Agenda

Headliner:

Kenyata Martin
Brand Growth and Innovation Lead – Baby & Child Care
Kimberly-Clark
 
Why You Should Listen to Kenyata:
In the senior executive role of Brand Growth and Innovation Lead, Kenyata and his team are responsible for the strategic foundations and innovation pipeline for the Huggies, Pull Ups, and Goodnites brands. He joined K-C with 20+ years of professional experience in entrepreneurship, product development, innovation, marketing, and brand management.

Abstract:
Companies want to focus on new ideas, yet actually driving those ideas to success in the marketplace can seem impossible to execute. Starting with a holistic customer-first approach and understanding what unmet needs you are really trying to solve are the keys to going from a collection of ideas to an innovative experience that excels in the marketplace.

Action Items:

• Develop a mindset in which the holistic customer experience comes front and center in driving your new innovations
• Cultivate a culture in which technical breakthroughs support the future customer’s unmet need (and not innovation for innovation’s sake)
• Empower your team to work in an agile and cross-functional manner to prove the value of your customer-first led approach

Rockstar Insight:

Vishnu Jayamohan
Director, Portfolio Strategy, Innovation & Software Services
Nissan North America
 
Why You Should Listen to Vishnu:
Vishnu’s passion is Product Strategy and Innovation and has led teams both in the physical and software worlds in three Fortune 500 companies. His multi-disciplinary experience in engineering, manufacturing, program management and marketing worlds has helped him drive new innovations with a customer-first mindset. He believes finding a balance between a collaborative, startup-like mindset within his teams against the backdrop of established corporate expectations is the secret to both high employee satisfaction and real customer value.

Fab Facilitator:

Mary Beth Green
Chief Innovation Officer
Sheetz
 
Why You Should Listen to Mary:
Bio is for coming.

Fab Facilitators:

David Matheson
Chief Executive Officer
SmartOrg, Inc.
 
Why You Should Listen to David:
With over two decades of portfolio and innovation management experience, David is a leader in helping executives achieve better growth results. He holds a Ph.D. in organizational decision making from Stanford University, is a Fellow with the Society of Decision Professionals (SDP), and always has chocolate within arm’s reach (especially at workshops).
 
Doug Williams
Associate Director, Innovation
SmartOrg, Inc.
 
Why You Should Listen to Doug:
An industry veteran with nearly 15 years of experience in the field, Doug leads the innovation practice at SmartOrg. He has helped over 80 organizations build and grow innovation programs through his work at Planview Spigit and a leading research organization.

Abstract:
Throwing something at the wall and hoping it sticks is not an effective innovation strategy. The world around us is changing rapidly, and many industries are being disrupted as a result. Change is constant, and it must be integrated into your innovation processes and strategy. Product organizations can withstand any disruption or competition by breaking down silos and adopting a data-driven, holistic approach to serving their customers.

Action Items:

• Create an integrated organization with a customer excellence focus at every level
• Design closed loop processes to improve performance and increase adaptability
• Build a foundation to support new business models and data-driven decision making

Rockstar Insight:

Surya Kommareddy
Director, Industry Solutions – Manufacturing, Industry 4.0, Innovation Labs
Oracle
 
Why You Should Listen to Surya:
Surya drives thought leadership, vision, and transformative initiatives using Industry 4.0, Smart Manufacturing, and Continuous Innovation. With a wealth of diverse experiences and successes, Surya employs a systems approach to innovation. He leads Oracle’s Manufacturing Innovation Lab, managing operations and co-innovating creative solution experiences utilizing advanced technologies.

Abstract:
To kick off and sustain key initiatives like funding game-changing projects that enable new business, optimizing legacy processes, or implementing significant cultural changes, executive buy-in is essential. Therefore, what are the best ways to show executives the value and relevance of these initiatives to overall business performance? We will explore current best practices to help make faster decisions and achieve successful business transformation.

Action Items:

• Build the value proposition of your initiative for the people and the organization
• Share best practices with your team and highlight how decision-making was changed when the value to business was clearly articulated
• Evaluate the process of aligning the initiative to the strategic intent of the organization

Moderator:

Emil Radulescu
Senior Director, Research & Development
Konica Minolta
 
Why You Should Listen to Emil:
Emil is a global R&D and PMO leader with over 20 years of experience delivering state-of-the art medical devices centered on patients’ and clinicians’ needs, helping people live a healthier, longer and happier life.
 

Panelists Include:

Jared Finegold
Digital Product & Customer Experience – McDelivery
McDonald’s
 
Why You Should Listen to Jared:
Jared is a distinguished leader with over 15 years of experience in product and customer experience (CX). Today, Jared leads the development of the global McDelivery product at McDonald’s. Jared is laser focused on driving channel demand, growing the business & most importantly… creating an innovative, best-in-class experience that customers love. Jared’s strategic acumen and commitment to excellence have solidified his reputation as a trailblazer. He’s been recognized by Forbes as an Under 30 and by Brand Innovators as an Under 40.
 
Mary Beth Green
Chief Innovation Officer
Sheetz
 
Why You Should Listen to Mary:
Bio is forthcoming.
 
Burcin Kaplanoglu, PhD
Vice President, Innovation, Oracle Industry Lab
Oracle
 
Why You Should Listen to Burcin:
Dr. Kaplanoglu is a renowned technologist and innovator, Co-Founder and Head of Oracle Industry Labs, supporting Oracle Vertical Industries. These industries offer top solutions across sectors like Construction, Energy, Communications, and Healthcare. Recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voice, his posts on AI, robotics, and 5G have garnered over 21 million views in 2023. Chairing the Institute for AI in Construction, Dr. Kaplanoglu has received numerous accolades, including the 2024 Catalyst award, the 2022 James B. Porter Award, and ENR’s “Top 20 Under 40”. Formerly at Lendlease, he was responsible for innovation, strategy, and operations.
 
Vineet Shrivastava
Head Customer Solutions – US Healthcare and Lifesciences
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
 
Why You Should Listen to Vineet:
Vineet is a visionary business and technology executive known for transforming enterprises and driving business growth by creating new digital capabilities, championing change, and devising innovative operating models. His extensive experience collaborating with the C-Suite and Board of Directors to develop and execute growth strategies gives him a unique perspective on securing executive buy-in.
 
Heber Silva
Research and Development Director – Franklin Fueling Systems
Franklin Electric
 
Why You Should Listen to Heber:
With over 20 years of experience, Heber has been serving and leading Engineering and Quality departments in renowned companies such as Nissan Automotive, Thyssen Krupp, Whirlpool, and Franklin Electric. He is an active member of the Project Management Institute and the International Rotary Club, Madison Chapter.
 
Jeanna Zguris, PhD
Executive Director, Hair Care Innovation & Analytical
The Estée Lauder Companies Inc.
 
Why You Should Listen to Jeanna:
Jeanna is a R&D leader with a proven record of driving technology from concept to market introduction. across multiple categories including luxury beauty and fast paced consumer products. Jeanna is skilled in translating consumer, market, and technical insights into products that drive profitable business growth. She is adept at creating, identifying, and evaluating technical breakthroughs for market relevance.

Rockstar Insight:

Alki Iliopoulou
Innovation Strategist – Ecosystems Lead
InterSystems
Partner, Growth Innovation Leadership Council
 
Why You Should Listen to Alki:
Bio is forthcoming.

Rockstar Insight:

Seong-Hee Westlake
Director of Technology & Innovation, UMAISE
Michigan Medicine
 
Why You Should Listen to Seong-Hee:
Bio is forthcoming.

Abstract:
Delivering compelling products is inherently a creative endeavor, but how can we harness that creativity to achieve consistent and scalable success? In this session, we will explore a framework designed to foster innovation and drive product excellence. We will delve into the core components of this framework, providing actionable insights on how to transform sporadic moments of brilliance into a repeatable, sustainable process.

Action Items:

• Create a culture of trust, autonomy and creativity
• Grow your team’s network of relationships and getting access to the unfiltered voice of the customer
• Create and maintain momentum by using a multi-horizon portfolio of value delivery

Headliner:

Neil Goodrich
Chief Innovation Officer
Envista Forensics
 
Why You Should Listen to Neil:
With a diverse background spanning accounting, fiction writing, investigation, operations, technology, and innovation, Neil is passionate about evolution and growth. That passion has driven his career, delivering transformative digital products, pioneering company-firsts and building award-winning technology teams centered around cultures of creativity.

Rockstar Insight:

Burcin Kaplanoglu, PhD
Vice President, Innovation, Oracle Industry Lab
Oracle
 
Why You Should Listen to Burcin:
Dr. Kaplanoglu is a renowned technologist and innovator, Co-Founder and Head of Oracle Industry Labs, supporting Oracle Vertical Industries. These industries offer top solutions across sectors like Construction, Energy, Communications, and Healthcare. Recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voice, his posts on AI, robotics, and 5G have garnered over 21 million views in 2023. Chairing the Institute for AI in Construction, Dr. Kaplanoglu has received numerous accolades, including the 2024 Catalyst award, the 2022 James B. Porter Award, and ENR’s “Top 20 Under 40”. Formerly at Lendlease, he was responsible for innovation, strategy, and operations.