Professor Elaine Saunders FTSE
Gaining Value from research and invention
Australians are innovative. We are also an island nation, which is a great environment for Blue Ocean strategy. So, do we just solve problems, licence it overseas and move on? The COVID-19 crisis has taught us that embracing the value chain not only brings financial value to inventors, be it with more risk but also enhances our economic survival and sovereign security as a nation. So why don’t we embrace that? Elaine Saunders will use examples from her own commercialization and business experiences to stimulate thinking on the best ways to maximise IP value and to grow Australia’s reputation and security.
Elaine Saunders is co-founder and former CEO of Blamey Saunders Hears, a hearing aid and telehealth company, which she led to be the world leader in teleaudiology, to significant award recognition and sold to the world’s leading hearing aid company. She led Blamey Saunders (her second successful company) to win the Australian Good Design of the Year Award (her second Good Design award), with an Australian designed and manufactured self-fit, modular hearing aid. The company was the first to successfully develop and implement a model of blended remote and direct hearing care. She is an Adjunct Professor at Swinburne University, a Clunies Ross medal winner and is on several Boards in the innovation and technology space.
This presentation was recorded at the VIC Division AGM in September 2020.