Thought Leaders
INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1
MIKE CASPER
CO-FOUNDER & CEO, AZUMO
The display industry has become omnipresent in society. We find displays all around us, in our smartphones, tablets, laptops, TVs, ATM machines, thermostats, gas station pumps, e-bikes…the list is never-ending. In the LCD industry, like many large industries, they tend to take whatever was working last year and make it...
INNOVATE™ Stockholm
JENNY RINGSÖ
FOUNDER & CREATIVE DIRECTOR, I AM YOUR SISTER (IAYS)
THE LIFESTYLE OF NOT GIVING UP Entrepreneurship isn’t a job, it’s a lifestyle. A way of living built on persistence, humility, and the willingness to reinvent yourself again and again. When you decide to follow an idea, you don’t just commit to a vision. You commit to setbacks, uncertainty, and...
INNOVATE™ Flanders
PROF. DR. STEVEN VAN PASSEL
VICE-RECTOR VALORISATION AND SUSTAINABILITY, UNIVERSITY OF ANTWERP.
At the University of Antwerp, we are committed to being a dynamic, entrepreneurial and forward-thinking institution that actively helps shape the future. We conduct excellent, fundamental research, and are internationally recognised in several key domains. But I believe our responsibility goes beyond academic excellence. It is crucial that the knowledge...
INNOVATE™ Vancouver Vol.2
JENNIFER TWINER MCCARRON
THUNDERBIRD CEO
As a leader, people and culture need to be a priority. You need to tangibly demonstrate what a culture of excellence looks like. I believe that attitude and outlook are everything. What you bring to the table (or zoom meeting) directly impacts those around you — personally and professionally. True...
INNOVATE™ Estonia
ALEXANDER STOROZHUK
FOUNDER - PRNEWS.IO AND MEDIALISTER
Starting out in Ukraine in 2004, I saw an opportunity: smaller businesses needed a way to share their stories, yet few platforms catered to them. As a university student, I built a basic news distribution system, and over the years, that idea grew into PRNEWS.IO — a platform that today...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
AOBAKWE “AUPA” MONYATSI
GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE, LETSHEGO HOLDINGS
Why innovate? According to research by Stanford University*, it may be possible to achieve economic growth simply by increasing the inputs and resources to spur growth, such as natural resources and labour, for example. Increasing inputs is only responsible for 15% of aggregated economic growth. Innovation, on the other hand,...
INNOVATE® Philadelphia
Manik Arora
Arora Engineers, inc
Philadelphia is the birthplace of our country and home to an eclectic mix of historical and modern infrastructure. However, with its rapid development over the years, the number of users is quickly exceeding the original capacity of its built environment. In response to this roadblock, two of our major transportation...
INNOVATE™ Estonia
TAAVI KOTKA
ESTONIA’S FIRST CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER
Before stepping into government, Taavi had already made his mark in the tech sector. He co-founded and led the software company Webmedia (later Nortal), growing it into one of the region’s largest IT firms. His background as a developer and entrepreneur gave him a rare mix of technical skill and...
INNOVATE® San Diego Vol.1
Jim Filanc
Intelligent Cities Associates, LLC
Jim Filanc Intelligent Cities Associates, LLC Back in 2012, I wrote a White Paper entitled EnLighten San Diego when I had an insight into the strategic value of “power and perch,” two unique characteristics of streetlights. Streetlights are everywhere in most cities, but in San Diego, we envisioned attaching Small...
INNOVATE™ Flanders
JACQUES VANDERMEIREN /ANNICK DE RIDDER
CEO/ PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS, PORT OF ANTWERP-BRUGES
In a rapidly changing world, with long-term disruptive evolutions, innovation is a powerful response. The ambition of Port of Antwerp-Bruges is to be the world’s first port that reconciles economy, people and climate. We believe in innovation as a lever towards a sustainable future. That is why the focus on...
INNOVATE™ Bengaluru
Prof. Vijay Chandru
Mentor and Investor
Mentor and Investor “True tech innovation in India is happening in life sciences, nanoscience, chemistry, mechanical engineering and the like”, says Prof. Vijay Chandru, one of the earliest academics in India to move from an impressive career in academics to highly successful deep science entrepreneurship. “If you look at creativity...
INNOVATE® New Jersey Vol.2
Michele N. Siekerka
President And CEO- New Jersey Business & Industry Association
Our vision statement ensures we will never lose sight of our innovation goal: “New Jersey will reclaim its stature as the Innovation State.” To be sure, New Jersey has a rich history of innovation dating back to our glory days of the 19th and 20th centuries when discoveries made in...
INNOVATION Quebec
MARIE CLAUDE LAGACÉ
SENIOR 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™ Stockholm
SIMON MORITZ
INTRAPRENEUR AND AUTHOR STOCKHOLM SWEDEN
I have spent nearly two decades navigating the digital transformation, watching astonishing breakthroughs in AI, 5G, and autonomous systems roll off the assembly line. Yet, for all this potential, I often feel we are still stuck. Our innovation is stuck in the digital mud. Think back to Henry Ford. The...
Global Innovation Spotlight
LAUREN S MOORES
PHD DIGITAL INNOVATION LEADER, TEACHING FELLOW AT HARVARD BUSINESS ANALYTICS PROGRAM, USA FOR UNHCR
Digital transformation is a 20th century phenomena. As an early adopter of new technologies – and the digital age – I quickly embraced digital data structures and tend to think in data matrices, looking for the data keys to join data and discover new patterns. When I look to create...
INNOVATE® Jacksonville
Craig Mandeville
Founder and CEO, Forcura
Craig Mandeville Founder and CEO That’s it. And if everything we do in between that leads to that, then we’re providing true value. My wife used to work for a home health agency, facilitating patients discharged from the Mayo Clinic who were going into post-acute care. She was faxing things...
INNOVATE® Philadelphia
Stephen K. Klasko
MD, MBA - President - Thomas Jefferson University; and CEO - Jefferson Health
Philadelphia will become a global solutions center when we prioritize a couple of core values: Here’s how I see creativity, and why I believe all of us can use it to make our city the world’s first option for solutions.Creativity comes in different shapes. There is a body of literature...
INNOVATE™ Antwerp Vol.2
GEERT VERACHTERT
DIRECTOR STRATEGY AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, GROEP VAN ROEY
“Our Iceberg is Melting”, the book by John Kotter on change management was given to me as a present from my mentor at Philips. I’ve always associated myself with the mindset of Fred the penguin: someone who creates a feeling of urgency by helping others realise why change is necessary...
INNOVATE® Phoenix
Sethuraman "Panch" Panchanathan
Executive VP and Chief Research and Innovation Officer - ASU
Introduction Perspective on InnovationInnovation is not limited to creating new products or starting new companies. It is a spirit and a mindset that permeates everything that we do. The most intractable challenges we face are not going to be solved by doing what we’ve always done. It is important to...
INNOVATE® Seattle
MARIA COLACURCIO,
CEO, SYNDIO
Winning in the Transparency Era Workplace equity has taken on new urgency in today’s era of public salary ranges, pay gap reporting laws, voluntary disclosures by leading global companies, and investor scorecards. Every measure of how you value your people is now on display. This includes pay, performance, promotions, and...
INNOVATE® Puerto Rico
SOFIA STOLBERG
CEO PILOTO 151
THE GENESIS AND EVOLUTION OF PUERTO RICO’S ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEM AND WHAT’S NEEDED TO CHARGE AHEADFew people know that in 2010 Puerto Rico pioneered the first multistakeholder entrepreneurship ecosystem project in the world. Led by the Island’s most successful entrepreneurs in partnership with the Department of Economic Development, the Puerto Rico...
INNOVATE™ South Africa
STEPHEN OEHLEY
FOUNDER, XTENDEVENT.COM
I’m just a boy from Benoni inspired by a loving family and good friends that put values first. My proudest contribution to this world will always be my son Nicholas, who inspires everyone around him. My career has primarily been B2B focused and spanned trade publishing, trade exhibitions, running a...
INNOVATE® South Carolina
DR. GREGORY D. LITTLE
PRESIDENT, MIDLANDS TECHNICAL COLLEGE
In this life, some our greatest joys and successes are deeply connected to our relationships. It’s easy to remember and see it in our personal lives, but it can be easy to forget in our professional and business lives. All too often, we get mentally and physically stuck behind our...
INNOVATE™ Adelaide
GREG JOHANSEN
MANAGING DIRECTOR & CEO, AUSHEALTH
Since our formation, I have been constantly motivated by the impact that medical research can have on our community. It’s a challenging field, and it requires a lot of hard work, dedication, and perseverance – sometimes years in the making – but the positive results we see makes it all...
MIKE CASPER
CO-FOUNDER & CEO, AZUMO
The display industry has become omnipresent in society. We find displays all around us, in our smartphones, tablets, laptops, TVs, ATM machines, thermostats, gas station pumps, e-bikes…the list is never-ending. In the LCD industry, like many large industries, they tend to take whatever was working last year and make it...
JENNY RINGSÖ
FOUNDER & CREATIVE DIRECTOR, I AM YOUR SISTER (IAYS)
THE LIFESTYLE OF NOT GIVING UP Entrepreneurship isn’t a job, it’s a lifestyle. A way of living built on persistence, humility, and the willingness to reinvent yourself again and again. When you decide to follow an idea, you don’t just commit to a vision. You commit to setbacks, uncertainty, and...
PROF. DR. STEVEN VAN PASSEL
VICE-RECTOR VALORISATION AND SUSTAINABILITY, UNIVERSITY OF ANTWERP.
At the University of Antwerp, we are committed to being a dynamic, entrepreneurial and forward-thinking institution that actively helps shape the future. We conduct excellent, fundamental research, and are internationally recognised in several key domains. But I believe our responsibility goes beyond academic excellence. It is crucial that the knowledge...
JENNIFER TWINER MCCARRON
THUNDERBIRD CEO
As a leader, people and culture need to be a priority. You need to tangibly demonstrate what a culture of excellence looks like. I believe that attitude and outlook are everything. What you bring to the table (or zoom meeting) directly impacts those around you — personally and professionally. True...
ALEXANDER STOROZHUK
FOUNDER - PRNEWS.IO AND MEDIALISTER
Starting out in Ukraine in 2004, I saw an opportunity: smaller businesses needed a way to share their stories, yet few platforms catered to them. As a university student, I built a basic news distribution system, and over the years, that idea grew into PRNEWS.IO — a platform that today...
AOBAKWE “AUPA” MONYATSI
GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE, LETSHEGO HOLDINGS
Why innovate? According to research by Stanford University*, it may be possible to achieve economic growth simply by increasing the inputs and resources to spur growth, such as natural resources and labour, for example. Increasing inputs is only responsible for 15% of aggregated economic growth. Innovation, on the other hand,...
Manik Arora
Arora Engineers, inc
Philadelphia is the birthplace of our country and home to an eclectic mix of historical and modern infrastructure. However, with its rapid development over the years, the number of users is quickly exceeding the original capacity of its built environment. In response to this roadblock, two of our major transportation...
TAAVI KOTKA
ESTONIA’S FIRST CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER
Before stepping into government, Taavi had already made his mark in the tech sector. He co-founded and led the software company Webmedia (later Nortal), growing it into one of the region’s largest IT firms. His background as a developer and entrepreneur gave him a rare mix of technical skill and...
Jim Filanc
Intelligent Cities Associates, LLC
Jim Filanc Intelligent Cities Associates, LLC Back in 2012, I wrote a White Paper entitled EnLighten San Diego when I had an insight into the strategic value of “power and perch,” two unique characteristics of streetlights. Streetlights are everywhere in most cities, but in San Diego, we envisioned attaching Small...
JACQUES VANDERMEIREN /ANNICK DE RIDDER
CEO/ PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS, PORT OF ANTWERP-BRUGES
In a rapidly changing world, with long-term disruptive evolutions, innovation is a powerful response. The ambition of Port of Antwerp-Bruges is to be the world’s first port that reconciles economy, people and climate. We believe in innovation as a lever towards a sustainable future. That is why the focus on...
Prof. Vijay Chandru
Mentor and Investor
Mentor and Investor “True tech innovation in India is happening in life sciences, nanoscience, chemistry, mechanical engineering and the like”, says Prof. Vijay Chandru, one of the earliest academics in India to move from an impressive career in academics to highly successful deep science entrepreneurship. “If you look at creativity...
Michele N. Siekerka
President And CEO- New Jersey Business & Industry Association
Our vision statement ensures we will never lose sight of our innovation goal: “New Jersey will reclaim its stature as the Innovation State.” To be sure, New Jersey has a rich history of innovation dating back to our glory days of the 19th and 20th centuries when discoveries made in...
MARIE CLAUDE LAGACÉ
SENIOR 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,...
SIMON MORITZ
INTRAPRENEUR AND AUTHOR STOCKHOLM SWEDEN
I have spent nearly two decades navigating the digital transformation, watching astonishing breakthroughs in AI, 5G, and autonomous systems roll off the assembly line. Yet, for all this potential, I often feel we are still stuck. Our innovation is stuck in the digital mud. Think back to Henry Ford. The...
LAUREN S MOORES
PHD DIGITAL INNOVATION LEADER, TEACHING FELLOW AT HARVARD BUSINESS ANALYTICS PROGRAM, USA FOR UNHCR
Digital transformation is a 20th century phenomena. As an early adopter of new technologies – and the digital age – I quickly embraced digital data structures and tend to think in data matrices, looking for the data keys to join data and discover new patterns. When I look to create...
Craig Mandeville
Founder and CEO, Forcura
Craig Mandeville Founder and CEO That’s it. And if everything we do in between that leads to that, then we’re providing true value. My wife used to work for a home health agency, facilitating patients discharged from the Mayo Clinic who were going into post-acute care. She was faxing things...
Stephen K. Klasko
MD, MBA - President - Thomas Jefferson University; and CEO - Jefferson Health
Philadelphia will become a global solutions center when we prioritize a couple of core values: Here’s how I see creativity, and why I believe all of us can use it to make our city the world’s first option for solutions.Creativity comes in different shapes. There is a body of literature...
GEERT VERACHTERT
DIRECTOR STRATEGY AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, GROEP VAN ROEY
“Our Iceberg is Melting”, the book by John Kotter on change management was given to me as a present from my mentor at Philips. I’ve always associated myself with the mindset of Fred the penguin: someone who creates a feeling of urgency by helping others realise why change is necessary...
Sethuraman "Panch" Panchanathan
Executive VP and Chief Research and Innovation Officer - ASU
Introduction Perspective on InnovationInnovation is not limited to creating new products or starting new companies. It is a spirit and a mindset that permeates everything that we do. The most intractable challenges we face are not going to be solved by doing what we’ve always done. It is important to...
MARIA COLACURCIO,
CEO, SYNDIO
Winning in the Transparency Era Workplace equity has taken on new urgency in today’s era of public salary ranges, pay gap reporting laws, voluntary disclosures by leading global companies, and investor scorecards. Every measure of how you value your people is now on display. This includes pay, performance, promotions, and...
SOFIA STOLBERG
CEO PILOTO 151
THE GENESIS AND EVOLUTION OF PUERTO RICO’S ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEM AND WHAT’S NEEDED TO CHARGE AHEADFew people know that in 2010 Puerto Rico pioneered the first multistakeholder entrepreneurship ecosystem project in the world. Led by the Island’s most successful entrepreneurs in partnership with the Department of Economic Development, the Puerto Rico...
STEPHEN OEHLEY
FOUNDER, XTENDEVENT.COM
I’m just a boy from Benoni inspired by a loving family and good friends that put values first. My proudest contribution to this world will always be my son Nicholas, who inspires everyone around him. My career has primarily been B2B focused and spanned trade publishing, trade exhibitions, running a...
DR. GREGORY D. LITTLE
PRESIDENT, MIDLANDS TECHNICAL COLLEGE
In this life, some our greatest joys and successes are deeply connected to our relationships. It’s easy to remember and see it in our personal lives, but it can be easy to forget in our professional and business lives. All too often, we get mentally and physically stuck behind our...
GREG JOHANSEN
MANAGING DIRECTOR & CEO, AUSHEALTH
Since our formation, I have been constantly motivated by the impact that medical research can have on our community. It’s a challenging field, and it requires a lot of hard work, dedication, and perseverance – sometimes years in the making – but the positive results we see makes it all...