16:15-17:00 CEST/10:15am-11:00am EDT/7:15am-8:00am PDT

Innovation is a gamble, but governance shouldn’t be. Companies struggle to predict which initiatives will thrive, often relying on rigid processes that stifle creativity or gut feelings that lead to wasted investment. The challenge? Governance models designed for stability often fail when applied to the uncertainty of innovation.

AI-powered approaches to Innovation Accounting offer a way to bridge this gap. Instead of forcing false certainty, AI enhances governance by generating probabilistic forecasts, improving portfolio management, and providing decision-makers with credible predictive ranges—without overpromising.

In this session, we’ll explore the dos and don’ts of AI-driven forecasting for innovation governance. How can AI help innovation boards make smarter funding decisions? How do we prevent AI from reinforcing biases? And how can innovation leaders use AI to gain buy-in from executives while maintaining agility?

Let’s cut through the hype and talk about practical ways to use AI to strengthen governance, navigate uncertainty, and ensure the right projects get the green light.

17:00-17:45 CEST/11:00am-11:45am EDT/8:00am-8:45am PDT

When you’re tasked to (re-)start an innovation function, what do you focus on first? Two fundamentals are determining the different types of innovation the organization wants, in conversation with several stakeholders, as well as defining the metrics you’ll be measuring against.

But there are many other items to consider- and above all, it’s how you orchestrate them and manage the organizational dynamics and content that will make the difference between success and failure in the long run.

In this fireside chat with Mariano Maluf, we’ll hear about the approach he took at Coca-Cola, NCR and Kimberly-Clark.

15:15-16:00 CEST/9:15am-10:00am EDT/6:15am-7:00am PDT

There is an invisible phase early in the innovation process that can feel like Innovation Purgatory. Even experienced teams can lose months or years as:
– The same conversations seem to happen over and over
– There’s a lot of busy work but somehow little progress
– It’s important to avoid the wrong solution, but nobody knows the right solution
– There are many potential tasks, but none of them seem to come next

There is actually a very easy trick to getting out of this Pre-Tangible Stage reliably every single time: roadmap to solve risk first, before generating solutions.

Innovation teams using Prototype Thinking constantly tell us they:
– Saved 4-12 months of work
– Avoided 6-7 figure mistakes
– Cut 80% of wasted time in meetings

Bring a real project you feel less than 40% confident about how to solve.
Leave with an action plan and a tool you to turn any debate to productive action in under 10 mins.

16:00-16:45 CEST/10:00am-10:45am EDT/7:00am-7:45am PDT

In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, innovation has to focus on social requirements. Purpose-driven innovation is crucial for inspiring social and economic wealth, fostering inclusivity, and driving meaningful change. By focusing on universal accessibility, digital transformation, and the engagement of vulnerable employees, we can create a more equitable and sustainable future.

What will we discuss?
Our session will delve into the evolution of the innovation with purpose model, highlighting key aspects such as:
– Universal Accessibility: Ensuring accessible to everyone in the hotel sector,
– Special Employment Centers: how to support a business model with disabled employees at the core.
– Digital Transformation: Leveraging technology to drive innovation and improve processes.
– #InnovACTION: A call to action for all stakeholders to co-create with them.
– Culture: Exploring the internal culture and the InnovACTION X-PACE Ecosystem that supports innovation.
– Indicators of Success: Identifying metrics to measure the success of the innovation initiatives.

Takeaways
Participants will leave the session with:
1. An understanding of purpose-driven innovation and its role in inspiring social and economic wealth.
2. Insights into the #InnovACTION model for co-creating with all stakeholders, with the employee at the core.
3. Strategies for engaging vulnerable employees
4. Knowledge of the relevance of DEIB coaches, mentors, and transformation ambassadors in driving innovation.

19:15-20:00 CEST/1:15pm-2:00pm EDT/10:15am-11:00am PDT

For large, well-established companies, innovation isn’t just a strategic priority, it’s a necessity for survival in fast-changing markets. Yet, fostering innovation within legacy organizations presents significant challenges, especially when cultural inertia and entrenched behaviors stand in the way.

In this highly interactive session, Noel Sobelman of Accel Management Group shares real-world insights and practical strategies for overcoming these challenges, aligning leadership priorities, and driving meaningful innovation.

Attendees will leave with actionable tools and lessons learned from global companies that have successfully transformed their innovation capabilities.

20:00-20:45 CEST/2:00pm-2:45pm EDT/11:00am-11:45am PDT

Many individuals and organizations struggle with what can be termed a “”creative distortion field”” – a complex web of limiting beliefs, cognitive biases, and outdated practices that stifle the flow of new ideas and hinder the ability to achieve creative velocity. Creative velocity —your ability to quickly originate new and innovative ideas that are useful and valuable—is a critical skill in product innovation, startup growth, executive leadership, and problem-solving.

The creative distortion field generates an environment where individuals or organizations claim to embrace change or innovation while avoiding the fundamental challenges that require real solutions. This distortion misleads leaders, stakeholders, and participants into believing that simply designating a specific group of employees as the “”innovation engine”” will instigate the focus necessary for true transformation. As a result, the organization becomes trapped in a cycle of innovation it cannot commercialize, ultimately fostering a culture that creates a division among employees. It is essential to confront these underlying issues and integrate effective solutions to achieve meaningful progress.

This presentation explores how to identify and neutralize the fixations and distortions that block expansive creative thinking, empowering everyone in the organization to access their creative capacity to imagine innovative solutions. You’ll learn practical techniques you can use when you partner with Generative AI to build creative velocity.