Resource Center
Research, insights, and practical tools for innovation and R&D leaders — all in one place.
October 9, 2026
A: How is AI changing the way you solve problems and learn at work? Please find below the responses to this week’s IRI Community Forum Survey. Thank you to those who took the time to add their input! We are exploring how AI is affecting the way innovation and R&D professionals build expertise, address challenges…
Award Winning Insights – From “Know-It-All” to “Learn-It-All”: DuPont & Qnity’s Lean Innovation Culture Journey
October 9, 2026Presentation with DuPont & Qnity October 2026 The Innovation Research Interchange podcast episode explores how DuPont and Qnity developed and scaled a Lean Innovation framework to speed learning, bridge the gap between technical certainty and customer needs, and support better decision-making across R&D, commercial, and leadership teams. Speakers share how coaching, structured cohorts, and events…
Lessons Learned from a Dynamic Partnership: Revolutionizing Paint Shops with a “cold” Laser Curing Oven
October 2, 2026Presentation with PPG, IPG, & Whirlpool October 2026 This IRI podcast episode brings together winners of the Innovation Excellence Award—Whirlpool, PPG, and IPG Photonics—to discuss their collaboration on laser curing for powder coatings, including DOE support and a pilot line in Strongsville. They explain how selective laser heating dramatically speeds cure times, reduces natural gas…
Information session: Shaping Innovation Leaders 2027
September 30, 2026Join faculty from Kellogg and IRI for information on the week-long executive program designed to help experienced technical leaders develop business acumen, strategic thinking, and leadership skills. The curriculum covers finance, marketing, strategy, law, negotiation, and networking, with interactive cases, simulations, and opportunities to build lasting professional connections.
Beyond Commodity AI: Verticalized Intelligence for Innovation
September 24, 2026Presentation with Steve Hafif & Marlene Valderrama September 2026 The IRI podcast episode features Steve Hafif, Co-Founder and CEO of Cypris.ai, and Marlene Valderrama, Principal IP Manager and Senior Technology Scout at Halliburton, discussing the evolution of enterprise AI from general-purpose tools toward verticalized intelligence built specifically for R&D, innovation, and technical decision-making. The conversation…
Community Forum – Which external research and information resources does your organization use?
September 18, 2026Survey responses say companies use multiple tools—off-the-shelf and customized—and often keep separate lists for different engagement types. Challenges include university data availability, timing, and operating methods.
Profile: 2013 Shaping Innovation Leaders Alumnus: Catching up with Mark Smerznak
September 3, 2026What does it take to move from technical expertise to enterprise leadership? Mark Smerznak, Senior Vice President and Chief Research & Development Officer at The Clorox Company and a 2013 alumnus of IRI’s
August 28, 2026
Survey responses say companies use multiple tools—off-the-shelf and customized—and often keep separate lists for different engagement types. Challenges include university data availability, timing, and operating methods.
Future Ready Innovation Tour of Ohio 2026 Summary
August 28, 2026Abstract The Future Ready Innovation Tour of Ohio 2026 brought together manufacturing R&D leaders, higher education partners and innovation stakeholders to examine how rapid technological change, workforce shifts and global competition are reshaping the future of research and development. Built around findings from IRI’s
August 26, 2026
As artificial intelligence evolves from a tool that supports human decisions to autonomous agents capable of planning and acting independently, traditional approaches to R&D governance are being challenged. Yat Ming Ooi examines how agentic AI disrupts established Stage-Gate and human-in-the-loop models, where oversight depends on people reviewing decisions at defined checkpoints. He proposes responsible innovation…
