Innovation Ahead by IRI

Thought Leader Interview: Innovating Through University Partnerships: Hollister’s Journey to Strategic Collaboration

Discover how Hollister is innovating through strategic partnerships with universities, and learn about the organizational structure and vision that drive these collaborations. Hear firsthand about the motivations behind these initiatives, how Adrian Defante and his team align projects with Hollister’s goals, and what it takes to be a successful partner. Explore real wins and learn how ROI is approached, along with the challenges encountered along the way. Whether you’re interested in building industry-academic collaborations or simply want to stay ahead of future trends, this conversation will provide valuable perspectives and actionable advice for leaders and aspiring change-makers.

ITF 25 Session: Pulling into Port: Lessons Learned and Looking Forward

Panel discussion with Portia Yarborough, Chief Science and Sustainability Officer, Michelman, Nici Bush, Chief Innovation, Science, and Technology Officer, Mars, and Robert Fast, CEO, Fast Technology Advisors
Moderator: Lee Green, Executive Director, IRI
Leading IRI members look back on the day and highlight some of the key takeaways from the sessions and discussions, across key themes:
– Impact of AI
– Finding transformational opportunities
– Building resilience in the face of uncertainty
They’ll reflect and discuss some of the key next steps to put into action back at home to place you in the best position to innovate the future for your organization.

ITF 25 Session: Preparing Your New Value Chain

Facilitator: Jared Forman, Principal, Forvis Mazars, Rahim Rahim, Director, Forvis Mazars, and Hasan Agha, Managing Director and Chief Architect, ASME (The American Society of Mechanical Engineers)
Discuss the steps you have taken to cultivate new value chain partners — and those you believe you’ll need to take in the future — as well as how to develop the capabilities and technologies that your organization will need in order to work with them effectively. 

ITF 25 Session: Exploring New Lands: Breaking Down Industry Boundaries and Building New Value Chains

Panel discussion with Steven Montgomery, R&D Vice President, Bioindustrials, Cargill and Zara Summers, Chief Strategy Officer, LanzaTech
Moderator: Sean Ammirati, CEO and Co-Founder, Growth Signals
Many industries are going through transitions that mean the customers, partners, and suppliers of tomorrow may not be the same as those of today: Auto OEMs are working with electric utilities, polymer makers with waste management firms, and CPGs with biotechs. This session looks at how to identify and engage the new value chain partners you will need in the future.

ITF 25 Session: Strategic Approaches to Resiliency in Uncertain Times

Facilitator: Lou Gritzo, Chief Science Officer, FM
We are navigating a complex landscape where growth, sustainability, and supply chain resilience must coexist. This session invites you to share how you’re adapting your strategies and guiding your teams through uncertainty, regulatory shifts, and stakeholder demands. Together, we’ll explore emerging gaps and practical tools to strengthen decision-making and future-proof operations. 

ITF 25 Session: Keeping the Ship in Order: Sustainability and Supply Chains Today

Panel discussion with Jose Miguel Bejarano, Innovation Development Lead, Siemens Energy, and Judodine Nichols, Chief Technology Officer, Principal Mineral
Moderator: Amy Thorn, CEO, Supply Chain Leaders in Action
Innovation teams have been challenged to not only deliver on growth drivers, but also to support sustainability efforts. On top of this, global trade disruptions have given them another urgent reason to further rethink how their firms source materials, components, and energy — a trend that’s now shifted into overdrive this year. This session explores how leaders can incorporate sustainability and supply chain into their processes and frameworks in this environment. 

ITF 25 Session: How to Build the Workforce of the Future

Facilitator: Seif Hagag, Enterprise Account Manager, Uncountable 
Discuss your team-building strategies and brainstorm on how to develop the skills, attributes, and experiences that your teams will need to flourish in the future.

ITF 25 Session: Preparing the Crew: Planning Your Future Workforce in the Age of AI

Fireside chat with Jeff Goldman, Vice President, Enterprise Data Science, Procter & Gamble and Katie Trauth Taylor, CEO and Co-Founder, Narratize
AI and other disruptive trends are challenging leaders to re-think the way they staff, build, and train their teams. Still, the robots aren’t ready to replace us all just yet, which means for the foreseeable future our teams will be made up of humans working with AI. Jeff Goldman will discuss the joint study between Harvard and Procter & Gamble, looking at the impacts of AI on collaboration, outlined in The Cybernetic Teammate: A Field Experiment on Generative AI Reshaping Teamwork and Expertise in conversation with Katie Trauth Taylor of product innovation platform developer Narratize.

ITF 25 Session: Spotting Rough Seas – and How You’ll Get Through Them

Facilitator: Mike Holman, Senior Content Director, IRI
This working session will help attendees to explore learnings from Andrea Kates’ keynote and begin to think through how to apply them in their organization. In light of the insights and 5-step model from the keynote, where do you see the biggest challenges for your organization right now — and where do you believe you need to go next?

ITF 25 Session: Taking the Helm: From Stuck to Scale: The New Playbook for Corporate Innovation

Opening Keynote with Andrea Kates, Corporate Growth Strategist & Former Tech CEO
In an era of unprecedented uncertainty, the greatest risk isn’t failing to innovate—it’s failing to scale innovation. Too many high-potential ventures die on the vine. We’re overwhelmed by the opportunities to innovate, and challenged by the pressure to get ahead of risks we can’t control. We need to be resilient. We need to navigate the chaos and uncertainty. We need to lead with a completely different mindset. We need to get talent on board. We need to collaborate in ways we’ve never done before. And, we need to unlearn a lot of the innovation disciplines that worked in the past.