Untold Stories of Innovation

Why do stories matter to the innovation process? What values can be instilled in innovators who share stories? How do innovation leaders inspire creators to tell and share their success and failure stories? We spoke with Richard Zreik, Co-Founder and CEO of Innovation Girls, a tech startup designed to educate and empower young girls in STEM, business, and innovation. Even as attitudes change, data from ROX shows that young girls’ confidence declines between the ages of 10 to 15, causing them to drop out of sports, math, and science. And it doesn’t stop there. Only 6.6% of Fortune 500 CEOs are female, and less than 3% of venture money is going to female founders. To tackle such large societal issues, Richard discusses how thinking big in the context of tomorrow’s technology can shift the impacts of today’s innovations. Listen in for Richard’s insights into startup failures, inspiration from youthful imaginations, and the story of your favorite podcast host’s own start as an innovation girl. For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent

Why do stories matter to the innovation process? What values can be instilled in innovators who share stories? How do innovation leaders inspire creators to tell and share their success and failure stories? We speak with Marguerite Johnson, published book author of Disruptive Innovation and Digital Transformation: 21st Century New Growth Engines. Marguerite leads transformational growth strategies in innovation, business execution and partnerships. During our conversation, Marguerite offers advice for how to present data-driven and customer-focused stories. For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent

Why do stories matter to the innovation process? What values can be instilled in innovators who share stories? How do innovation leaders inspire creators to tell and share their success and failure stories? We spoke with Leslie Krohn, Chief Communications Officer at Argonne National Lab twice in 2020. First, at the beginning of the year before the COVID-19 pandemic began and then again in September, when it was already in full swing. Explore Argonne National Lab’s research initiatives during the pandemic and how storytelling can enhance the impact and relatability of scientific innovation. In this 2-part interview, Leslie gives updates on the COVID-19 research that is fueling global decision-making and global health.Research links mentioned in this episode:Heart + Mind Strategies:https://heartandmindstrategies.com/category/covid-19/UChicago:https://www.uchicagomedicine.org/forefront/coronavirus-disease-covid-19https://apnorc.org/projects/the-public-outlook-remains-gloomy/Pew Research:https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2020/08/27/most-approve-of-national-response-to-covid-19-in-14-advanced-economies/https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/09/21/americans-give-the-u-s-low-marks-for-its-handling-of-covid-19-and-so-do-people-in-other-countries/For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent

Why do stories matter to the innovation process? What values can be instilled in innovators who share stories? How do innovation leaders inspire creators to tell and share their success and failure stories? We speak with technology leader, Kate Maxwell, who acts as Technical Director & Innovation Leader at Raytheon Intelligence & Space. Our conversation unpacks ways to open the doors of innovation across industry. From supply chain to finance, every team is capable of innovation, and storytelling is the key to bringing those ideas to life.For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent

Why do stories matter to the innovation process? What values can be instilled in innovators who share stories? How do innovation leaders inspire creators to tell and share their success and failure stories? We speak with Bill Tucker, Executive Director at Flywheel Social Enterprise Hub. Flywheel is a home for social entrepreneurs, where individuals and organizations join together to support businesses with social impact and create social change in their communities. From growing startups to large businesses, Bill offers insights into the role of social innovation in a changing marketplace.For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent

Why do stories matter to the innovation process? What values can be instilled in innovators who share stories? How do innovation leaders inspire creators to tell and share their success and failure stories? We speak with Ryan Eder, founder and CEO of Include Health, to dive into the world of tech in healthcare today. He walks us through how he has grown his idea from an undergrad project, to a business, and to a platform through the lens of accessibility. By fully immersing himself in the world of his audience, Ryan has established relentless empathy as the core of Include Health’s story. Check out more stories of inclusivity in health like the Microsoft We All Win and the Nike FlyEase campaigns.For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent

Why do stories matter to the innovation process? What values can be instilled in innovators who share stories? How do innovation leaders inspire creators to tell and share their success and failure stories? Jim Rekoske, a senior vice president of research, development and engineering in the global industrial segment at Ecolab, speaks to the importance of keeping the user at the heart of an organization’s mission and culture. Ecolab’s innovators invent new technology that’s accessible and easily navigated to create value for customers, which simultaneously creates value for the company. Jim explains that an innovation must be communicated through story every step of the way to be commercially successful. Storytelling makes the problem visible to internal investors and reveals the solution’s impact on consumers. For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent

Why do stories matter to the innovation process? What values can be instilled in innovators who share stories? How do innovation leaders inspire creators to tell and share their success and failure stories? We speak with Lt Col Jennifer “JJ” Snow, Chief Technology Officer for the United States Air Force AFWERX. AFWERX seeks to connect with passionate innovators who will create  a better future by advancing the United States Air Force. JJ Snow knows anyone can be an innovator, no matter their age or background. The best innovation stories exude passion, vision, and crosscutting impact. For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent

Alicia Robb is founder and CEO of Next Wave Impact, which is a movement driving impact, diversity, and inclusion in early stage investing. Their global fund is building a portfolio of investments in early-stage impact companies with 99 women investors led by an experienced investment committee of ten women. In Alicia’s most recent book about entrepreneurial finance—The Next Wave Impact: Financing Women’s Growth-Oriented Firms published by Stanford University Press—it struck her that only 2.8 percent of women-led companies receive VC capital. And that number is only more staggeringly low for women of color. She works with Next Wave Impact to disrupt the traditional VC structure—empowering more women and people of color to invest, so that minority founders are better represented in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.Check out Alicia’s book The Next Wave Impact: Financing Women’s Growth-Oriented Firms: https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=24107Read more on Stealth research: Lack of peer‐reviewed evidence from healthcare unicorns: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/eci.13072For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent

Why do stories matter to the innovation process? What values can be instilled in innovators who share stories? How do innovation leaders inspire creators to tell and share their success and failure stories? We speak with Chris Denson, creator and host of the Innovation Crush podcast. Chris shares stories with equal parts humor and insight, leading us through his personal story of innovation and the common truths to which all innovators can relate. Through interviewing and collaborating with hundreds of innovators and succeeding as an innovator himself, Chris has uncovered the keys to innovation: fearless creativity and honest storytelling.Listen to his Innovation Crush podcast: https://thecrush.co/innovation-crush-podcasts/And especially the infamous 189-pitch episode mentioned in this podcast: https://thecrush.co/podcasts/drake-sutton-shearer-the-evolving-culture-of-cannabis/Check out his most recent book, Crushing the Box: https://thecrush.co/crushing-box-book/For more information, visit our website: https://untoldcontent.com/You can also find us on Instagram: @untoldcontent