The Art of Making

Welcome to another episode of The Art of Making, where we explore the transformative power of circular business models in manufacturing. This time, host Maxim Mommerency is joined by Sandra Horlings and Christiaan Kraaijenhagen of InnoBoost, experts in circularity, sustainability, and business innovation. 

In this conversation, we dive into how rethinking supply chains, product design, and material use can unlock economic value, environmental benefits, and business resilience. With industries facing increasing geopolitical shifts and ESG challenges, is now the right time to embrace circularity? Our guests share real-world examples, key strategies, and a roadmap for transitioning to circular business models—from remanufacturing and regenerative supply chains to the role of smart design and digitalisation. 

Whether you’re in manufacturing, supply chain management, or simply interested in sustainable business, this episode will inspire and equip you with actionable insights. 

 
Sandra Horlings drives Circular Business through innovation. With 30+ years in marketing and innovation, she helps companies create profit to be proud of through consulting, think tanks, and teaching. She’s a Managing Partner at Innoboost. 

 
Christiaan Kraaijenhagen is a Managing Partner at Innoboost, specializing in circular strategies and regenerative business models. With experience spanning strategy, R&D, manufacturing, and supply chain at Royal Philips, he has co-led ventures in health and renewable energy. A co-author on Circular Business Creation, he has also served as interim CEO of Circle Economy. Christiaan holds an MSc in Industrial Engineering and Management Science, has completed executive programs at INSEAD and Stanford, and actively supports sustainability initiatives as a mentor, board member, and ambassador. 

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How can data spaces – decentralised ecosystems that enable secure and interoperable data sharing between organisations – change how Europe does business? Together with our guest Roland Fadrany, COO of the Gaia-X Association (AISBL), we unpack the game-changing role of data spaces for the European data economy.

We discussed how data spaces, much like a passport, enable trusted exchanges across organisations and industries, how the Gaia-X community develops the standard for transparency and reliability in the data economy, why controlling your data is essential in today’s digital world, how Gaia-X collaborates with global hyperscalers while preserving sovereignty, and which new business models are enabled.

Roland Fadrany is the Chief Operation Officer (COO) of the Gaia-X AISBL, where he oversees the implementation of effective policies and processes that promote and operationalise Gaia-X's vision and mission. Roland has spent over 20 years in international management and consulting roles and led comprehensive transformation initiatives. 

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Innovation can only really thrive when policy allows it to. In Europe, especially with regards to digitalisation, we often look to the Baltic countries for inspiration. Together with this episode’s guest, Dr. Agne Kudarauskiene, Deputy Minister for Education, Science and Sports of the Republic of Lithuania, we discuss the various digital, innovation and education policy initiatives that allow a comparably small Baltic nation to be successful in the advanced manufacturing scene. 

This episode was recorded during the 2024 European Manufacturing Conference, which gathers the manufacturing ecosystem to discuss pressing topics in the field. The European Manufacturing Conference is a co-organisation of EIT Manufacturing, EFFRA, and ManuFuture. 

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In this episode of The Art of Making, our host Maxim Mommerency sits down with Steven J. Spear, MIT Sloan lecturer and founder of See To Solve LLC, to explore how organisations can unlock sustained high performance and innovation. Spear, author of The High Velocity Edge and Wiring the Winning Organization, delves into the crucial processes behind organisational success, emphasizing that innovation is not a single moment of genius but an iterative, collaborative journey. Drawing from his wealth of experience and with numerous examples, Spear explains what sets high-performing, highly innovative companies apart. 

You will hear about: 

• The iterative nature of innovation and why it’s often discovered rather than designed 

• How successful organisations respect the process of failure and learning 

• The distinction between incremental and radical innovation—and why both are necessary 

• Why human collaboration is at the heart of every breakthrough 

• How manufacturing companies can implement winning innovation strategies and cultures 

Tune in to learn how to wire your organisation for long-term success by respecting the process of innovation and empowering people to experiment and learn. 

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In this special edition episode of our podcast, we take you to Manufacturing Day 2024 in Vienna, where this year's theme, "The Speed of Innovation," set the stage for an insightful conversation on the future of manufacturing. 
 
We had a chat with Steven Spear, PhD, senior lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management, founder of See to Solve and author of The High Velocity Edge and Wiring the Winning Organisation. He shares insights on managing for innovation and the key takeaways from his new book. Find resources to wire the winning organisation at http://www.seetosolve.com/resources 

Renate Hüttl, Partner at Moore SKZ, discusses why startups need strong tax and legal partners early on to succeed. 

Finally, Christoph Trauner, Head of Sales at Habegger Austria, highlights the value of industry events in driving collaboration and growth in manufacturing.

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The general reduction in venture capital activity over the last two years, how difficult it is for industrial startups to raise venture investment, and the case for corporate venture capital (CVC) have recently been talk of the town in the manufacturing landscape. To get to the bottom of this, we invited Hans Maenhout, Investment Director at Finindus, a Belgian venture capital (VC) firm focusing on industrial technologies. 

In this episode on the Art of Making, Hans and Maxim discuss: 

• Why the downturn in VC investment is actually a healthy development 

• Why industrial corporates engage in corporate venture capital 

• Why Industrial Tech is so capital intensive, and why VCs often stay away 

• The advantages and downsides of working with CVCs 

• The four questions startups should ask CVCs during their next fundraising round  

• … and many other exciting topics. 

Hans Maenhout is Investment Director of the Belgium-based venture capital firm Finindus. The firm operates as the corporate venture capital firm of ArcelorMittal, the world’s second largest steel producer, and as the venture capital firm of the Flemish government. 

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Taking as a starting point their latest book, Building Moonshots: 50+ Ways to Turn Radical Ideas into Reality, we explore with our guests Tamara Carleton and William Cockayne how moonshots can reshape the European manufacturing industry.

Join us for a comprehensive analysis of how radical ideas can reshape the future of manufacturing, and find out:

• what a "moonshot" and "moonshot mindset" are;

• how science fiction fuels inspiration for truly transformational ideas;

• Europe's biggest strengths;

• the crucial role of government as a funding agent for early-stage research and a first customer;

• how to assemble a team capable of pursuing ambitious projects;

• strategies for implementing a moonshot mindset within an organisational culture.

Our guests:

Tamara Carleton, PhD is an international expert in radical innovation. She is the CEO of Innovation Leadership Group, teaches at several top-ranked business schools and technical universities around the world, and is the creator of practical tools that help teams innovate, like the Playbook for Strategic Foresight and Innovation.

William Cockayne, PhD is a techno-optimistic leader with a passion for transforming science fiction into reality. For twenty years, he taught students at Stanford University how teams imagine, invent, and ship the future. He is an expert in converting blue-sky thinking into brass tacks.

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Together with Sarah Theinert of UVC Partners, this episode uncovers how deep tech venture capital firms can create value for their portfolio (and themselves) through well-executed business development.

Tune in to learn:

• What VCs can offer their deep tech start-ups in terms of value creation;

• How well-executed business development can have a big impact on the exit multiple;

• The difference between a deep network and a broad network, and how both are compatible;

• The opportunities of start-up-to-start-up ecosystem development.

Dr. Sarah Theinert is Director of Partnerships & Value Creation at UVC Partners, a Germany-based deep tech VC fund with trailblazing start-ups such as Isar Aerospace, Aleph Alpha, Lilium, and Proxima Fusion in their portfolio. UVC is closely connected to UnternehmerTUM, the start-up lab of the Technical University of Munich (TUM) – recently ranked as Europe’s #1 start-up hub by the Financial Times and Statista.

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In Episode 5, join us as we sit down with Teresa Hernández Martín, a visionary leader in the industry, to discuss initiatives aimed at bridging the gender gap in manufacturing.

Teresa, Women TechEU lead, is an engineer by training and brings with her 15 years of experience in the manufacturing industry. Passionately dedicated to empowering women in deep tech and shaping the future of women in industry, Teresa offers valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities for women in manufacturing.

In this enlightening episode, Teresa shares her perspectives on the importance of diversity and inclusion in driving innovation and competitiveness in the manufacturing sector. She discusses various EIT Manufacturing initiatives and programmes, such as Supernovas and Women TechEU, for promoting gender equality and empowering women to thrive in traditionally male-dominated industries such as manufacturing.

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What are the three revolutions of manufacturing? What does the future of manufacturing look like? Tune in as Gerd Leonhard, a renowned futurist, delves into the transformative revolutions reshaping the manufacturing industry.

Gerd is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts in London and the CEO of The Futures Agency in Zürich, Switzerland. Gerd's five books, including 'Technology vs. Humanity,' have paved the way for thought-provoking discussions on the impact of technology on our lives. Now, he brings his wisdom to the manufacturing realm, exploring the crucial themes of People, Planet, Purpose, and Prosperity.

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What does it mean to be a global leader? What differentiates leaders from managers? How can young people become better leaders? In this episode, Hannes Hunschofsky answers all those questions and more, sharing his view on global leadership.

Hannes is the Managing Director of EIT Manufacturing East and has nearly 40 years of experience in leadership positions at well-known industrial companies in Austria and abroad. He shared with us his unconventional leadership insights that can't be found in textbooks.

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The EIT Manufacturing Summit is EIT Manufacturing’s yearly flagship event. Its third edition was the first to be held in person - as a two-day event in Brussels, Belgium. For this Summit Special, we talked to four experts on topics relating to the role of skills and accelerating manufacturing innovation.

You will hear from:

• Tamara Carleton, PhD, CEO of the Innovation Leadership Group, on moonshots in manufacturing

• Prof. Robin Teigland of Chalmers University of Technology, on the how and why of educating soft skills

• Fredrik Elieson, Head of Lifelong Learning at Volvo Group, on collaborations to help employees develop

• Hans Maenhout, Investment Director at Finindus, on the importance of CVC and collaborating with start-ups to accelerate innovation

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Pitching can be a daunting experience for founders. How do I find my story? How can I bond with my audience? What if I have stage anxiety? We had an interesting exchange with Daniel Cronin about the power of emotions, how to build trust with your audience, why to pitch your solution rather than your product, and how to overcome stage anxiety.

Daniel Cronin is an entrepreneur, lecturer, moderator, keynote speaker, television presenter and co-host of Austria’s #1 tech podcast, Future Weekly. You may also know him under the honorary title “the Pitch Professor”.

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