Innovation Rockstars

“You can only be at the top of your game when it comes to creating accurate prediction models with a large amount of up-to-date data. And that's what we do, because the risk industry is all about predicting the future.” In this episode we are joined by Dr. Christoph Nabholz, Chief Research Officer and Head of the Research, Engagement & Sustainability Team at the Swiss Re Institute. Get ready f...

“I would describe myself as a friendly disruptor. And the people I probably give the most trouble to are those who are very set in their ways and their fixed mindset zone where innovation is hardly possible.” Today we are joined by Tom Kegode from the Lloyds Banking Group. Calling himself a “friendly disruptor”, Tom is an expert in harnessing human innovation and the power of community to create a...

“When starting a collaboration with a start-up, you should ask yourself the following three questions: Is it the right company, with the right technology, at the right time?” In this episode, we catch up with Kelly Van Dyke, Director - R&D External Innovation at PepsiCo. Her mission: Identify new technologies to disrupt the CPG category through strategic partnerships and business opportunities...

“AI can be like a trusty sidekick to a superhero. I can provide support and assist with the heavy lifting, but the superhero is the one calling the shots and using their creativity and imagination to save the day.” Have you ever done a full interview with an AI? We have! In this unconventional episode of INNOVATION ROCKSTARS, we take on a very special interview guest: ChatGPT - one of the largest...

“To value a portfolio, you have to be able to forecast and if you're not in the business of delivering on forecasts, then your innovative roadmap is not going to turn out to be too valuable.” In this episode, we are joined by Cordell Hardy, PhD, Senior Vice President of Corporate R&D Operations at 3M. With more than 20 years of experience at 3M, Cordell is a seasoned R&D leader driving bus...

“Innovation is not done by one business unit, innovation is done by everyone.” In this episode, we are pleased to welcome Vera Betz, HR Digital Transformation Manager at o2 Telefónica Germany. Her mission: Connecting people and combining their strengths with the goal of developing the right innovations together. During this very casual exchange, Vera gives us insights into how HR empowers employee...

“Doing innovation means to spent more time on figuring out the problem than the solution.” In this episode, we welcome Hod Fleishman, Partner, VP, Deep Tech Business Innovation at BCG X, Boston Consulting Group’s new tech build and design unit, and also a successful founder of various startups with a deep passion for connecting the physical and digital worlds, and digital innovation. In addition t...

“To assume that running a Foresight or Future program is something that people can do on the side of their regular work would doom the whole thing directly to failure.” In this episode, we are joined by Dolby Laboratories' first-ever Foresight Strategist, and current founder of her own consultancy, Tessa Finlev. As Head of Foresight, she has launched an internal Futures Council, a company-wide res...

“If we want to be truly ahead of the market, we need to do more of what we've been doing, but so much faster and in a more intense way.” In this episode, we are pleased to welcome Roni Michael from KPMG International. Roni is dedicated to innovation at heart and in her role as Global Head of Innovation responsible for establishing, driving and accelerating innovation activities within KPMG's globa...

“Being immersed in the customer operations is a key to producing things that are credible and innovative, not overload stuff with fancy things and technology." In this episode, we welcome Director Business Innovation & Foresight, Hans Lind from the Vovo Group. As part of the Volvo Connected Solutions Innovation Lab, Hans’ job is to explore ideas that add value to the business and help it stay...

“The best part of being a futurist is: It allows you to take proactive action in all parts of your work and organizations." In this episode, we welcome Innovation Leader and Design Futurist, Steven Fisher from McKinsey. In addition to his secret sideline as a winemaker, Steven has a deep passion for exploring all the technologies that would change the world. This talk is all about futurology. Next...

“Meine Mission ist es, die Würth Industrie Service jeden Tag ein wenig digitaler zu machen - sowohl technisch, als auch im Mindset.” In dieser Folge begrüßen wir den Managing Director Digital Solutions & IT, Stefan Reuss, von der Firma Würth Industrie Service. Seine Mission: die strategische Weiterentwicklung von Geschäftsmodellen, kundenorientierten Innovationen und Technologien. Neben einem...

“Targeted innovation requires a "single point of truth". A single source of information to guide people and to make it easy for them to find what's going on." In this episode, we welcome Andrew Willett, Senior Expert at Toyota Motor Europe. Together with Andrew, we explore "The Toyota Way" - a set of principles and behaviors that underlie the Toyota Motor Corporation's managerial approach. We also...

"The key to an innovation mindset is in the culture we call a growth mindset. At Microsoft, we elevate learning, and kind of learn, above everything that we do.” In this episode, we welcome Nicholas McQuire, Director of Growth Innovation and Strategy, Strategic Missions and Technologies at Microsoft. His passion: Artificial intelligence, emerging technologies and enterprise innovation. In this ver...

“Apart from creating a win-win situation, there’s a great benefit in partnering with other firms to really achieve the best value creation and added value for our customers.” In this episode, we welcome Dr. Eva Mitterreiter, Head of New Business Building & Innovation, Consulting at Bosch, and Jennifer Graf, Partner at digetiers. With the goal of creating the greatest possible customer value, E...

"There is an enormous change going on forcing us to look for new business models without losing sight of the core business, because that's where the money is made." In this episode, we welcome Manuel Krauß, Senior Consultant Business Model Innovation at Bosch Innovation Consulting. His mission: Supporting internal and external innovation teams to validate new ideas and take innovation management t...

“Logistics is sexy. It's a cool industry to work in. The same goes for innovation - it's also very sexy. You just have to find a way to make it happen. Don't give up. It sometimes takes some time and patience.” In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Kerstin Höfle, Vice President R&D and Product Management at Körber Supply Chain. Together with her team, Kerstin is responsible for the automation...

“Die derzeit größte Herausforderung ist, dass wir alle Themen zeitgleich behandeln müssen, was einen enormen Zeitdruck erzeugt. Die Innovationsthemen sehen wir hierbei in erster Linie als “Enabler”, um bei der Umsetzung der aktuellen Themen Tempo aufzubauen.” In dieser Folge begrüßen wir wieder einmal zwei Gäste: Mirko Heid und Calvin Deppisch von den Stadtwerken Bonn. In ihren Rollen als Leiter d...

“Innovation is a continuous process. It's not something you take care of when you have a spare moment. It has to be part of your culture, it has to be deeply rooted.” Today, on our Innovation Rockstar stage: Sanjeev Mervana, Vice President of Product Management, Emerging Technologies & Incubation (ET&I) from the multinational technology company Cisco. With more than two decades of experien...

"Intrapreneurship should, above all, help encourage people to try new things by both, motivating people and providing a platform for them to do so." Today we welcome Dr. Ina Nordsiek, Director Intrapreneurship at the German domestic appliance manufacturer Miele. When she joined the company in 2020, Ina's mission was to develop an intrapreneurship program from the scratch. The result: the Miele Pio...

"When people communicate and collaborate with each other, that's when they become empowered and get a voice. And that's when innovation happens." In this episode, we are joined by the award-winning global technology executive and best-selling author Alex Goryachev. With a resume that reads like a short history of technological disruption, Alex not only shares his expert knowledge on digital transf...

"In my work, I prefer to focus on asking better questions rather than providing straight answers." This episode takes us down under, where we welcome Finnish-born Sami Mäkeläinen. In his role as Head of Strategic Foresight at Telstra, Australia's largest telecommunications company, Sami tries to ensure - as he says himself - that the company is not caught by surprise by the future. Next to a brief...

"We are always on the lookout for people that can think like a startup and have experience building companies and products from scratch. So it's a good kind of middle ground of both new and existing." In this episode, we are joined by the seasoned entrepreneur and innovator Bob Petrie - Director of Innovation at Citi Ventures. With more than 20 years experience in building new products, launching...

"You can't innovate a product if you don't innovate the people behind." In this episode, we are pleased to welcome Ricardo Brito, Innovation Lead at Doodle. Originally, the Portuguese native wanted to be a horror film director, but as what often happens, things turned out differently. Today, as Innovation Lead at Doodle, Ricardo's innovation focus does not only rely on Doodle's products and servic...

"AI is an exciting thing, but it has to be used at the right time and moment. I've seen people produce true magic with AI, but it boils down to that AI should be considered an enabler to something bigger." In this episode, we welcome Dr. Sebastian Kaiser, Head of Machine Learning at ERGO - one of the largest insurance groups in Europe. His passion: Data and statistics. His mission: To relieve empl...