Nigel joins us to discuss the subject of innovation and the role it plays within the life of a business. Nigel Flynn has worked as an international Inventor; New Product Developer and Entrepreneur throughout his adult professional career in Western Europe and North America.
Nigel Flynn works as an Innovation Professional at the interface of Science; Technology and Business. He devises and develops New Products for companies, building the value of those products, and the companies that sell them. Nigel consults Globally with businesses ranging anywhere in size from Start-ups to Fortune 500’s.
His first job within the Corporate world gave him the highly desirable title of ‘Corporate Inventor’ for a European-based Multinational Corporation. Nigel shares with us his story of how he came to win that job, and what happened next, is the kind of story that would fuel the ambition of anyone with a passion for Innovation.
He has served in business management positions that include responsibilities within: New Product Development; New Business Development and as the COO of businesses ranging in size from diverse multinationals to a five person start-up. More recently, he has also raised millions of dollars in investment funding for start-up companies in the service of their early stage investment capital needs.
His early work in corporate innovation created over a dozen internationally held patents for previous sponsors. He produced the world’s most effective radar absorbent material within nine months of joining his first employer, as well as a highly conductive specialist material with over twenty Military, Communications and Consumer product applications. This newly created product category earned him a coveted European EDANA Innovation award, for the most innovative specialist material developed in a four year period within the Western European Nonwovens Industry. He has also developed numerous other products for: Medical; Military and Consumer end-use applications; including a range of biodegradable products.
Nigel’s career as an innovator began during his PhD research in the field of Chemistry, Materials Science and Applied Molecular Biology, when he accidentally discovered a method of purifying wood pulp cellulose to permit the efficient conversion of wood pulp cellulose into ethanol. This resulted in his first world-wide patent with British Petroleum Venture Research Group, while he was investigating the fundamental properties of cellulosic fiber bonding in wood pulp and paper.
Today he works as a Global Consultant for companies from Start-Ups to Fortune 500’s in New Product and New Business Development within the fields of: Consumer; Medical and Military Products. He specifically focuses upon innovation within products that are rich in technology, with a special emphasis upon: Chemistry; Materials Science and the biological Sciences; through his contribution to Slingshot Product Development Group. He also advises upon Intellectual Property. Additionally, Nigel independently supports clients in sectors as diverse as: the automotive and electronics industry; the filtration equipment sector; Industrial digital training systems; the firearms industry and cardiac diagnostics.
Listen as Nigel talks about his experiences innovating for major corporations, and his current work as an Innovation professional, consulting with companies large and small, to bring technology from science, and business success from innovations within technology.
