Innovation and the Digital Enterprise

Today we’re sharing another insightful presentation from our most recent Innovative Executives League Summit, where Desiree Vargas Wrigley, Chief Innovation Officer of P33 Chicago and Executive Director of TechRise by P33, delivered a lesson in stakeholder-centric design. Desiree overviews the challenges Chicago’s underrepresented tech founders face and the process of developing TechRise’s initiatives. Highlighting the impact of TechRise and P33, Desiree presents a galvanizing picture of Chicago-based innovation that utilizes local money to generate a cycle of loyalty, growth, and investment that leans into Chicago’s advantages. 

Coupling a charitable mindset and a drive to solve some of the toughest intellectual and scientific problems has led to success for P33 Chicago and founding Chief Executive Officer Brad Henderson. Serving Chicago and embracing the city’s challenges and strengths, Brad envisions the city as a hub for new technologies built on collaborative and dynamic innovation, all while embracing inclusive growth.

While eye-popping capital rounds make headlines, sometimes smaller is better when it comes to venture fundraising. Will McGivern-Smith, Chief Strategy Officer of TrueData joined Patrick and Shelli to discuss what questions to answer for your business when considering venture capital. Understanding the type of company you’re building, the problem you’re solving, and the total addressable market is a good place to start.

Listen in to get Will’s take on what factors to weigh when looking for the best fundraising partner, how to nail your pitch by keeping it simple, and what motivates different types of investors

As the CEO of 1871, an entrepreneurial hub of innovation, Betsy Ziegler is an expert in early-stage growth and helps businesses grow from an idea to the Fortune 500. For Betsy, one of the most important metrics for success is whether a business adheres to purpose-driven decision-making.

This week on Innovation and the Digital Enterprise, Betsy joins Patrick and Shelli to discuss how 1871 is supporting businesses throughout Chicago and what metrics she believes will help catapult organizations to higher levels of growth. Listen in for her insights.

Roger Liew has a track record for leading cutting-edge teams. As the fifth employee of Orbitz, Roger led the team that created the original infrastructure powering orbitz.com. In the years since, he has helped lead many companies and has spent a lot of time leading the next generation of startups as a mentor and board member.

On today’s episode of Innovation and the Digital Enterprise, Roger talked about what it means to add value to a board, why a first-time board member has a hard time switching gears from operations, and why companies that need to hire from the outside haven’t done enough to develop their leaders. Take a listen to the episode for his insights.

Women have been leaving the tech industry since the 90s, leaving a void for a critical perspective. Thulasi Kethini, the CTO of Shiftgig, believes that there are highly qualified women ready to take on leadership roles in the tech space. However, most companies aren't searching in the right places to find female tech talent.

Over the course of the last 48 months, the H-1B visa program has been greatly diminished, largely by executive order. This program allows foreign students who study in the United States a path to a green card. Dick Burke is the CEO of Envoy Global, a tech leader specializing in immigration services.

Lawyers and law firms have to handle a massive amount of documentation. Because of antiquated laws and fear of change, the legal industry has traditionally been slow to adapt to digitalization and cloud tools. That is rapidly changing in the era of COVID-19.

Ever wonder about the process of getting your packages from an online store to your door? This seemingly simple, everyday action is thanks to a complex supply chain with hundreds of touchpoints. FourKites is a supply chain management platform, enhanced by machine learning, that aims to make this process easier. Vivek Vaid is FourKites’ Chief Technology Officer and our guest today on Innovation and the Digital Enterprise.

Vivek talked to Patrick and Shelli about technology versus product development, and his approach of doing the work that is in service to customers. He also discussed why organizations need to make decisions that take into account everyone's point of view, from the customer to the tech and sales teams.

Let’s say it’s almost lunchtime and suddenly you receive a text from your favorite local restaurant with a coupon. You read the text and think, “That does sound pretty good.” You head there for lunch, show your coupon, and get your discount. In a nutshell, this is what Vibes, a platform that helps marketers drive experiences and meaningful customer connections, is all about.

Today, Pat and Shelli spoke to Vibes’ CTO Brian Garofola about the underutilized power of mobile when it comes to driving customer experience. Brian discusses why text marketing and mobile wallet can bridge the digital and physical divide, thus increasing transactions.