities for innovation initiatives.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/RDP_Associates
• Facebookfacebook.com/rdpassociates
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rdp-associates-inc.

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about RDP Associates