The Company Road Podcast E71 Silent Revolutionaries: Firing up corporate innovation without getting fired
"The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is in that little extra. It's about focusing in on the right things and fixing them...it's more about solutioning in that space."
– Dr. Munib Karavdic
Dr. Munib Karavdic, an award-winning innovation executive, intrapreneur, and CEO of Wave Design.
In this episode, Munib shares his journey from pursuing a PhD in E-Commerce in Australia to leading corporate innovation and eventually founding Wave Design. He discusses key turning points in his career, including the moment he shifted focus from technical E-Commerce to innovation and customer experience. He explains how he navigated corporate resistance to change, drove design-led strategies, and influenced leadership to embrace innovation.
If you're an intrapreneur looking to make an impact, this episode is packed with insights on how to push boundaries, challenge the status quo, and create meaningful change.
In this episode, you’ll hear about:
- The journey from academia to corporate leadership and entrepreneurship
- The challenges of introducing innovation in large organisations
- How small, incremental changes can have a big impact
- Why human-centred design is crucial for business growth
- Strategies for influencing leadership and navigating corporate structures
- The importance of intrapreneurship and how to drive change from within
- How large organisations can work with start-ups effectively
- The future of corporate innovation and leadership in Australia
Key links
- Dr. Munib Karavdic LinkedIn
- Wave Design Website
- Macquarie Bank Website
- St. George Bank Website
- AMP Website
About our guest
Dr Munib Karavdic is an intrapreneur and award-winning innovation executive. He is an expert in design and innovation, helping leaders and organisations drive growth and confidently navigate change.
As a senior executive and Conjoint Professor at UNSW, Munib has led award-winning teams, developed customer-centric strategies, and mentored the next generation of innovators. He combines commercial acumen with human-centred design to create transformative strategies, products, and services across industries.
With a PhD in e-commerce and a career spanning corporate leadership and academia, Munib is passionate about turning ideas into impactful solutions.
About our host
Our host, Chris Hudson, is an Intrapreneuship Coach, Teacher, Experience Designer and Founder of business transformation coaching and consultancy Company Road.
Company Road was founded by Chris Hudson, who saw over-niching and specialisation within corporates as a significant barrier to change.
Chris considers himself incredibly fortunate to have worked with some of the world’s most ambitious and successful companies, including Google, Mercedes-Benz, Accenture (Fjord) and Dulux, to name a small few. He continues to teach with University of Melbourne in Innovation, and Academy Xi in CX, Product Management, Design Thinking and Service Design and mentors many business leaders internationally.
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