Francisco Duarte 

Talk about: Interoperability scenarios in digitally connected organizations

Francisco Duarte holds a PhD degree from University Minho in Software Engineering/Information Systems, and a DEng  and a MSc in Informatics, also from University of Minho.

Currently, he is the general coordinator for Industry 4.0 for all Bosch entities in Portugal and Spain and the local coordinator for Bosch Car Multimedia Portugal (Braga).

He is a member of the directive board of the PhD programme in Advanced Engineering Systems for Industry. Since 13 years, he is an invited professor at University of Minho with teaching responsibilities in software development and software development processes.

In the past, he was responsible for information systems management, software development, automotive customer assistance, warranty laboratories, audits, project management, and lean manufacturing.

Géza Husi 

Talk about: Modelling of Mechatronic Systems in the Cyber-Physical Space

Professor Géza Husi is vice-dean of  the  Faculty of  Engineering, University of  Debrecen, the head  of  the  Department  of  Electrical Engineering and Mechatronics, Hungary.

He is an associate professor, a mechanical engineer (MSc, Technical  University  of  Heavy  Industry),  mechatronics engineer (MSc, University of Oradea), a computer design engineer (MSc,  University of Miskolc). He holds a PhD degree  (Military Engineering Science, Zrínyi Miklós National Defence University). He has several years of industrial engineering experience: GE Hungary Kft. His main research areas are building mechatronics, robottechnics, reconfiguration mechatronics controllers (FPGA) and industrial manufacturing systems.

Hans Georg Gemünden

Talk about: The role of goal formation in highly innovative inter-organizational projects

Dr. rer. oec. habil., Dr. h.c. rer. oec. et soc. Hans Georg Gemünden is a Professor of Project Management at BI Norwegian Business School in Oslo since October 1^st of 2015. He was Professor of Technology and Innovation Management at TU Berlin from 2000 to 2015, and Professor of Corporate Strategy at KIT from 1988-2000.

He was founder and Chairman of the TIE Division of the Association of University Professors of Management from 2000-2002. He was a member of the supervisory board (Aufsichtsrat) of ThyssenKrupp Technologies AG (ca. 50,000 employ­ees), from 2006-2011. From 2008 until 2012 he was one of the four principal investigators for Business Administration at Germany’s national science foundation DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft).

He has authored over 150 articles, over 180 conference proceedings, over 130 invited chapters, and 4 books in the fields of innova­tion management, entrepreneurship, project management, organization, marketing, decision making, and accounting. Professor Gemünden has supervised 90 doctoral students as second supervisor (“opponent role”) and 71 as first supervisor (“promoter role”). Seventeen of the first supervised candidates became full tenured University Professors.

Judith Terstriep

Talk about: Norte & North Rhine-Westphalia – Regional Innovation Systems in Transition

Judith Terstriep (Economist), Head of the Research Department “Innovation, Space & Culture” at the Institute for Work and Technology, Westphalian University Gelsenkirchen has long-term experience in innovation and cluster research. Primary research interests involve the interplay of innovation, (social) relations and knowledge from the perspective of innovation, management and spatial theory. Focal areas of work cover social innovation and its economic underpinnings, innovation strategies, regional development, smart and inclusive growth, networks & cluster, sectoral/regional analyses and benchmarking. As part of her research a broad mix of qualitative and quantitative methodologies is applied covering innovation biographies, surveys, expert interviews, moderated group discussions, network analyses. Well experienced in European joint projects, she coordinated among others the FP7-SSH project “SIMPACT – Boosting the Impact of Social Innovation in Europe through Economic Underpinnings”

Marina Ranga

Talk about: Smart specialisation as a strategy for developing regional innovation systems in lagging regions:  How does it work?

Dr. Marina Ranga works with the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre in Seville, Spain, where she focuses on regional innovation ecosystems and smart specialization. Prior to that, she held academic positions at Stanford University, as Senior Researcher at the H-STAR Institute and Faculty Research Fellow at Michelle R. Clayman Institute for Gender Research (2009-2015). Dr. Ranga also held academic positions in Europe, as Professor Assistant in Innovation Management at Newcastle University Business School  and Groningen University (2005-09), Visiting Professor at the University of Warsaw and in the UNESCO Inter-university PhD programme “Entrepreneurship and Innovativeness”, and Visiting Fellow at Sussex University, School of Business, Management and Economics, UK (2009-11).

Dr. Ranga holds a PhD and an MSc in Science and Technology Policy from the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU) of Sussex University and an MSc in Chemical Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Bucharest. Her main areas of expertise include: National and regional innovation ecosystems; Regional innovation and smart specialization; The Entrepreneurial University, University-Industry cooperation, Technology transfer and research commercialization; Gender in innovation, technology and entrepreneurship. In these areas, she developed an extensive research portfolio and publication record, including over 60 book chapters, articles in top-tier journals, research and consultancy reports. Dr. Ranga’s latest book “Technology, Commercialization and Gender: A Global Perspective” has been recently released by Springer. She guest-edited four journal Special Issues on various innovation and entrepreneurship-related themes, serves in four journal Editorial Boards and is a reviewer for over 20 journals.

Dr. Ranga conducted extensive consultancy and advisory work on innovation and technology for the EC, UN, national and regional government innovation agencies. She chaired the European Commission’s Advisory Group on H2020 “Spreading Excellence and Widening Participation” and is a member of the UN-ECE Team of Experts on innovation and Competitiveness Policy since 2007. She is also a member of the International Advisory Board of the Accreditation Council for Entrepreneurial and Engaged Universities (ACEEU) and of the Scientific Board of the University-Industry Innovation Network (UIIN). She is currently involved in DG EAC’s study “State of European University-Business Cooperation”, as Country Partner for Romania, Croatia, Macedonia and Turkey (2016–2017).