Center for Innovation and Change Leadership (CICL)

The center’s last event for Spring 2023 was a panel on the changing landscape of creative industries due to spikes in technological advancements. Moderated by Suffolk’s Marketing professor, Li Chen, “Digitalization in Creative Industries," allowed three panelists to open up about their experience with the widespread innovation that is changing the landscape of their work. They touched on hot topics such as NFTs, virtual reality, and animation. While the industry continues to change, it is important to remain flexible, not letting opportunities of growth and learning to be passed up.

About the Panelists

Professor Robert DeFillippi brought his academic perspective as an expert in innovation and strategy with numerous articles published on how firms can successfully navigate disruptive technologies. Previously, he was a Strategy and International Business professor at Suffolk University. Now, he is working on his recent publication, International Perspectives on Business Innovation and Disruption in Design, which focuses on the role of design innovation in transforming industry practice.

As director of animation at Richard Lewis Media Group, Alyssa F. provided insightful information as to how the museum industry is shifting with the introduction of interactive media. Alyssa manages a team of animators who create digital media experiences for museums and other venues, ranging from large-scale immersive projection videos to interactive phone apps.

Finally, Jay Salois is an entrepreneur and the founder of VRtical Media, a virtual reality company that specializes in immersive and inclusive virtual tours. His business venture allows him to witness the advancements that virtual reality has offered to industries such as hospitality and retail.

Tuesday, January 24th, 2023 Suffolk University and the Center for Innovation and Change Leadership were delighted to welcome Joel Pedlikin of Greensight, Keydell Fuller of Southie Autonomy, and Mike Bearman of Vecna Robotics to discuss the obstacles of getting a tech startup off the ground in our event presented by MassRobotics, “Securing a Paying Customer.”

Moderated by Joyce Sidopoulos, CEO of MassRobotics, panelists were asked to describe their experience in finding their first paying customer, the evolution of their company since then, and the biggest tips they learned along the way. One stand out point was the notion of “creating a chain” or building a client base through the network of already established customers. Sometimes this takes a little bit of luck and a lot of grit, and often we just have to fake it until we make it!

About the Panelists

Joel Pedlikin is the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of GreenSight, a small Boston tech startup developing fully autonomous robotic systems that integrate drones, ground robots, and cloud software. Before GreenSight, Joel spent 17 years in the aerospace industry developing small spacecraft, rocket engines, and unmanned airplanes, gathering extensive experience in aerospace engineering, project management, and executive leadership. He has an MBA from Babson College, MS in aeronautics from Caltech, and a BS in mechanical engineering from Brown University.

As head of sales at Southie Autonomy, Keydell Fuller oversees the complete sales cycle. Currently, he handles the cold and warm leads that enter the pipeline, and then takes each customer through the multi-step process until there is a signed contract. Keydell studied business and technology at Babson College, and he has also held leadership positions, playing a key role in 5 tech-based startups over the past 5 years.

Mike Bearman has been with Vecna Robotics from the beginning as part of the founding team. Mike is a graduate of Georgetown Law School. After working in Big Law, he joined Vecna Technologies and later Vecna Robotics. He has held a broad range of roles within the company with deep involvement in business development, sales support, and a variety of operation areas. In addition, Mike has worked closely with investors to help raise $135 million in funding for Vecna Robotics.

Suffolk University and CICL were honored to host Professor Akrom Omonov, chair of the Banking Department at Tashkent Institute of Finance, this Monday, November 28th, 2022. Faculty and students engaged in an enlightening lecture on the banking system of Uzbekistan and the Russian Federation. Professor Omonov explained the present state of Uzbekistan from the perspective of an insider, its current banking system, and the previous operations before the communist collapse. He also answered questions regarding the government's tough regulations, the potential for digital currency, and the future of banking in Uzbekistan. This event was a valuable opportunity for Finance and Global Business majors to learn about the systems of a part of the world that is often regarded with a question mark.

Professor Akrom Omonov has previous experience in banking for over ten years. He promptly left his position in the industry to pursue his love for teaching and constant learning. His recent research explores the idea of digital banking and how it was affected by the cultural shift of the pandemic. Read his publication here.

On Monday, November 7th, 2022, Suffolk University and CICL was honored to host Dr. George Kassinis for a discussion on sustainability while looking at the culture and history of Cyprus. Dr. Kassinis is a professor in the School of Economics and Management at the University of Cyprus. This conversation was mainly fueled by his research in Corporate Social Responsibility to touch on topics such as stakeholder pressure, the influence of the board of directors, and the consequences of corruption in a company's country of origin. The faculty in attendance were able to expand their perspective on their own research with the power of collaborative discussion while gaining insight on the opportunities that Cyprus has to offer.

About Dr. George Kassinis

Teacher, researcher, and practitioner, Dr. George Kassinis has been a professor at the University of Cyprus for over 24 years while also contributing as a member of the Board of Management at The English School. He got his PhD in Public Policy, Environmental Economics and Management, and Regional Economics and Development at Princeton University. Currently, his research focuses on the strategic choices organizations make in dynamic environments and the implications of these choices for competitiveness and performance. Dr. Kassinis’s work has been published in Harvard Business Review, Journal of Management Studies, and Journal of Business Ethics. Learn more about Dr. George Kassinis.

Suffolk University's Center for Innovation and Change Leadership (CICL) was honored to host a two-day research presentation and paper development workshop with Dr. Charles Noble, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Product Innovation Management (JPIM), on September 28-29th, 2022. Dr. Noble shared insights on how to get published in JPIM, along with the journal’s scope and mission. He also served as a panelist for research presentation from Suffolk faculty and external professionals. This workshop encouraged interactions between researchers as they develop potential submissions to JPIM.

About Dr. Charles Noble

Dr. Charles Nobles is a Henry Distinguished Professor of Business at Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee.

His research interests focus generally on design and development processes, as applied to both products and services. He has published in many leading journals, including the Journal of Marketing, Strategic Management Journal, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Product Innovation Management, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management and many others. Dr. Noble has consulted for many organizations, primarily in the airline, retailing, consumer goods and commercial real estate sectors. He has won several awards for both research and teaching. Learn more about our guest.