Thought Leaders
INNOVATE™ South Africa
STEVE PINTO
CEO, NEW REALITY & CTRL ROBOTICS
Jobs are changing and evolving faster than anyone expected and humanity needs to embrace technology to accelerate for the better. People need more tools to upskill themselves out of poverty and away from the jobs robots will take. My vision is to create the tools to upskill humanity faster and...
INNOVATE® Miami
Andres Hurtado Rangel
Founder CEO
The hybrid cloud is a powerful combination of public and private clouds, has revolutionized the way enterprises do business. It enables employees and customers to realize an unparalleled user experience, new business models and substantially enhanced productivity. SynerTechCloud gives you all the benefits of using the Hybrid Cloud by identifying...
INNOVATE™ Antwerp Vol.2
ANK DE WILDE
FOUNDER & CEO, ABSOLEM
As founder and CEO, I lead an engineering company with my business partner Bruno Dejaeghere. Over the last 10 years I made it my ongoing mission to make this sustainable human-centric approach part of our organisation. I envision Absolem as a company that puts people and society first, without having...
INNOVATE® San Diego Vol.1
Adversity Is a Leadership SuperpowerA leader is forged through the trials and tribulations of life. And when faced with negative influences, instead of giving into personal doubt and insecurities, leaders demonstrate the qualities of resiliency, passion, and authenticity enabling them to overcome the challenges of life empowering them to reach...
INNOVATE® Jacksonville
We are passionate about innovation in our community
Fernando Dutra, Attorney & Camille A. Wilson, Patent Attorney
We are passionate about innovation in our community and take any opportunity to bring light to its rich tapestry of stories. So, for us, it was a no-brainer to bring the Innovate series to Jacksonville. We were incredibly excited to discover and collect the success stories in the community and...
INNOVATION Quebec
GRAHAM CARR
PRESIDENT & VICE-CHANCELLOR, CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY
Montreal is the city with the largest concentration of university students per capita in North America. It has a completely unique mix of French and English and attracts students from more than 155 countries worldwide. Montreal is not just Canada’s leading centre for university research, it’s a world leader in...
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...
INNOVATE® Miami
Mayor Francis X. Suarez
Mayor of Miami
Innovation and a knowledge-based economy have to be at the forefront of industry in every city in the world. In Miami, we’re doing as much as possible to foster innovation, starting with the government itself. In the U.S., we’re number one for job creation, for startups, and for small-business growth....
INNOVATE® New Jersey Vol.2
THERESA A LYONS
FOUNDER, LYONS & ASSOCIATES, P.C.
A LEGACY IN THE MAKINGOur clients are the heartbeat of our existence. They remind us why we chose this path. They are the reason we fight, innovate, and care. We carry their battles as if they were our own because, in truth, they are. The discipline of law falls under...
INNOVATION Quebec
FRANTZ SAINTELLEMY
PRESIDENT AND CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, CHANCELLOR AND CHAIR OF THE BOARD, UNIVERSITÉ DE MONTRÉAL
Quebec is a fertile ground for deep tech entrepreneurship, which relies on knowledge and cutting-edge research, opening up new perspectives in several high-tech fields. These companies push the boundaries of innovation and create innovative solutions that have a profound impact on our society. Quebec’s universities and public research centers play...
INNOVATE® Philadelphia
Lance Bachmann
Thought Leader Of 1SEO
For a city with a wealth of history behind it, it continues to propel itself forward and arrive at the forefront of innovation. The transformation of both Philadelphia and digital marketing within the 21st century alone is exhilarating, and it shows no signs of slowing down. The ecosystem made up...
INNOVATE® Maryland
DR. ELIZABETH CLAYBORNE
CEO & CO-FOUNDER AT NASACLIP
I am an ER doctor, a mom, a Black woman, and the CEO of a medical device company. These roles are not separate – they intertwine and fuel my vision for impact. My journey into entrepreneurship started in the chaos of the emergency room, where I treated countless patients for...
INNOVATE® Jacksonville
Amy McGeorge is the founder and managing partner of Peoplr, a global firm of human resources experts who deliver excellent consulting services that drive business results. McGeorge has more than a decade of experience in executive search and 25+ years’ experience leading HR consulting engagements for large companies like Best...
INNOVATE™ Oeiras
MÓNICA BETTENCOURT-DIAS
CEO, INSTITUTO GULBENKIAN DE CIÊNCIA
“I truly believe science is the most important tool to build a fair and sustainable world. To move in that direction, science needs to be democratized, and become accessible everywhere, to people of all origins and educational backgrounds.” In 2020, like no year before, science stood out in many different...
INNOVATE™ Flanders
ANNELEEN VANDER ELSTRAETEN
MANAGING PARTNER, FOUR & FIVE
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™ Stockholm
ROBERT FALCK
FOUNDER, EINRIDE
The road freight industry stands at a defining moment. Once constrained by the limits of diesel and incremental change, the $4.6 trillion global market is now poised for disruption at unprecedented scale. The catalyst is clear: artificial intelligence is rapidly redrawing the boundaries of what is possible in logistics, and...
INNOVATE™ South Africa
ADRIAN GORE
FOUNDER, DISCOVERY
One of these cognitive errors is a failure to recognise the impact that outliers have in our increasingly interconnected world. Take for instance, the decision to create the Vitality programme. It is one outlier decision that had, and continues to have, an enormous impact on our entire business. A few...
INNOVATION Quebec
GILLES DÉRY
PRÉSIDENT-DIRECTEUR GÉNÉRAL, CQRDA
L’idée de contribuer à l’épanouissement du Québec est la raison pour laquelle je m’implique dans le monde passionnant de l’innovation. Cette implication est, selon moi, la voie pour assurer une approche incontournable et essentielle à nos ambitions collectives, afin de devenir une plaque tournante dans plusieurs secteurs de pointe de...
INNOVATE™ Oeiras
PEDRO JANELA
CEO, Founder and Co-owner of WYgroup
Creating a services group from the ground up, focused on relentless innovation on Customer Experience, on understanding people, the consumer, the clients. This is the lifelong journey of WYgroup. And it continues to be. Since the first offer, web and digital communication back in 2001, going to the first expert...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
MRS. TSHOGANETSO CARL-PONOESELE
ACTING CEO, BOTSWANA TOURISM
What does innovation mean to you? Tourism is an extremely vast field for innovation as a complex cross-cutting socio-economic system. Creating a tourist product, tourist services, booking of air – and train tickets – all these processes have reached a new level with the introduction of the latest developments in...
INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1
Christine Schyvinck
President And CEO, Shure Incorporated
Business leaders choose different paths that eventually lead them to their present positions. Each individual journey can provide unique perspectives for unlocking success at their organizations. I’m proud of the path I chose, because it enabled me to immerse myself in the vision established by our Company’s founder, S.N. Shure,...
INNOVATE™ Stockholm
ISABEL KEULEN
CEO, SSE VENTURES & SSE BUSINESS LAB
THE NORDIC’S LEADING STARTUP HUB! I believe that SSE Business Lab’s success in fostering unicorns and groundbreaking companies isn’t coincidental. It’s the result of a carefully designed ecosystem where ambition meets mentorship and capital is intertwined with experience. At the core is a powerful alumni network. Unlike many ecosystems where...
INNOVATE® Orlando
David Brim
Marketing Strategist, Entrepreneur, Investor & Founder - Orlando Entrepreneurs
David Brim is a marketing strategist, entrepreneur and investor living in Orlando, Florida. He is a founding partner of Orlando Opportunity Fund (OrlandoOpportunityFund.com), and the founder of Orlando Entrepreneurs (OrlandoEntrepreneurs.org), a network, podcast, and resource center created to connect, cultivate & celebrate Central Florida entrepreneurs. His primary professional focus areas...
INNOVATE® Nashville
MIKE ASSELTA
CEO AT COMPASSUS
Throughout my career, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside clinicians who enter the homes of patients and bring not just medical care, but connection, dignity and hope. In home-based care, caregiving is multifaceted—it involves administering medical tasks, offering emotional support and building meaningful relationships with patients and their families....
STEVE PINTO
CEO, NEW REALITY & CTRL ROBOTICS
Jobs are changing and evolving faster than anyone expected and humanity needs to embrace technology to accelerate for the better. People need more tools to upskill themselves out of poverty and away from the jobs robots will take. My vision is to create the tools to upskill humanity faster and...
Andres Hurtado Rangel
Founder CEO
The hybrid cloud is a powerful combination of public and private clouds, has revolutionized the way enterprises do business. It enables employees and customers to realize an unparalleled user experience, new business models and substantially enhanced productivity. SynerTechCloud gives you all the benefits of using the Hybrid Cloud by identifying...
ANK DE WILDE
FOUNDER & CEO, ABSOLEM
As founder and CEO, I lead an engineering company with my business partner Bruno Dejaeghere. Over the last 10 years I made it my ongoing mission to make this sustainable human-centric approach part of our organisation. I envision Absolem as a company that puts people and society first, without having...
Adversity Is a Leadership SuperpowerA leader is forged through the trials and tribulations of life. And when faced with negative influences, instead of giving into personal doubt and insecurities, leaders demonstrate the qualities of resiliency, passion, and authenticity enabling them to overcome the challenges of life empowering them to reach...
We are passionate about innovation in our community
Fernando Dutra, Attorney & Camille A. Wilson, Patent Attorney
We are passionate about innovation in our community and take any opportunity to bring light to its rich tapestry of stories. So, for us, it was a no-brainer to bring the Innovate series to Jacksonville. We were incredibly excited to discover and collect the success stories in the community and...
GRAHAM CARR
PRESIDENT & VICE-CHANCELLOR, CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY
Montreal is the city with the largest concentration of university students per capita in North America. It has a completely unique mix of French and English and attracts students from more than 155 countries worldwide. Montreal is not just Canada’s leading centre for university research, it’s a world leader in...
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...
Mayor Francis X. Suarez
Mayor of Miami
Innovation and a knowledge-based economy have to be at the forefront of industry in every city in the world. In Miami, we’re doing as much as possible to foster innovation, starting with the government itself. In the U.S., we’re number one for job creation, for startups, and for small-business growth....
THERESA A LYONS
FOUNDER, LYONS & ASSOCIATES, P.C.
A LEGACY IN THE MAKINGOur clients are the heartbeat of our existence. They remind us why we chose this path. They are the reason we fight, innovate, and care. We carry their battles as if they were our own because, in truth, they are. The discipline of law falls under...
FRANTZ SAINTELLEMY
PRESIDENT AND CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, CHANCELLOR AND CHAIR OF THE BOARD, UNIVERSITÉ DE MONTRÉAL
Quebec is a fertile ground for deep tech entrepreneurship, which relies on knowledge and cutting-edge research, opening up new perspectives in several high-tech fields. These companies push the boundaries of innovation and create innovative solutions that have a profound impact on our society. Quebec’s universities and public research centers play...
Lance Bachmann
Thought Leader Of 1SEO
For a city with a wealth of history behind it, it continues to propel itself forward and arrive at the forefront of innovation. The transformation of both Philadelphia and digital marketing within the 21st century alone is exhilarating, and it shows no signs of slowing down. The ecosystem made up...
DR. ELIZABETH CLAYBORNE
CEO & CO-FOUNDER AT NASACLIP
I am an ER doctor, a mom, a Black woman, and the CEO of a medical device company. These roles are not separate – they intertwine and fuel my vision for impact. My journey into entrepreneurship started in the chaos of the emergency room, where I treated countless patients for...
Amy McGeorge is the founder and managing partner of Peoplr, a global firm of human resources experts who deliver excellent consulting services that drive business results. McGeorge has more than a decade of experience in executive search and 25+ years’ experience leading HR consulting engagements for large companies like Best...
MÓNICA BETTENCOURT-DIAS
CEO, INSTITUTO GULBENKIAN DE CIÊNCIA
“I truly believe science is the most important tool to build a fair and sustainable world. To move in that direction, science needs to be democratized, and become accessible everywhere, to people of all origins and educational backgrounds.” In 2020, like no year before, science stood out in many different...
ANNELEEN VANDER ELSTRAETEN
MANAGING PARTNER, FOUR & FIVE
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...
ROBERT FALCK
FOUNDER, EINRIDE
The road freight industry stands at a defining moment. Once constrained by the limits of diesel and incremental change, the $4.6 trillion global market is now poised for disruption at unprecedented scale. The catalyst is clear: artificial intelligence is rapidly redrawing the boundaries of what is possible in logistics, and...
ADRIAN GORE
FOUNDER, DISCOVERY
One of these cognitive errors is a failure to recognise the impact that outliers have in our increasingly interconnected world. Take for instance, the decision to create the Vitality programme. It is one outlier decision that had, and continues to have, an enormous impact on our entire business. A few...
GILLES DÉRY
PRÉSIDENT-DIRECTEUR GÉNÉRAL, CQRDA
L’idée de contribuer à l’épanouissement du Québec est la raison pour laquelle je m’implique dans le monde passionnant de l’innovation. Cette implication est, selon moi, la voie pour assurer une approche incontournable et essentielle à nos ambitions collectives, afin de devenir une plaque tournante dans plusieurs secteurs de pointe de...
PEDRO JANELA
CEO, Founder and Co-owner of WYgroup
Creating a services group from the ground up, focused on relentless innovation on Customer Experience, on understanding people, the consumer, the clients. This is the lifelong journey of WYgroup. And it continues to be. Since the first offer, web and digital communication back in 2001, going to the first expert...
MRS. TSHOGANETSO CARL-PONOESELE
ACTING CEO, BOTSWANA TOURISM
What does innovation mean to you? Tourism is an extremely vast field for innovation as a complex cross-cutting socio-economic system. Creating a tourist product, tourist services, booking of air – and train tickets – all these processes have reached a new level with the introduction of the latest developments in...
Christine Schyvinck
President And CEO, Shure Incorporated
Business leaders choose different paths that eventually lead them to their present positions. Each individual journey can provide unique perspectives for unlocking success at their organizations. I’m proud of the path I chose, because it enabled me to immerse myself in the vision established by our Company’s founder, S.N. Shure,...
ISABEL KEULEN
CEO, SSE VENTURES & SSE BUSINESS LAB
THE NORDIC’S LEADING STARTUP HUB! I believe that SSE Business Lab’s success in fostering unicorns and groundbreaking companies isn’t coincidental. It’s the result of a carefully designed ecosystem where ambition meets mentorship and capital is intertwined with experience. At the core is a powerful alumni network. Unlike many ecosystems where...
David Brim
Marketing Strategist, Entrepreneur, Investor & Founder - Orlando Entrepreneurs
David Brim is a marketing strategist, entrepreneur and investor living in Orlando, Florida. He is a founding partner of Orlando Opportunity Fund (OrlandoOpportunityFund.com), and the founder of Orlando Entrepreneurs (OrlandoEntrepreneurs.org), a network, podcast, and resource center created to connect, cultivate & celebrate Central Florida entrepreneurs. His primary professional focus areas...
MIKE ASSELTA
CEO AT COMPASSUS
Throughout my career, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside clinicians who enter the homes of patients and bring not just medical care, but connection, dignity and hope. In home-based care, caregiving is multifaceted—it involves administering medical tasks, offering emotional support and building meaningful relationships with patients and their families....