Thought Leaders

INNOVATE® Minnesota

Teddy Bekele

Teddy Bekele

Chief Technology Officer - LAND O'LAKES, INC.

Teddy Bekele Chief Technology Officer – Land O’ Lakes Inc. At its very heart, farming is filled with uncertainty. Just ask any farmer here in Minnesota who has ever wrapped up harvest amid a list of nearly endless variables, from trade to prices to weather and beyond. But there’s one...

INNOVATE™ Adelaide

HITAF RASHEED

EVENTS SOUTH AUSTRALIA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SOUTH AUSTRALIAN TOURISM COMMISSION

South Australia loves a party. We are the festival state – one proud to break new ground. Innovation is crucial when delivering major events, and so too is fostering a culture in which they continue to thrive. Our place as host of the best, brightest celebrations is directly linked to...

INNOVATE® Austin Volume 2

Whurley

Strangeworks - Whurley

Founder and CEO

It’s exciting to see the application of technology to address global challenges. But as we advance as a species, so do the complexities of the challenges we face. Quantum computers promise to be useful in advancing solutions to challenges in diverse fields such as energy, finance, healthcare and aerospace, among...

INNOVATE® Maryland

TERRY HASSELTINE

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MARYLAND SPORTS COMMISSION

As the executive director of the Maryland Sports Commission—an organization that attracts and retains amateur and professional sporting events across the state — sports tourism has never been just about events. It’s about people, communities, and the shared experiences that bring Marylanders together. Over the years, I’ve come to believe...

INNOVATE® Phoenix

Todd Sanders

President & CEO - Greater Phoenix Chamber

Todd Sanders President & CEO – Greater Phoenix Chamber Every morning, as the sun rises above the mountains and the early morning city lights glitter with flashes of orange, we all wake up with a new chance—a fresh opportunity. Each sunrise in Phoenix, Arizona is the start of a new...

INNOVATE™ Stockholm

JENS DOLK

CEO, AN INNOVATOR OF THE RESTAURANT INDUSTRY, K-MÄRKT AB

I’ve never been afraid of weird ideas. In fact, that’s kind of the point with K-märkt. When we started, we didn’t just want to run a great restaurant – we wanted to challenge the entire way restaurants operate. Why? Because if we’re going to make food more sustainable, we can’t...

INNOVATE® Tampa Bay Vol.3

Terri Willingham

Terri Willingham

Executive Director of the Foundation for Community Driven Innovation

I think the word “innovation” is overused. Not that I don’t appreciate or value interesting ideas, but I think many things touted as innovative today are simply refurbished old ideas or mid-to-late 20th century concepts clothed in the early21st century parlance of so-called influencers. I think we need to be...

INNOVATE™ Adelaide

DR. JONATHAN HALL PHD

FOUNDER, DIRECTOR & CHIEF SCIENTIST, LIFE WHISPERER

STORY & CHALLENGESIn 2016, I was nearing the end of a frontier research project to combine interdisciplinary knowledge to ask if a biological cell could sustain light circulating inside: called ‘whispering gallery modes’. Could we go further, and turn a cell into a laser, with the hope of it being...

INNOVATE® San Diego Vol.1

Ardy Arianpour

It is no coincidence that Seqster was born in San Diego, a city with an underdog culture where small startups transform into large enterprises that address giant markets. Perfect weather drives innovation—always sunny, 72 degrees, and 70 miles of beaches. Perhaps the combination of unique culture and weather has drawn...

INNOVATE™ Ottawa

Franco Varriano

Franco Varriano

Technologist & Entrepreneur

Franco Varriano Technologist & Entrepreneur, Head Of Product Discovery & Innovation At Workshopx & Executive Director – Fresh Founders It’s a powerful, attractive and evocative concept. We all have ideas and conceptions on what innovation is all about; usually centering around new products, novel technologies, or advanced patents. But innovation...

INNOVATE® Blockchain

CLAIRE CAWTHORN

CLAIRE CAWTHORN

CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, HELICONNFT

NFTS AND GAMING: THE PERFECT MATCH?Hello, I’m Claire Cawthorn, Chief Marketing Officer of HeliconNFT, a play-to-earn NFT ecosystem that gives gamers the power to monetize their in-game assets by tokenizing them into NFTs and allowing them to play with these NFTs in amazing blockchain games on our platform. Throughout my...

INNOVATE™ Adelaide

HEATHER CROALL

DIRECTOR AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE, ADELAIDE FRINGE

Innovation is a core value at Adelaide Fringe. It’s something I’ve focused on since I took on the role as Director and Chief Executive in 2015, implementing an agile and inclusive model to help artists, producers and presenters thrive in South Australia’s arts industry. Adelaide is the ultimate city for...

INNOVATE® Gaming & Esports

SARI KITELYN

SARI KITELYN

DIRECTOR OF ESPORTS AND PROJECT DEVELOPMENT, FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY

Building a successful esports program requires a comprehensive, 360 plan to fully support all aspects of the industry. Most importantly and often overlooked – community. The gaming and esports community is the foundation of this explosive industry. Each game genre has unique community identities, and you’ll find both variations and...

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...

INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1

ANDY CRESTODINA

ANDY CRESTODINA

ORBIT MEDIA STUDIOS - CO-FOUNDER & CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER

I’m going to start my answer with a few questions: Why would anyone pay attention to your brand?How do you demonstrate your expertise?How will you ever get your service pages to rank if you don’t have content worth linking to?Why would anyone give you an email address?How do you share...

INNOVATE® Tampa Bay Vol.3

Jim Barnish

Jim Barnish

Jr. Thought Leader Of Morgan Hill Partners

Jim Barnish is a strategic change leader with over 15 years of leadership experience in global and integrated operations, M&A, and strategic go-to-market planning. Over the course of his career, Jim has successfully worked with companies undergoing roll-up mergers and acquisitions, accelerated business development, process improvement, change management, and operational...

INNOVATE® Gainesville

Rich Blaser

Rich Blaser

Co-Founder & CO-CEO - Infinite Energy

I can’t think of a better place to start a business than Gainesville. When my business partner and I started here more than 25 years ago, it was the location that drew us. Geographically we’re at the hub of a wheel–just two hours from Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Orlando and Tampa–so we...

INNOVATE® Blockchain

ANTHONY DUCA

ANTHONY DUCA

CEO AND CO-FOUNDER, CAVRNUS INC

I have been involved in the 3D computer graphics field for over 25 years and have helped build tools that simplify workflows for creators. Early on in my career, I came to understand that in any industry, creators are the key players driving progress and different perspectives forward. Creators have...

INNOVATE® Georgia

PAIGE NEEDLING

CEO, NEEDLING WORLDWIDE

As organizations look to innovate and stay ahead of the competition, it’s becoming increasingly clear that building a nurturing team and environment is key to driving innovation. A nurturing team is one that feels supported, encouraged, and empowered to take risks and try new things. A nurturing environment is one...

INNOVATE® Tampa Bay Vol.3

David Robinson

David Robinson - CEO - DSM Technology Consultants

CEO - DSM Technology Consultants

People say there’s nothing new under the sun, and I completely disagree. If you look at things from a macro- or micro-perspective, cloud computing is merging with mobile computing and that’s going to form what I call “Ubiquitous Computing”—meaning your computing is everywhere. If you think about your business, your...

INNOVATE® Washington DMV Edition

MARCY EWALD

Most entrepreneurs we work with, including ourselves, have been building businesses for over a decade. Most are not working on the first business they started either. Even if the concept you’re currently working on doesn’t shake out, the lessons, the networks, and how you respond to success and failure will...

INNOVATE™ Atlantic Canada

MICHAEL SANDERSON

DIRECTOR - ARTHUR L. IRVING ENTREPRENEURSHIP CENTRE, SAINT MARY’S UNIVERSITY

When talking about innovation and entrepreneurship, we conjure images of revolutionary products and world-changing ideas. What is often missed in the discussion is the impact that these concepts have on the student. To help illustrate and understand this, I think it is important that I share a little bit of...

INNOVATE™ South Africa

KHENSANI NOBANDA

KHENSANI NOBANDA

GROUP EXECUTIVE: GROUP MARKETING AND CORPORATE AFFAIRS, NEDBANK GROUP

Brands have the potential to deliver tangible value to consumers – and more broadly to society – by being purpose-led and value-driven. South Africa is undeniably a land of opportunity and possibility. The issues we face are challenges and call-to-actions for innovators and innovation-enablers to provide the tools to overcome...

INNOVATE™ Adelaide

FLAVIA TATA NARDINI

CEO AND CO-FOUNDER, FLEET SPACE TECHNOLOGIES

TRANSFORMING INDUSTRIES. CHANGING THE WORLD.Australia’s vast natural resources have made it a global economic powerhouse. But with worldwide demand for minerals soaring, and finding new sources is becoming ever more complex and costly, our nation’s biggest industry urgently needs a radical new approach. One potential solution is seismic imaging. The...

Teddy Bekele

Teddy Bekele

Chief Technology Officer - LAND O'LAKES, INC.

Teddy Bekele Chief Technology Officer – Land O’ Lakes Inc. At its very heart, farming is filled with uncertainty. Just ask any farmer here in Minnesota who has ever wrapped up harvest amid a list of nearly endless variables, from trade to prices to weather and beyond. But there’s one...

HITAF RASHEED

EVENTS SOUTH AUSTRALIA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SOUTH AUSTRALIAN TOURISM COMMISSION

South Australia loves a party. We are the festival state – one proud to break new ground. Innovation is crucial when delivering major events, and so too is fostering a culture in which they continue to thrive. Our place as host of the best, brightest celebrations is directly linked to...

Whurley

Strangeworks - Whurley

Founder and CEO

It’s exciting to see the application of technology to address global challenges. But as we advance as a species, so do the complexities of the challenges we face. Quantum computers promise to be useful in advancing solutions to challenges in diverse fields such as energy, finance, healthcare and aerospace, among...

TERRY HASSELTINE

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MARYLAND SPORTS COMMISSION

As the executive director of the Maryland Sports Commission—an organization that attracts and retains amateur and professional sporting events across the state — sports tourism has never been just about events. It’s about people, communities, and the shared experiences that bring Marylanders together. Over the years, I’ve come to believe...

Todd Sanders

President & CEO - Greater Phoenix Chamber

Todd Sanders President & CEO – Greater Phoenix Chamber Every morning, as the sun rises above the mountains and the early morning city lights glitter with flashes of orange, we all wake up with a new chance—a fresh opportunity. Each sunrise in Phoenix, Arizona is the start of a new...

JENS DOLK

CEO, AN INNOVATOR OF THE RESTAURANT INDUSTRY, K-MÄRKT AB

I’ve never been afraid of weird ideas. In fact, that’s kind of the point with K-märkt. When we started, we didn’t just want to run a great restaurant – we wanted to challenge the entire way restaurants operate. Why? Because if we’re going to make food more sustainable, we can’t...

Terri Willingham

Terri Willingham

Executive Director of the Foundation for Community Driven Innovation

I think the word “innovation” is overused. Not that I don’t appreciate or value interesting ideas, but I think many things touted as innovative today are simply refurbished old ideas or mid-to-late 20th century concepts clothed in the early21st century parlance of so-called influencers. I think we need to be...

DR. JONATHAN HALL PHD

FOUNDER, DIRECTOR & CHIEF SCIENTIST, LIFE WHISPERER

STORY & CHALLENGESIn 2016, I was nearing the end of a frontier research project to combine interdisciplinary knowledge to ask if a biological cell could sustain light circulating inside: called ‘whispering gallery modes’. Could we go further, and turn a cell into a laser, with the hope of it being...

Ardy Arianpour

It is no coincidence that Seqster was born in San Diego, a city with an underdog culture where small startups transform into large enterprises that address giant markets. Perfect weather drives innovation—always sunny, 72 degrees, and 70 miles of beaches. Perhaps the combination of unique culture and weather has drawn...

Franco Varriano

Franco Varriano

Technologist & Entrepreneur

Franco Varriano Technologist & Entrepreneur, Head Of Product Discovery & Innovation At Workshopx & Executive Director – Fresh Founders It’s a powerful, attractive and evocative concept. We all have ideas and conceptions on what innovation is all about; usually centering around new products, novel technologies, or advanced patents. But innovation...

CLAIRE CAWTHORN

CLAIRE CAWTHORN

CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, HELICONNFT

NFTS AND GAMING: THE PERFECT MATCH?Hello, I’m Claire Cawthorn, Chief Marketing Officer of HeliconNFT, a play-to-earn NFT ecosystem that gives gamers the power to monetize their in-game assets by tokenizing them into NFTs and allowing them to play with these NFTs in amazing blockchain games on our platform. Throughout my...

HEATHER CROALL

DIRECTOR AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE, ADELAIDE FRINGE

Innovation is a core value at Adelaide Fringe. It’s something I’ve focused on since I took on the role as Director and Chief Executive in 2015, implementing an agile and inclusive model to help artists, producers and presenters thrive in South Australia’s arts industry. Adelaide is the ultimate city for...

SARI KITELYN

SARI KITELYN

DIRECTOR OF ESPORTS AND PROJECT DEVELOPMENT, FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY

Building a successful esports program requires a comprehensive, 360 plan to fully support all aspects of the industry. Most importantly and often overlooked – community. The gaming and esports community is the foundation of this explosive industry. Each game genre has unique community identities, and you’ll find both variations and...

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...

ANDY CRESTODINA

ANDY CRESTODINA

ORBIT MEDIA STUDIOS - CO-FOUNDER & CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER

I’m going to start my answer with a few questions: Why would anyone pay attention to your brand?How do you demonstrate your expertise?How will you ever get your service pages to rank if you don’t have content worth linking to?Why would anyone give you an email address?How do you share...

Jim Barnish

Jim Barnish

Jr. Thought Leader Of Morgan Hill Partners

Jim Barnish is a strategic change leader with over 15 years of leadership experience in global and integrated operations, M&A, and strategic go-to-market planning. Over the course of his career, Jim has successfully worked with companies undergoing roll-up mergers and acquisitions, accelerated business development, process improvement, change management, and operational...

Rich Blaser

Rich Blaser

Co-Founder & CO-CEO - Infinite Energy

I can’t think of a better place to start a business than Gainesville. When my business partner and I started here more than 25 years ago, it was the location that drew us. Geographically we’re at the hub of a wheel–just two hours from Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Orlando and Tampa–so we...

ANTHONY DUCA

ANTHONY DUCA

CEO AND CO-FOUNDER, CAVRNUS INC

I have been involved in the 3D computer graphics field for over 25 years and have helped build tools that simplify workflows for creators. Early on in my career, I came to understand that in any industry, creators are the key players driving progress and different perspectives forward. Creators have...

PAIGE NEEDLING

CEO, NEEDLING WORLDWIDE

As organizations look to innovate and stay ahead of the competition, it’s becoming increasingly clear that building a nurturing team and environment is key to driving innovation. A nurturing team is one that feels supported, encouraged, and empowered to take risks and try new things. A nurturing environment is one...

David Robinson

David Robinson - CEO - DSM Technology Consultants

CEO - DSM Technology Consultants

People say there’s nothing new under the sun, and I completely disagree. If you look at things from a macro- or micro-perspective, cloud computing is merging with mobile computing and that’s going to form what I call “Ubiquitous Computing”—meaning your computing is everywhere. If you think about your business, your...

MARCY EWALD

Most entrepreneurs we work with, including ourselves, have been building businesses for over a decade. Most are not working on the first business they started either. Even if the concept you’re currently working on doesn’t shake out, the lessons, the networks, and how you respond to success and failure will...

MICHAEL SANDERSON

DIRECTOR - ARTHUR L. IRVING ENTREPRENEURSHIP CENTRE, SAINT MARY’S UNIVERSITY

When talking about innovation and entrepreneurship, we conjure images of revolutionary products and world-changing ideas. What is often missed in the discussion is the impact that these concepts have on the student. To help illustrate and understand this, I think it is important that I share a little bit of...

KHENSANI NOBANDA

KHENSANI NOBANDA

GROUP EXECUTIVE: GROUP MARKETING AND CORPORATE AFFAIRS, NEDBANK GROUP

Brands have the potential to deliver tangible value to consumers – and more broadly to society – by being purpose-led and value-driven. South Africa is undeniably a land of opportunity and possibility. The issues we face are challenges and call-to-actions for innovators and innovation-enablers to provide the tools to overcome...

FLAVIA TATA NARDINI

CEO AND CO-FOUNDER, FLEET SPACE TECHNOLOGIES

TRANSFORMING INDUSTRIES. CHANGING THE WORLD.Australia’s vast natural resources have made it a global economic powerhouse. But with worldwide demand for minerals soaring, and finding new sources is becoming ever more complex and costly, our nation’s biggest industry urgently needs a radical new approach. One potential solution is seismic imaging. The...

INNOVATE® Ecosystems