EELISA Innovation Talk #10 at FAU: Female Innovation

Let’s boost female innovation

When it comes to innovation, women have great contributions to make. However, in the real world of innovation, be it in STEM careers, startups, or venture capital, women are still in the minority and a great deal of innovation potential is lost as a result. Why is that? What can be done about it? And how can female innovators nevertheless be successful? The EELISA Innovation Talk #10 “Female Innovation – hosted by EELISA at FAU, Siemens RIE and the FAU’s spin off service – highlighted different perspectives from successful female innovators who shared their experiences and gave insights into their career paths, innovation experience, and views on female innovation. After their keynotes, a panel discussion and a Q&A session there was also time for networking

 

Impressions from the onsite event at Zollhof

 

(Photo: Sagithjan Surendra)
(Photo: Sagithjan Surendra)
(Photo: Sagithjan Surendra)
(Photo: Sagithjan Surendra)
(Photo: Sagithjan Surendra)
(Photo: Sagithjan Surendra)
(Photo: Sagithjan Surendra)

And this was our great panel

 

Dr. Isabel Schellinger

Dr. Isabel Nahal Schellinger is a medical doctor and founded Angiolutions together with Dr. Uwe Raaz. The company develops innovative devices for abdominal aortic aneurysms – a pathological dilation of the largest vessel in the human body that can lead to deadly rupture. Dr. Schellinger studied medicine at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg where she also received her doctoral degree. Her research brought her to prestigious institutions around the world, e.g. Stanford University or the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. She earned respected merits in science (member of the Junge Akademie at the German Academy of Sciences (Leopoldina) and Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften), medicine (e.g. awards from the German Society of Angiology) and business. FROBES magazine ranked here among the “30 under 30” in the field of „Science & Healthcare“. As founder and CEO of a venture-capital backed medical device start-up, she has first-hand knowledge of the opportunities and challenges regarding “female innovation”.

 

Laura Engelhardt

Laura Engelhardt is Head of Technology and Innovation Strategy at Siemens Technology and Co-Founder at PureEdge, a coaching company. In her leadership role at Siemens, she plays a vital role in shaping the future direction of the company by driving foresight and innovation ecosystems to collaboratively tackle the topics of digital transformation and sustainability. Being a mechanical engineer by education and having worked in various settings from Israel to India, from Thailand to the US, has allowed her to develop a global perspective in male dominated areas. In addition to her leadership role, Laura has also taught and mentored 2500+ changemakers, intrapreneurs and social entrepreneurs. Her commitment to helping others succeed in tackling the most pressing issues of our times, let her co-found PureEdge, a coaching company that inspires innovation and personal growth.

 

Lisa Gradow

Lisa Gradow is an active serial entrepreneur, business angel and engaged in startup politics. In her primary position, Lisa Gradow is currently the founder and CEO of Fides, a governance software that enables companies to digitize and automate their corporate governance processes. She also actively invests in innovative startups herself with her investment firm LionCorn Capital. Previously, she co-founded and built Usercentrics, the leading Privacy Consent Management Platform. On an honorary basis, Lisa Gradow is currently acting deputy president of the Bundesverband Deutsche Startups e.V. (German Startups Association), and is a member of the advisory board “Junge Digitale Wirtschaft” (Young Digital Economy) as well as a senator at acatech (German Academy of Science and Engineering).