Thought Leaders
INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1
GARY CONKRIGHT
CO-FOUNDER, CHAIRMAN AND CEO
A visionary serial entrepreneur, physIQ co-founder, Chairman and CEO Gary Conkright has a passion for taking game-changing technology from the laboratory to the commercial marketplace to solve important problems. A University of Chicago MBA and Purdue Aeronautical Engineer, Gary previously served as the founding CEO and Chairman of SmartSignal (acquired...
VOICES of the Future
DR. MARIAM MATAR
A LEGACY OF HEALING
Connecting with hearts and humanity is the motivation behind ‘Voices of the Future.’ When meeting people as authentic, deep, insightful, and purposeful as Dr. Mariam Matar, our conversation can project her voice into the future – and the hearts of many more people. While she describes herself as a proud...
INNOVATE® New Jersey Vol.2
DR. SIMIN CAI
CEO, GO!FOTON
FINDING THE ADDED DIMENSION“Innovation begins with the perception of a previously unnoticed additional dimension in a given frame of reference. It results from grasping a property of the status quo that’s been missed, and then following through on this changed awareness to implement either a solution to a problem or...
INNOVATE® Puerto Rico
ENG. LUCY A CRESPO
CEO, P. R. SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY & RESEARCH TRUST
Innovation is a driver of well-being and economic development. Innovation and scientific advances are essential to driving economic growth, new business creation, and improving the quality of life. At the Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust, we continually strengthen our innovation culture by being optimistic, passionate, and curious. During...
INNOVATE™ Atlantic Canada
DOUG ROBERTSON
PRESIDENT & CEO, VENN INNOVATION INC.
ATLANTIC CANADA IS GROWING, OUR PEOPLE ARE HIGHLY SKILLED, MOST CERTAINLY INNOVATIVE AND INCREASINGLY DIVERSE. WE HAVE WORLD CLASS TECHNOLOGIES, INSPIRING TECH SUCCESS STORIES, AND A CONFIDENT, GLOBALLY FOCUSED TECH INDUSTRY. It has always given me a great sense of pride to welcome visitors to our region, “come from aways”...
INNOVATIONS in Pharmaceutical Development®
PEDRO MOURA
GENERAL MANAGER, MERCK PORTUGAL
I have looked at this quote for many years in a row. It was on a board as part of my office decor when I worked in a regional position. And I always felt it reflects my thinking. To be results driven has helped me navigate different roles and different...
INNOVATE™ Estonia
DORIS PÕLD
CEO AT ITL ESTONIA
When I joined the Estonian technology sector, corporate strategy and digital strategy were still two different things. My main task was to create cooperation. Just as technology has become ubiquitous, Estonia,originally known for its use of digital services, has become a true pioneer of the digital society. I’m proud to...
INNOVATE™ Atlantic Canada
JEFF WHITE
PRESIDENT & CEO, NEW BRUNSWICK INNOVATION FOUNDATION
The business day begins in New Brunswick an hour before our colleagues in Montreal and Toronto get started. I think that’s appropriate, because from the age of sail to today’s AI revolution, our entrepreneurs have been working at the forefront of innovation, international trade and technological change. New Brunswick has...
INNOVATE® Kansas City
NEELIMA PARASKER
FOUNDER, PRESIDENT AND CEO, SNAPIT SOLUTIONS
I’ve spent my entrepreneurial career pushing against a simple but powerful reality I witnessed: talent is universal, but awareness of opportunity is not. In a country where innovation fuels our future, we cannot continue leaving untapped potential sitting on the sidelines that happens to be our majority population. The next...
VOICES of the Future
BEATA MOŃKA
THE POWER OF PASSION
Beata Mońka is a visionary entrepreneur whose experiences and opinions, explores the nuances life’s work has been a beacon of creativity, connectivity, and transformative leadership. Our conversation, set against the backdrop of a series celebrating the most influential minds of our time, unfolds as a symphony of ideas and insights...
INNOVATION Quebec
FRANÇOIS BERTRAND
DIRECTEUR DE LA RECHERCHE ET DE L’INNOVATION
Notre recherche, en particulier notre recherche collaborative, constitue un levier fondamental de l’innovation. Depuis plus de 50 ans, nous réalisons la majeure partie du transfert technologique à travers nos nombreux partenariats de recherche établis avec des entreprises de toutes tailles, ainsi qu’avec des universités et autres organisations de partout dans...
INNOVATE® Blockchain
NAMIR ANANI
PRESIDENT & CEO, INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY COUNCIL
We live in an era of rapid disruption where global forces are now demanding our full attention. Emerging economies, geopolitical inflections, health risks, cyber threats, and changing employment prospects are now top of mind. Against this backdrop are digital technologies that are accelerating innovations and transforming industries faster than economies...
INNOVATE® Miami
Alberto Carvalho
Superintendent - Miami-Dade County Public Schools
Innovation in education takes the form of rich, powerful, explosive choice. Alberto Carvalho, Superintendent, Miami-Dade County Public Schools class=”img-responsive”> In education, innovation is about ensuring that today’s students emerge from the educational process with a critical skill set that empowers them to work in diverse teams, enables them to reason...
INNOVATE™ Oeiras
DR. FRANCISCO PINTO BALSEMÃO
FOUNDER OF IMPRESA
If we go back in History the invention of the wheel was a tremendous innovation. If we think about the future the spaceship that will transport human beings to a planet outside of the solar system will be a new unbelievable innovation. There are of course innovations of a smaller...
INNOVATE™ Vancouver Vol.2
CYBELE NEGRIS
CEO - WEBNAMES.CA
CYBELE NEGRIS Life is so fast-paced that we take too much for granted, whether it is the Internet which has now practically become a basic right or the growing role of women in positions of power, which is an outcome that has not come easily. All these giant leaps...
INNOVATE™ Stockholm
ALI SARRAFI
CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, 4THBRAIN
We are on the threshold of a creative renaissance powered by GenerativeAI—technology that frees us from specialized skills and speeds up the path from idea to execution. In mere hours, what once took months can be accomplished, fueling rapid experimentation and bold innovation. By automating tasks like image generation, software...
INNOVATE® Blockchain
SHAUN M. ROWLES
Author, The Money revolution
GOLD RUSHOn January 24th, 1848, Swiss-born Johann Sutter was dismayed by the news that his chief mechanic delivered: Gold had been discovered on the site of Sutter’s sawmill. Most readers are aware that this discovery kicked off the “California Gold Rush,” but few ever hear of Sutter’s immediate reaction: “From...
INNOVATE® New Jersey Vol.2
JOHN HACK
CTO AND CO-FOUNDER, INTERFLEXION
CONVERSATIONAL PERFORMANCEAre your people ready to do the job you’ve prepared them for? Do your managers know how to give feedback? Are your salespeople really listening to customers? Managing performance starts with measuring performance. But how do you measure workplace conversations? Language is complex. Conversations are rarely grammatical. Context matters....
INNOVATE® Phoenix
Thiru Thangarthinam
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...
INNOVATION Quebec
PIERRE FITZGIBBON
MINISTER OF ECONOMY, INNOVATION AND ENERGY, MINISTER RESPONSIBLE FOR REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT,AND MINISTER RESPONSIBLE FOR THE METROPOLIS AND THE MONTRÉAL REGION
By launching the 2022-2027 Québec Research and Innovation Investment Strategy (QRIIS2) and creating the role of chief innovator, our government has committed to putting innovation front and centre in Québec’s economic development in the coming years. More than ever, we want to support all those who have the desire to...
INNOVATE™ Adelaide
PETER DEMPSEY
FOUNDER,OWN THE POWER
DISABILITY DRIVES INNOVATIONI want to see this world thriving with innovation, creativity for good. I say Be the change you want to see in the world. When the brain doesn’t work the way it used to, the effects are profound and long lasting. You see, it’s not just about the...
INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1
DEAN DEBIASE
REBOOT PARTNERS
CEOs constantly hear noise about competitive “disruption” in their sectors, fueling concerns about their organization’s ability to innovate in an increasingly competitive and agile global market. This creates natural pressure to grow and meet earnings targets—but growth can be slow and expensive. With Open-Innovation and Co-Creation platforms, it doesn’t have...
INNOVATION Quebec
MARIE CLAUDE LAGACÉ
DIRECTOR, INNOVATION AND SOCIAL CHANGE, CONSEIL DE I’NNOVATION DU QUEBEC
Growing up, I used to play a lot, from hockey with my brother to chess with my dad. The only game that truly bored me to death was Monopoly, which inevitably ended with one of us (usually my sister) bankrupting others. No uncovering of a killer, no epic naval battle,...
INNOVATE® Detroit
Fr. Tim McCabe, SJ
President & CEO, Pope Francis Center
When I arrived at the Pope Francis Center in downtown Detroit in 2015, our focus was on providing food and a space for respite for our friends experiencing homelessness. I quickly realized that while providing immediate relief is critical to staying alive, we were not doing enough to make a...
GARY CONKRIGHT
CO-FOUNDER, CHAIRMAN AND CEO
A visionary serial entrepreneur, physIQ co-founder, Chairman and CEO Gary Conkright has a passion for taking game-changing technology from the laboratory to the commercial marketplace to solve important problems. A University of Chicago MBA and Purdue Aeronautical Engineer, Gary previously served as the founding CEO and Chairman of SmartSignal (acquired...
DR. MARIAM MATAR
A LEGACY OF HEALING
Connecting with hearts and humanity is the motivation behind ‘Voices of the Future.’ When meeting people as authentic, deep, insightful, and purposeful as Dr. Mariam Matar, our conversation can project her voice into the future – and the hearts of many more people. While she describes herself as a proud...
DR. SIMIN CAI
CEO, GO!FOTON
FINDING THE ADDED DIMENSION“Innovation begins with the perception of a previously unnoticed additional dimension in a given frame of reference. It results from grasping a property of the status quo that’s been missed, and then following through on this changed awareness to implement either a solution to a problem or...
ENG. LUCY A CRESPO
CEO, P. R. SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY & RESEARCH TRUST
Innovation is a driver of well-being and economic development. Innovation and scientific advances are essential to driving economic growth, new business creation, and improving the quality of life. At the Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust, we continually strengthen our innovation culture by being optimistic, passionate, and curious. During...
DOUG ROBERTSON
PRESIDENT & CEO, VENN INNOVATION INC.
ATLANTIC CANADA IS GROWING, OUR PEOPLE ARE HIGHLY SKILLED, MOST CERTAINLY INNOVATIVE AND INCREASINGLY DIVERSE. WE HAVE WORLD CLASS TECHNOLOGIES, INSPIRING TECH SUCCESS STORIES, AND A CONFIDENT, GLOBALLY FOCUSED TECH INDUSTRY. It has always given me a great sense of pride to welcome visitors to our region, “come from aways”...
DORIS PÕLD
CEO AT ITL ESTONIA
When I joined the Estonian technology sector, corporate strategy and digital strategy were still two different things. My main task was to create cooperation. Just as technology has become ubiquitous, Estonia,originally known for its use of digital services, has become a true pioneer of the digital society. I’m proud to...
JEFF WHITE
PRESIDENT & CEO, NEW BRUNSWICK INNOVATION FOUNDATION
The business day begins in New Brunswick an hour before our colleagues in Montreal and Toronto get started. I think that’s appropriate, because from the age of sail to today’s AI revolution, our entrepreneurs have been working at the forefront of innovation, international trade and technological change. New Brunswick has...
NEELIMA PARASKER
FOUNDER, PRESIDENT AND CEO, SNAPIT SOLUTIONS
I’ve spent my entrepreneurial career pushing against a simple but powerful reality I witnessed: talent is universal, but awareness of opportunity is not. In a country where innovation fuels our future, we cannot continue leaving untapped potential sitting on the sidelines that happens to be our majority population. The next...
BEATA MOŃKA
THE POWER OF PASSION
Beata Mońka is a visionary entrepreneur whose experiences and opinions, explores the nuances life’s work has been a beacon of creativity, connectivity, and transformative leadership. Our conversation, set against the backdrop of a series celebrating the most influential minds of our time, unfolds as a symphony of ideas and insights...
FRANÇOIS BERTRAND
DIRECTEUR DE LA RECHERCHE ET DE L’INNOVATION
Notre recherche, en particulier notre recherche collaborative, constitue un levier fondamental de l’innovation. Depuis plus de 50 ans, nous réalisons la majeure partie du transfert technologique à travers nos nombreux partenariats de recherche établis avec des entreprises de toutes tailles, ainsi qu’avec des universités et autres organisations de partout dans...
NAMIR ANANI
PRESIDENT & CEO, INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY COUNCIL
We live in an era of rapid disruption where global forces are now demanding our full attention. Emerging economies, geopolitical inflections, health risks, cyber threats, and changing employment prospects are now top of mind. Against this backdrop are digital technologies that are accelerating innovations and transforming industries faster than economies...
Alberto Carvalho
Superintendent - Miami-Dade County Public Schools
Innovation in education takes the form of rich, powerful, explosive choice. Alberto Carvalho, Superintendent, Miami-Dade County Public Schools class=”img-responsive”> In education, innovation is about ensuring that today’s students emerge from the educational process with a critical skill set that empowers them to work in diverse teams, enables them to reason...
DR. FRANCISCO PINTO BALSEMÃO
FOUNDER OF IMPRESA
If we go back in History the invention of the wheel was a tremendous innovation. If we think about the future the spaceship that will transport human beings to a planet outside of the solar system will be a new unbelievable innovation. There are of course innovations of a smaller...
ALI SARRAFI
CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, 4THBRAIN
We are on the threshold of a creative renaissance powered by GenerativeAI—technology that frees us from specialized skills and speeds up the path from idea to execution. In mere hours, what once took months can be accomplished, fueling rapid experimentation and bold innovation. By automating tasks like image generation, software...
SHAUN M. ROWLES
Author, The Money revolution
GOLD RUSHOn January 24th, 1848, Swiss-born Johann Sutter was dismayed by the news that his chief mechanic delivered: Gold had been discovered on the site of Sutter’s sawmill. Most readers are aware that this discovery kicked off the “California Gold Rush,” but few ever hear of Sutter’s immediate reaction: “From...
JOHN HACK
CTO AND CO-FOUNDER, INTERFLEXION
CONVERSATIONAL PERFORMANCEAre your people ready to do the job you’ve prepared them for? Do your managers know how to give feedback? Are your salespeople really listening to customers? Managing performance starts with measuring performance. But how do you measure workplace conversations? Language is complex. Conversations are rarely grammatical. Context matters....
Thiru Thangarthinam
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...
PIERRE FITZGIBBON
MINISTER OF ECONOMY, INNOVATION AND ENERGY, MINISTER RESPONSIBLE FOR REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT,AND MINISTER RESPONSIBLE FOR THE METROPOLIS AND THE MONTRÉAL REGION
By launching the 2022-2027 Québec Research and Innovation Investment Strategy (QRIIS2) and creating the role of chief innovator, our government has committed to putting innovation front and centre in Québec’s economic development in the coming years. More than ever, we want to support all those who have the desire to...
PETER DEMPSEY
FOUNDER,OWN THE POWER
DISABILITY DRIVES INNOVATIONI want to see this world thriving with innovation, creativity for good. I say Be the change you want to see in the world. When the brain doesn’t work the way it used to, the effects are profound and long lasting. You see, it’s not just about the...
DEAN DEBIASE
REBOOT PARTNERS
CEOs constantly hear noise about competitive “disruption” in their sectors, fueling concerns about their organization’s ability to innovate in an increasingly competitive and agile global market. This creates natural pressure to grow and meet earnings targets—but growth can be slow and expensive. With Open-Innovation and Co-Creation platforms, it doesn’t have...
MARIE CLAUDE LAGACÉ
DIRECTOR, INNOVATION AND SOCIAL CHANGE, CONSEIL DE I’NNOVATION DU QUEBEC
Growing up, I used to play a lot, from hockey with my brother to chess with my dad. The only game that truly bored me to death was Monopoly, which inevitably ended with one of us (usually my sister) bankrupting others. No uncovering of a killer, no epic naval battle,...
Fr. Tim McCabe, SJ
President & CEO, Pope Francis Center
When I arrived at the Pope Francis Center in downtown Detroit in 2015, our focus was on providing food and a space for respite for our friends experiencing homelessness. I quickly realized that while providing immediate relief is critical to staying alive, we were not doing enough to make a...