Thought Leaders

INNOVATE™ Bengaluru

Revathy Ashok

Strategy Garage-Investments Shouldn’t be Dumb & Boring

Angel Investor, Adviser & Co-founder of Strategy Garage

With an increasing number of startups looking to scale up, we spoke to angel investor and advisor Revathy Ashok about what investors look for. Ashok is one of the early members of the Indian Angel Network and co-founder of Strategy Garage, a boutique advisory for startups & SMEs, and says...

INNOVATE® South Carolina

JONATHAN DAWLEY

PRESIDENT & CEO OF KION NORTH AMERICA

Innovation Muscle: Barrierless Thinking and Unconstrained Vision Several years ago, I traveled across the world working with divisions of my then-employer to evaluate market strategies and redefine our approach to unlock new levels of performance and customer value. In each region, we explored what could be achieved if we set...

INNOVATE® Washington DMV Edition

Troy LeMaile-Stovall

CEO OF TEDCO

CEO OF TEDCO From Southeast Houston to the boardrooms of the tech world, my journey has been anything but ordinary. Guided by a principle instilled in me by my mother, I’ve always believed that our primary purpose is to make a difference. This belief has not only shaped my personal...

INNOVATE™ Ottawa

Jim Stackhouse

Jim Stackhouse

Founder & CEO - Neolore Networks Inc.

AN EXERCISE IN INNOVATION AND DEMONSTRATING VALUE. The digital landscape of IT Support is forever changing. Just five years ago, the ways IT Managed Service Providers (MSPs) supported their clients is totally different than today. As more companies turn to MSPs for outsourced IT Support and Cloud services, the value...

INNOVATE® Blockchain

NICOLAS GILOT

NICOLAS GILOT

FOUNDER & CEO, ULTRA

Taking gaming and flipping it on its head with the use of blockchain technology was no small feat. Luckily, Nicolas Gilot and David Hanson, CO-CEOs of Ultra, have a strong background in the games industry and the innovative spark that made dreams come true for gamers and game developers around...

INNOVATE™ Stockholm

MIKAEL AHLSTRÖM

SPEAKER, FACILITATOR, ENTREPRENEUR AND CEO, THE PARK

One day in the mid-90s, while running a sports store in Stockholm, I was introduced to the internet, and a whole new world opened up. With an old friend from pre-school, we launched TheAlps.com with every ski resort, hotel, and thousands of slopes, and where passionate skiers and snowboarders could...

INNOVATE® South Florida

ANDREW S. DUFFELL

RESEARCH PARK AT FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY® - MBA, PRESIDENT

For me, as an immigrant in 2002, South Florida was the natural connection point, or gateway, between North and South America. The Research Park at Florida Atlantic is at the center of South Florida’s 6.5 million people. For longer than I have called South Florida home, this has been a...

INNOVATE® Minnesota

Geoff Martha

Geoff Martha - President & CEO - Medtronic

President & CEO - Medtronic

Geoff Martha President & CEO – Medtronic Millions of Americans are affected by pain and have been prescribed systemic opioids as part of their treatment plan. Whether for chronic or acute pain, prescribing systemic opioids continues, despite the limited evidence on the benefits of long-term systemic opioid therapy and evidence...

INNOVATE® Minnesota

Keith Tanski

Keith Tanski

CTO - Optum

Innovation to me is working to never settle… and to continually be obsessive over creating a continued better experience and product. This means that status quos need to continually obsess over all spectrums and that we need to realize that the greatness that got us to this point will not...

INNOVATE® New Jersey Vol.2

FRANCIS J. GIANTOMASI

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, CSG LAW

Francis J. Giantomasi (Frank), a member of the Executive Committee of CSG Law, plays a critical role in the firm’s Real Estate, Development & Land Use Group. Over the course of his career, Frank has guided clients through a wide variety of planning, zoning and development projects throughout the Garden...

VOICES of the Future

DR. MARK ESPOSITO

BEYOND THE HORIZON

Dr. Mark Esposito is a luminary at the intersection of economics, strategy, and the future. In our conversation, he unfolds our future, offering an insightful exploration into the themes of technological transformation, human-centric systems, and the architecture of tomorrow’s global systems. As a distinguished figure in the discourse of the...

INNOVATE® St. Louis

Judy Sindecuse

Judy Sindecuse

CEO and Managing Partner - Capital Innovators

The future of the St. Louis entrepreneurial ecosystem will be deeper levels of corporate and startup engagement through structured programs. Corporates struggle to innovate and they must look to startups to assist them with this process. Startups have the ability to be nimble and adapt to new technological trends that...

INNOVATE® Philadelphia: 250 Years of Innovation

CHRIS SCAFARIO

PRESIDENT & CEO, DELAWARE VALLEY INDUSTRIAL RESOURCE CENTERVALLEY INDUSTRIAL RESOURCE CENTER

I believe innovation ignites the flame of progress. It mobilizes change and sparks breakthroughs that travel from sector to sector and nation to nation. In manufacturing, it is the ultimate force multiplier—accelerating advancements in medicine, advanced materials, submarines, and spacecraft. This tradecraft of our best and brightest minds carried America...

INNOVATE® Phoenix

Thiru Thangarthinam

Thiru Thangarthinam: CEO and Founder - MST Solutions

CEO and Founder - MST Solutions

Introduction MST Solutions launched in October 2012. Our headquarters are in Chandler, Ariz., and we have two additional offices in India (Chennai and Trichy). We have 275 employees (75 in Chandler, and 200 in India).  We’re the largest Salesforce partner in Arizona. From 2017 to 2018, we achieved 286% growth...

INNOVATE® Maryland

SETH GOLDMAN

CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, JUST ICE TEA

My journey as a mission-driven entrepreneur began right here in Maryland where I led a youth service demonstration program in Baltimore. After graduating from the Yale School of Management, I returned to the state determined to build businesses that aligned profit with purpose. From launching Honest Tea out of my...

Pierre Larouche

Pierre Larouche - Penser l’innovation | Innovation In Context

Penser l’innovation | Innovation In Context

  French: On entend souvent dire que nous vivons dans une époque sans précédent, ce qui justifierait de ne pas se préoccuper de l’histoire. L’innovation, dit-on, a atteint un rythme tel qu’elle propulse nos sociétés vers l’inconnu, vers un monde qui ne ressemble en rien à celui où les générations...

INNOVATE™ Estonia

KALEV KALLEMETS

CEO, FERMI ENERGIA

THE COURAGE TO BUILD THE FUTURE When we started Fermi Energia in 2019, there were a handful of nuclear experts in Estonia, but not nearly enough for a nuclear power plant. There was no law to regulate nuclear energy. No political support. No clear understanding of which technology to choose,...

VOICES of the Future

LORD BRIAN WILKIE

INNOVATION, INTEGRITY, IMPACT

Lord Brian Wilkie’s vision transcends the ordinary. He is positioned at the nexus of sustainability, climate change, and technological evolution, passionately weaving the future to serve humanity better. Since 1976, Brian (as he prefers) has called Dubai his home, emerging as a distinguished entrepreneur with landmark ventures like Wilkie’s Wine...

INNOVATE™ South Africa

KEET VAN ZYL

KEET VAN ZYL

CO-FOUNDER, KNIFE CAPITAL

Adversity is a pressure cooker that fosters innovation. This is a philosophy that was entrenched in my formative years. Having had some heavy, life questioning challenges thrown my way very early, I had to adapt and adjust, and this learning has set me in good stead. It’s also given me...

INNOVATE™ Vancouver Vol.2

AARON CHIN

CEO, ORGANIKA HEALTH PRODUCTS

What does that mean?Armed with a sincere drive to help people live healthier, Aaron took to innovation. He saw that the health and wellness industry catered to niche markets and specific demographics. “I wanted to disrupt the health industry. So, we invested in innovation to formulate health products that are...

INNOVATE™ Flanders

ANNELEEN VANDER ELSTRAETEN

FOUR & FIVE - MANAGING PARTNER

WHY INNOVATORS NEED A NEW BREED OF LAW FIRM When I first started my legal career, founding my own law firm wasn’t even a consideration. I was content working at a top-tier firm, focusing on drafting contracts and managing legal transactions. But everything changed during a business trip to Silicon...

INNOVATE® Blockchain

MAJA VUJINOVIC

MAJA VUJINOVIC

FOUNDER, OGROUP LLC

I am moved by technology’s capability to impact people’s lives. I saw this power first-hand in Africa and Latin America after recognizing the potential of mobile money systems in the early 2000’s and moving to Africa to help develop these technologies. Mobile payments and mobile money systems changed people’s lives....

INNOVATE™ Flanders

MIEKE VERSTRAETEN

MANAGING DIRECTOR, INDUVER

Mieke Verstraeten is a Managing Director at induver, the sixth-largest independent broker on the Belgian insurance market. She, along with her husband Sjarel De Bondt, is also a second-generation shareholder in the company. induver’s vision for insurance is straightforward: individuals or companies should only take insurance for risks they are...

WA’IL ASHSHOWWAF

UNSTUCK LABS - CEO AND COFOUNDER

Have you ever tried to solve a Rubik’s cube? I have, and let me tell you, it’s not as easy as my then 9-year-old son made it look. There I was, twisting and turning that colorful puzzle, getting nowhere fast, while my kid solved it in under a minute. When...

Revathy Ashok

Strategy Garage-Investments Shouldn’t be Dumb & Boring

Angel Investor, Adviser & Co-founder of Strategy Garage

With an increasing number of startups looking to scale up, we spoke to angel investor and advisor Revathy Ashok about what investors look for. Ashok is one of the early members of the Indian Angel Network and co-founder of Strategy Garage, a boutique advisory for startups & SMEs, and says...

JONATHAN DAWLEY

PRESIDENT & CEO OF KION NORTH AMERICA

Innovation Muscle: Barrierless Thinking and Unconstrained Vision Several years ago, I traveled across the world working with divisions of my then-employer to evaluate market strategies and redefine our approach to unlock new levels of performance and customer value. In each region, we explored what could be achieved if we set...

Troy LeMaile-Stovall

CEO OF TEDCO

CEO OF TEDCO From Southeast Houston to the boardrooms of the tech world, my journey has been anything but ordinary. Guided by a principle instilled in me by my mother, I’ve always believed that our primary purpose is to make a difference. This belief has not only shaped my personal...

Jim Stackhouse

Jim Stackhouse

Founder & CEO - Neolore Networks Inc.

AN EXERCISE IN INNOVATION AND DEMONSTRATING VALUE. The digital landscape of IT Support is forever changing. Just five years ago, the ways IT Managed Service Providers (MSPs) supported their clients is totally different than today. As more companies turn to MSPs for outsourced IT Support and Cloud services, the value...

NICOLAS GILOT

NICOLAS GILOT

FOUNDER & CEO, ULTRA

Taking gaming and flipping it on its head with the use of blockchain technology was no small feat. Luckily, Nicolas Gilot and David Hanson, CO-CEOs of Ultra, have a strong background in the games industry and the innovative spark that made dreams come true for gamers and game developers around...

MIKAEL AHLSTRÖM

SPEAKER, FACILITATOR, ENTREPRENEUR AND CEO, THE PARK

One day in the mid-90s, while running a sports store in Stockholm, I was introduced to the internet, and a whole new world opened up. With an old friend from pre-school, we launched TheAlps.com with every ski resort, hotel, and thousands of slopes, and where passionate skiers and snowboarders could...

ANDREW S. DUFFELL

RESEARCH PARK AT FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY® - MBA, PRESIDENT

For me, as an immigrant in 2002, South Florida was the natural connection point, or gateway, between North and South America. The Research Park at Florida Atlantic is at the center of South Florida’s 6.5 million people. For longer than I have called South Florida home, this has been a...

Geoff Martha

Geoff Martha - President & CEO - Medtronic

President & CEO - Medtronic

Geoff Martha President & CEO – Medtronic Millions of Americans are affected by pain and have been prescribed systemic opioids as part of their treatment plan. Whether for chronic or acute pain, prescribing systemic opioids continues, despite the limited evidence on the benefits of long-term systemic opioid therapy and evidence...

Keith Tanski

Keith Tanski

CTO - Optum

Innovation to me is working to never settle… and to continually be obsessive over creating a continued better experience and product. This means that status quos need to continually obsess over all spectrums and that we need to realize that the greatness that got us to this point will not...

FRANCIS J. GIANTOMASI

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, CSG LAW

Francis J. Giantomasi (Frank), a member of the Executive Committee of CSG Law, plays a critical role in the firm’s Real Estate, Development & Land Use Group. Over the course of his career, Frank has guided clients through a wide variety of planning, zoning and development projects throughout the Garden...

DR. MARK ESPOSITO

BEYOND THE HORIZON

Dr. Mark Esposito is a luminary at the intersection of economics, strategy, and the future. In our conversation, he unfolds our future, offering an insightful exploration into the themes of technological transformation, human-centric systems, and the architecture of tomorrow’s global systems. As a distinguished figure in the discourse of the...

Judy Sindecuse

Judy Sindecuse

CEO and Managing Partner - Capital Innovators

The future of the St. Louis entrepreneurial ecosystem will be deeper levels of corporate and startup engagement through structured programs. Corporates struggle to innovate and they must look to startups to assist them with this process. Startups have the ability to be nimble and adapt to new technological trends that...

CHRIS SCAFARIO

PRESIDENT & CEO, DELAWARE VALLEY INDUSTRIAL RESOURCE CENTERVALLEY INDUSTRIAL RESOURCE CENTER

I believe innovation ignites the flame of progress. It mobilizes change and sparks breakthroughs that travel from sector to sector and nation to nation. In manufacturing, it is the ultimate force multiplier—accelerating advancements in medicine, advanced materials, submarines, and spacecraft. This tradecraft of our best and brightest minds carried America...

Thiru Thangarthinam

Thiru Thangarthinam: CEO and Founder - MST Solutions

CEO and Founder - MST Solutions

Introduction MST Solutions launched in October 2012. Our headquarters are in Chandler, Ariz., and we have two additional offices in India (Chennai and Trichy). We have 275 employees (75 in Chandler, and 200 in India).  We’re the largest Salesforce partner in Arizona. From 2017 to 2018, we achieved 286% growth...

SETH GOLDMAN

CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, JUST ICE TEA

My journey as a mission-driven entrepreneur began right here in Maryland where I led a youth service demonstration program in Baltimore. After graduating from the Yale School of Management, I returned to the state determined to build businesses that aligned profit with purpose. From launching Honest Tea out of my...

Pierre Larouche

Pierre Larouche - Penser l’innovation | Innovation In Context

Penser l’innovation | Innovation In Context

  French: On entend souvent dire que nous vivons dans une époque sans précédent, ce qui justifierait de ne pas se préoccuper de l’histoire. L’innovation, dit-on, a atteint un rythme tel qu’elle propulse nos sociétés vers l’inconnu, vers un monde qui ne ressemble en rien à celui où les générations...

KALEV KALLEMETS

CEO, FERMI ENERGIA

THE COURAGE TO BUILD THE FUTURE When we started Fermi Energia in 2019, there were a handful of nuclear experts in Estonia, but not nearly enough for a nuclear power plant. There was no law to regulate nuclear energy. No political support. No clear understanding of which technology to choose,...

LORD BRIAN WILKIE

INNOVATION, INTEGRITY, IMPACT

Lord Brian Wilkie’s vision transcends the ordinary. He is positioned at the nexus of sustainability, climate change, and technological evolution, passionately weaving the future to serve humanity better. Since 1976, Brian (as he prefers) has called Dubai his home, emerging as a distinguished entrepreneur with landmark ventures like Wilkie’s Wine...

KEET VAN ZYL

KEET VAN ZYL

CO-FOUNDER, KNIFE CAPITAL

Adversity is a pressure cooker that fosters innovation. This is a philosophy that was entrenched in my formative years. Having had some heavy, life questioning challenges thrown my way very early, I had to adapt and adjust, and this learning has set me in good stead. It’s also given me...

AARON CHIN

CEO, ORGANIKA HEALTH PRODUCTS

What does that mean?Armed with a sincere drive to help people live healthier, Aaron took to innovation. He saw that the health and wellness industry catered to niche markets and specific demographics. “I wanted to disrupt the health industry. So, we invested in innovation to formulate health products that are...

ANNELEEN VANDER ELSTRAETEN

FOUR & FIVE - MANAGING PARTNER

WHY INNOVATORS NEED A NEW BREED OF LAW FIRM When I first started my legal career, founding my own law firm wasn’t even a consideration. I was content working at a top-tier firm, focusing on drafting contracts and managing legal transactions. But everything changed during a business trip to Silicon...

MAJA VUJINOVIC

MAJA VUJINOVIC

FOUNDER, OGROUP LLC

I am moved by technology’s capability to impact people’s lives. I saw this power first-hand in Africa and Latin America after recognizing the potential of mobile money systems in the early 2000’s and moving to Africa to help develop these technologies. Mobile payments and mobile money systems changed people’s lives....

MIEKE VERSTRAETEN

MANAGING DIRECTOR, INDUVER

Mieke Verstraeten is a Managing Director at induver, the sixth-largest independent broker on the Belgian insurance market. She, along with her husband Sjarel De Bondt, is also a second-generation shareholder in the company. induver’s vision for insurance is straightforward: individuals or companies should only take insurance for risks they are...

WA’IL ASHSHOWWAF

UNSTUCK LABS - CEO AND COFOUNDER

Have you ever tried to solve a Rubik’s cube? I have, and let me tell you, it’s not as easy as my then 9-year-old son made it look. There I was, twisting and turning that colorful puzzle, getting nowhere fast, while my kid solved it in under a minute. When...

INNOVATE® Ecosystems