Summit Agenda



Wednesday, May 15 |
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12:00 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. Interactive Welcome Lunch |
1:15 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Welcome and Opening Remarks |
1:30 p.m. – 2:15 p.m. General Session: Increasing Speed and Agility through Digitalization and AI This panel discussion will dive deep into the work that RTX (formerly Raytheon) and a energy company have done to increase the speed and agility of their innovation and R&D through the implementation of digital tools, including AI. Topics to be covered include rapid prototyping and iteration, selection and roll out of new tools, and the development of tools in house vs. external partnering. Panelists: Alberto Ferrari, RTX (formerly Raytheon), and Alyssa Mueller, Senior Advisor, Digital at Hess Moderator: Jerry Grunewald, INVISTA Session recording |
2:15 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. General Session: The Innovation Metrics Journey – Showing Value Without a Doubt This session will feature the journey that Owens Corning has been on to adopt new metrics for innovation. Speakers will share the change management process, the digital and automated tools that make the metrics possible, and how the metrics will be used to optimize the company’s innovation portfolio and demonstrate Owen’s Corning’s industry leadership in innovation to key stakeholders. Presenters: Sylvia Little, Carmen LaTorre and Pete Weddington, Owens Corning Session slides |
3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Networking Break |
3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Fishbowl facilitated discussions focused on: (Select one of the topics below when you register.) – How AI will impact your organization and your role. – Methods for better integrating sustainability into your organization’s strategy and processes. – New ideas and structures for improving your innovation processes. |
4:30 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. Transition Break |
4:45 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. General Session: Update: How will regulations around PFAS and other ESG issues impact you? Get the full download on what is happening with PFAS regulations, the impacts the US presidential election could have, global regulations, and what may be regulated next. Fireside chat with Michael Davin, Director, Domestic Economic Policy, at the National Association of Manufacturers and Laura Buen Abad, Vice President, Technology and Marketing, Sonoco Session recording |
5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Networking Reception |
Thursday, May 16 |
7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Breakfast |
8:30 a.m. – 8:45 a.m. Opening Remarks |
8:45 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. Keynote: Sustainability and the Innovation Pipeline at Honeywell Fireside chat with Gavin Towler, Corporate Chief Scientist Sustainability Technologies & Chief Sustainability Officer, Honeywell and Portia Yarborough, Chief Science and Sustainability Officer, Michelman Learn about Honeywell’s approach to sustainability in innovation, from reducing carbon footprints in labs, to calculating Scope 3 emissions for new products, to revamping how they think about sustainability in new product development. Gavin Towler takes a deep dive into this diverse, global company’s sustainability efforts both large and small and the steps they are taking to innovate a sustainable future. Session recording |
9:30 a.m. – 10:15 a.m. Keynote: Quantifying and Generating Value through R&D and Innovation at Lubrizol Fireside chat with Julie Edgar, Senior Vice President, Chief Technology Officer at The Lubrizol Corporation and Lee Green, IRI Julie Edgar shares the work that she and her team at Lubrizol have done to generate value for the organization through both innovation and R&D efforts and also how they have demonstrated that to the C-suite and throughout the organization as a whole, positioning R&D as a key driver of top line growth. Session slides Session recording |
10:15 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. Networking Break |
10:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Workshops Innovation Metrics This workshop addresses two key questions for organizational leaders: Why invest in strategic innovation, which explores new opportunities beyond current capabilities, and what metrics matter and how to track progress? The session includes evidence from various industries, discussions on strategic innovation objectives, and a template for a Strategic Innovation Scorecard to guide participants in tracking their organization’s progress. Facilitator: Gina O’Connor, Professor of Innovation Management, Babson College Session slides Using AI to Expand the Creative Space in Product Conceptualization Explore the ways in which new products and services are being created using new AI tools. Delve into the five critical aspects of new offerings: corporate product borders and expansions, market positioning changes driven by new technologies, driving demand creation and product attractiveness, product and service line expansions, and the incorporation of new technologies into current offerings. Facilitator: Joe Mazzeo, Crossfire Consulting Session slides Practical AI: Listening to Your Consumers at Scale In this session, we’ll explore using the new vCon Internet standard to introduce AI applications in today’s enterprise landscape. vCon captures recorded customer conversations, which, when integrated with Learning Language Models (LLMs) like OpenAI and Bard, offer various benefits including mass customization, operational insights, and market research. We’ll also discuss document-centered AI fundamentals, relevant business cases, and data security and privacy considerations. Facilitator: Thomas Howe, Network Researcher and Designer, Strolid Session slides |
12:15 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Networking Lunch Take a breather from formal session content to digest (literally and figuratively!) and refresh with lively discussions your fellow attendees. Join a topic table based on IRI’s 2024 Innovation Growth Drivers (below) or join peers for a more free ranging discussion. – Quantifying and generating value for innovation and R&D – Building the innovation pipeline – Enhancing sustainability – Increasing speed and agility through digital – Building a future-ready workforce |
1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Breakout Sessions Strategies for Sustainable Growth and Innovation Outpace competition and navigate beyond the challenges that hinder innovation. In this session, you’ll gain a fresh understanding of 80/20, as it applies to leadership, growth, innovation, and overall company success. This session will provide tools, techniques, and real-world examples to help you craft strategies that improve performance and drive growth. Learn how and where to invest, cultivate a culture of innovation, and streamline operations. Join us to understand how applying an 80/20 strategy can elevate your company’s position—even in today’s economic climate. Speaker: Jenn Desrosiers, Managing Director 80/20, Strategex Session slides Building a Resilient Culture to Navigate External Disruption Learn how to strengthen your organization’s culture to better prepare you to weather external challenges that are difficult to anticipate. The pandemic provided us all with a quick lesson in how resilient our organizations are when hit with sweeping, unexpected change. IRI and Babson College partnered to study companies’ responses and what R&D would look like in the ‘next normal’. Drawing on these responses, we’ve been able to identify best practices for companies that weathered these changes well. Join the session to learn from these best practices to better future-proof your organization. Speaker: Sebastian Fixson, Jonathan Sims and Gina O’Connor, Babson College Session slides |
2:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Networking Break |
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Facilitated General Session: Anticipating Innovation Challenges for the Future This facilitated session will delve into current trends, internal dynamics, emerging technologies, collaboration strategies, and ethical considerations to collectively foresee and address the challenges that will shape the innovation landscape over the next year. Facilitator: Lee Green, IRI |
4:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. General Session: Integrating Sustainability Goals into Innovation with Henkel and AZEK The panel will explore the intersection of sustainability and innovation processes, shedding light on how organizations integrate sustainability goals into their product development strategies. Panelists will delve into the intricacies of incorporating sustainability criteria into StageGate and other innovation processes, ensuring that organizational sustainability goals are woven into the fabric of innovation. The discussion will highlight the pivotal role of customer insights derived from sustainable preferences, emphasizing the importance of aligning products with the evolving market landscape. Facilitator: Nancy Mancilla, Environ Panelists: Joel Schall, Henkel, and Dan Boss, The AZEK Company Session recording |
4:45 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Closing |
5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Innovation Celebration and Reception Join us in celebrating IRI’s Innovation Excellence Award winners who have represented unwavering commitment to innovation! |
Friday, May 17 |
7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Breakfast |
8:00 a.m. – 8:45 a.m. Schneider Electric’s Journey: The Balance Between Global and Local Product Development Presenter: Landon Boyer, CTO North America Session slides |
8:45 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. General Session: Six Steps to Turn Foresight into Roadmapping We all know we should look out into the future to see where to focus, but too often those activities do not result in action. Join us to hear how Carlisle Construction Materials, a leading provider of roofing solutions, worked with NewEdge to leverage Opportunity thinking to translate the future into opportunities and develop roadmaps that guide capturing a bigger position in the market. We describe 6 steps to move from trends to plans. We start with a highly pragmatic approach to foresight, map those insights onto the company DNA, translate insights into opportunities. Leverage the ecosystem for richer insight, map the portfolio today and in the future, and vet those roadmaps with the ecosystem. While still on the journey our goal is to provide an end -to-end view of how the future can be turned into action and growth Presenters: Bill Crawford, Carlisle Construction Materials and Pam Henderson, New Edge Session Slides |
9:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Tech Treks MIT Briefing: How can your organization prosper in MIT’s Innovation ecosystem? Is Open Innovation really working for your organization? This exclusive interactive executive briefing will focus on the vibrant culture of innovation-driven entrepreneurship at MIT and will explore what it takes to succeed in such an innovation ecosystem. Speakers will provide tangible examples of what works and what does not work in such an environment. So, if you are interested in learning and engaging, don’t miss this opportunity to gain strategic insights and actionable knowledge. Come and join the discourse on campus! New Balance: Sports Research Lab The New Balance Sports Research Lab is a team of Sports Scientists situated within innovation. There are 3 pillars of Sports Research Lab work, these pillars include 1) New Balance Athlete Insights Engine, 2) Foundational Research, and 3) Innovation Partnerships. With the data collected at Boston Landing, the Sports Research Lab is able to obtain standardized athlete movement and interview data with state-of-the-art facilities and equipment that lead to innovative products and experiences for New Balance consumers. The TRACK at New Balance has over 19,000 square feet dedicated to the New Balance Sports Research Lab. Outfitted with high tech imaging, 360-degree motion capture equipment, force plates that measure foot depression, a state-of-the-art hyperbaric chamber and more, the Sports Research Lab further solidifies New Balance’s position as a leader in sport innovation and technology. New Balance Opens Doors to a World-Class Multi-Sport Facility, The TRACK at New Balance (newsmarket.com) |