Past Events

Jungheinrich AG
Lydia Schneider | Innovation Manager | Jungheinrich AGFaster Horses - Synchronising technology push and market pull activities
We are all aware how crucial it is to center our innovation activities around our customers. But how can we find the right mix between listening to our customers to fulfil their actual needs on the one hand and at the same time coming up with unique selling propositions they are not even aware of needing yet? We will discuss about how Jungheinrich integrates both elements into the innovation front-end process and which challenges need to be faced along the journey.

Savanna Ingredients GmbH
Dr. Timo Koch | Leiter Innovation Center | Savanna Ingredients GmbHSpin Off in the Food Industry: Challenges and Chances on the Example of Savanna Ingredients
In the food industry sugar and calorie reduction is one of the key challenges since many years. The German sugar producer Pfeifer & Langen GmbH & Co. KG decided to contribute to this trend by own innovative product concepts. In 2018, Savanna Ingredients GmbH was founded as a spin off to create an environment for successful development and marketing of low caloric sugars. This talk will look at the experiences Savanna has made so far when starting a new business with a new product in the food industry.

Azure IoT Mobility | Microsoft
Mario Ortegón-Cabrera | Principal Program Manager & EMBA AlumnusUsing open innovation and innovative digital technologies to drive digital transformation in mobility
This presentation introduces the concept of the Software Defined Vehicle of the future, developed by the Eclipse Software Defined Vehicle Community, a growing cooperation of Microsoft, 26 other mobility companies and the Eclipse foundation, with open source and open standards. It also shows different archetypes to leverage data and digital technologies with real-life examples.

Emma Sleep GmbH
Nikhil Kulkarni | Data Scientist & DDS AlumnusHow Emma's innovations make it the #1 sleep brand
Why the core of our success is our team and its DNA. At Emma, every team is constantly finding ways to improve and innovate.
The award winning product innovations, the branding strategy, technological improvements of website and data platform – learn how all of them combined contribute to Emma’s success.

Heraeus Consulting & IT Solutions GmbH
Frank Michalski & Dr. Nico Neumann | Digital ConsultantsHow Heraeus innovates processes with new digital technology
Customer demands are increasing, energy savings are a must and specifications are becoming stricter, processes need to be improved, and we need to innovate to meet future requirements. This presentation tells the story of how Heraeus innovates processes with new digital technologies like IoT and AI. You will also learn how Heraeus deals with the shortage of skilled data experts and how a company can develop its own human resources to innovate their own processes.
Special Edition:
Innovative Tuesday #50
Andera Gadeib | dialego AGDr. Thorsten Harzer | QIAGEN
Klaus Dederichs | Drees & Sommer
November 2022
Innovation Management in Turbulent Times: Success Factors and Trends
The 50th edition of our Innovative Tuesday takes place! For this event, we are planning something special and want to look back with a few former speakers on the development of innovation since their first presentation until today. The motto of the evening will be “Innovation Management in Turbulent Times: Success Factors and Trends”. Join us for an exciting dive into multiple innovation journeys and take part in the following panel discussion with all the speakers and our host Prof. Dr. Frank Piller!

Accenture Research
Prof. Dr. Svenja Falk | Managing Director& Dr. Karin Walczyk | Global Chemicals Research Lead
October 2022
Technology at the core of innovation?
Already in 2013 Accenture’s Technology Vision stated that “every company is a technology company”. We will discuss recent trends in technology adoption with a focus on frontier technologies, exemplified by a deep dive into the chemical industry.

Safion GmbH
Dr. Alexander Gitis | CEOSeptember 2022
Why we search for the fly in the ointment – innovation journey in the battery industry
The secret dream of each scientist is to contribute something that outlast one’s own existence. It could be a scientific discovery or in our case it was an invention which begged for being hammered into the battery industry. The talk showcases Safion’s journey in the economic tides. We exhibit how scientific research successfully can be turned into innovative products and what are the biggest challenges in transforming academic mindsets into the state of mind of creative destruction.

TIME Research Area
Dr. Marcel Grein | Design Thinking ExpertJune 2022
Introducing Design Thinking in large Enterprises – Challenges and Success Factors
Large enterprises are often stuck in traditional innovation processes. Introducing agile methods in these environments is often a challenge. Therefore, the demand for such design courses with the aim to familiarize (future) managers and innovators with these methods is rising. In this talk I will share my experiences and learnings from introducing Design Thinking in large enterprises and transferring my knowledge to students and executives.

Dr. Babor GmbH & Co. KG
Benjamin Menzel | Director Innovation & New VenturesMay 2022
Innovating beauty – How to create a progressive setup within a family-driven business
The world of beauty is changing. And so must we. In this talk I will outline why this is an opportunity rather than a threat for us and how we setup innovation management at the Babor Beauty Group.

Expertenkommission Forschung & Innovation (EFI)
Prof. Dr. Katharina Hölzle | Deputy ChairApril 2022
Challenges of German Research and Innovation Policy
The Commission of Experts for Research and Innovation (Expertenkommission Forschung und Innovation – EFI) advises the German Federal Government and presents an annual report on research, innovation and technological performance in Germany. A key task is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the German innovation system in an international and temporal comparison. In her presentation, Prof. Katharina Hölzle will present the main recommendations of the 2022 report and provide some reflections on the current state of the German innovation ecosystem.

SyncVR Medical
Floris van der Breggen | CEOMarch 2022
VR/AR in healthcare – new tech transforming old industry
SyncVR Medical has rapidly scaled its Virtual and Augmented Reality platform throughout European healthcare markets. In this talk, the founder will explain how Virtual Augmented Reality (XR) has the ability to change an old-fashioned and complex German healthcare industry. From VR replacing medication during surgery, to AR rehabilitation on prescription… He will outline a vision of what Virtual and Augmented Reality will mean for human healthcare in the years to come.

OGE
Achmed Junusov | Senior Innovation ManagerFebruary 2022
You think startups are hard? Try innovating inside a large company!
Venture building or creating a new profitable business inside a corporation is becoming very popular. Many factors determine the success or failure of the founded companies. The presentation shows several problems you face and which habits and skills you need to be a great venture builder.

Ford Research & Advanced Engineering
Dr. Alexandra Holz & Walter Pijls |Innovation Management for Smart Vehicle Concepts
January 2022
Understanding future opportunities –
how Ford’s Research and Innovation Center Aachen deals with this challenge to deliver digital experience
Understanding the future opportunities against the backdrop of disruption in the automotive industry and changing customer needs is a challenge Ford has to master. This talk provides a peak into approaches the team uses to develop deep knowledge about the relevant domains and building a deep understanding of the customers’ needs.

item Industrietechnik GmbH
Dr. Heiner Giese | Head of Product ManagementDecember 2021
Boundless Digital Customer Services
How the mid-sized industrial company “item Industrietechnik” develops a digital ecosystem that connects online services without borders. From the first creative thought, users of industrial building kits are supported digitally to fully realize their ideas.

Stadt Aachen
Frauke Burgdorff | Head of Urban Planning DepartmentNovember 2021
Cooperative Strategies in Urban Development – Aachen and Beyond
Cooperative urban development creates resilient spaces. But isn’t urban development complex enough already? Doesn’t the cooperation of the many simply create organized irresponsibility or even standstill? As always in urban development, there is no clear answer, but there are excellent projects that demonstrate that cooperative projects can succeed. And that they need a high level of new professionalism in order to be able to succeed.

Eldertech GmbH
Artur Janiszek | Co-FounderOctober 2021
Comparing theory and real life: Our innovation journey in senior home care
According to current estimates, there are about 4 million people who care for and look after a relative in addition to their personal activities. They form the largest care service in Germany, so to speak – and it is assumed that the “unreported number” is much larger. The startup Eldertech wants to create relief for all these caring relatives by bringing together the big world of smart home and smart home care devices with age-appropriate video communication on an innovative platform. Artur Janiszek will briefly introduce Eldertech’s story and their reflections along the way and also why they are pushing an innovation that should have happened a long time ago.

Innovation Leadership Forum
Dr. Bettina von Stamm | Innovation Philosopher - Story Teller - CatalystSeptember 2021
Innovation - Beware of the dark side!
Nothing has created a greater sense of urgency to innovate than the Corona crisis. The crisis has made abundant clear that we cannot continue on the trajectories we are on, they are utterly unsustainable. Clearly, the only way to get off the current trajectories is to innovate. Yet we should not forget that it has been innovation that has put us onto those paths in the first place! Is innovation perhaps not the panacea we think it is? Is there a dark side to innovation? If so, what does it look like, and what to do about it? These are questions that will be explored.

Siemens Mobility GmbH
Andres G. Guilarte | Global Product ManagerJune 2021
Cloud or Edge computing… What makes Industrial IoT work?
The use of operational data is becoming increasingly important for industry and many companies are already analyzing machine and plant data on industrial PCs using their own software and often compromise on security in order to get the desired “connectivity”. Although this method delivers a great deal of valuable knowledge, it’s resource-intensive, isn’t very scalable and requires frequent manual updates to ensure that everything is always secure and up to date. We will be talking about what “Industrial IoT” really is, challenges and how can we make it a reality.
Cloud or edge? Thanks to Industrial Edge, there’s no question. You can choose whatever you need.

innOsci
Forum for Open Innovation Culture
Marte Kessler | DirectorMay 2021
Collaborate to innovate: How to bring Open Innovation into practice.
Our global challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic or the climate crisis are complex and require a 360-degree perspective to find fast and sustainable solutions. This input will introduce innOsci Forum for Open Innovation Culture. It will describe how innOsci supports policymakers in developing new strategies and instruments to tackle those challenges utilizing the collective brainpower of innovators and relevant stakeholders. Moreover, the talk will reflect on collaborative and open innovation concepts. It will show political strategies and frameworks to support them as well as examples of how they are executed in selected organizations and companies.

Royal Mosa
Frank Spikker | CEOApril 2021
From “brick to mortar” to digitalization; how Mosa. Tiles. bring about innovation in a traditional industry
Innovation is close to the heart of 137 years old tile company based in Maastricht. Throughout the years, the company has transformed the building industry through innovations in sustainability and digitalization, becoming the first tiles manufacturer that reached cradle to cradle silver certification and leading the pack with its end-user-focused digital solution. However, innovation at Mosa. Tiles. does not stop there. The company is continuing its journey towards developing an even more sustainable end-user-focused solution that will create a better future for all.

innosabi GmbH
Catharina van Delden | Managing DirectorMarch 2021
Fostering a Culture of Agile Innovation
We strongly believe that Agile Innovation is not only a means of increasing the innovative output of a company. Rather, it promises to transform entire corporations and the way they interact with their environment. To make fully use of this new approach and to successfully tap into the many possibilities an innovation ecosystem can offer, several requirements have to be met right from the start of an initiative.
In this talk you will learn how corporate culture strongly determines a stakeholder’s ability to play an active part in innovation activities, which factors are vital for framing a new culture and how they help to gain more overall speed and agility, and what has to be done to unite and orchestrate all stakeholders in an ecosystem that helps to pursue great innovations.

Drees & Sommer SE
Klaus Dederichs | Partner and Head of ICTFebruary 2021
Digitalization and artificial intelligence revolutionize the real estate industry
Klaus Dederichs will address the new challenges in the real estate industry due to digitalization. His knowledge is based on numerous professional successes. As Head of ICT – Information and Communication Technology and Partner at Drees & Sommer SE, Klaus Dederichs is responsible, among other things, for the topics of digitalization, business transformation and the so-called Industry 4.0, and Data Center.

Institute for Technology and Innovation Management
Prof. Frank Piller | Christian GülpenJanuary 2021
Organizational Resilience for Innovation and Growth:A Management Framework
Organizational Resilience has evolved as one of the core performance drivers in 2020. While conceptually an old idea, many companies still struggle a lot to prepare for, adapt to, and learn from changes in their environment. In most recent times, digitalization and AI/ML offer new opportunities to manage resilience strategically.
Making maximum use of these, however, requires a holistic management approach in addition to technological capability. Based on our latest research, we present in our talk a framework of three different levels of creating a resilient AND innovative organization – and illustrate it with different case studies from various organizations.

Covestro idea.lab
Rebecca Heil | Innovation ExcellenceDecember 2020
Physical and Digital Innovation Spaces at Covestro
Innovation at Covestro is not limited to the R&D facilities. They want to unleash the full creative potential of their diverse global workforce, in every work area and across all levels of responsibility.
For that purpose, they have initiated several platforms and event formats that give all colleagues the opportunity to come up with innovative ideas, exchange their views on them, and work together on their realization. The presentation shared insights on the way Covestro is using digital and physical collaboration spaces to foster innovation within the company.

RWTH Innovation Factory GmbH
Dr. Casimir Ortlieb | Executive Board MemberNovember 2020
What defines the right ecosystem for disruptive innovations?

Zehetner Patentanwälte
Ericsson
Gabriele Mohsler | VP Patent DevelopmentDr. Andrea Zehetner | Founder
October 2020
How to protect Innovation –
Active commercialization or keeping as trade secret?

HOTEL TOTAL
Kreativ- und Eventagentur
Patricia Yasmine Graf | Managing DirectorSeptember 2020
Zukunft total - Only the brave

WhatAVenture GmbH
Franziska Korn | Partner GermanyAugust 2020
Minimum Viable Company:
The path from prototype to profitable company

eSAT GmbH
Markus Wellensiek | Managing DirectorJune 2020
How to innovate in a highly regulated market

CAE
Dr. Arnd Helmetag | Solutions DevelopmentMay 2020
Innovation in Flight Training

Monokel Consulting
Daniel HerrmannApril 2020
Mutants or superheroes –
what happens when you cross cellar kids and business clowns?

INFORM Gmbh
Adrian Weller | CEOFebruary 2020
Digital Decision Making

Startup Spirit
Rob AaldersJanuary 2020
Why Lean Startup can make or brake your enterprise?

IMP³rove
Martin Ruppert | Managing DirectorMarius Müller | Consultant
December 2019
Value Innovation

Saint-Gobain Research Germany
Karl-Josef Ollfisch | DirectorNovember 2019
Innovation in a 354-year-old French company
Innovation ARchitecT
Dr. Dorothea ErnstOctober 2019
BITs for Blossom

QIAGEN
Dr. Thorsten Harzer | Head of Digital AcceleratorJuly 2019
Next generation sales @QIAGEN:
Creating an experience beyond Amazon

Philips Personal Health
Dr. Maarten van den Boogaard | Open Innovation LeaderMay 2019
How Philips is utilizing open ecosystems for innovation

Aconity3D
Dr. Yves Hagedorn | Managing DirectorApril 2019
Innovation Management in 3D printing:
How to leverage completely new ideas towards commonly accepted solutions?

oculavis GmbH
Martin Plutz | Managing DirectorMarch 2019
Augmented Reality. Hype or Hope?

DSA Daten- und Systemtechnik GmbH
Dr. Simon Becker | Head of Development Vehicle ManufacturingFebruary 2019
Digital Factory & Connected Vehicle:
Leveraging new technologies for a flexible vehicle production

MedCom International GmbH
Frank Leyhausen | CEOJanuary 2019
Silver Innovation, or:
Don't fear the walking dead -
Innovation for the fastest growing and most misunderstood consumer market segment

Institute for Technology and Innovation Management
Prof. Dr. Frank T. Piller | Head of GroupNovember 2018
Innovation 4.0:
What will be Trends and Developments in Innovation Management in 2019?

Grünenthal
Dr. Achim Kless | Scientific DirectorOctober 2018
Implementation strategies for open innovation in pharmaceutical industry

e.go Digital
Dr. Michael Riesener | CEOJuly 2018