EVENT RECAP: Innovation Forum ft. Keynote Speaker, Michael Tchong - Are you Connected to the Future?

On April 15, the Pennovation Works community (virtually) welcomed futurist and innovation expert, Michael Tchong! 

The Innovation Forum is the opportunity to connect the Works campus with industry-relevant speakers who posses expert level knowledge in the field of business development specifically pertaining to startups. The forum is designed for our participants to recognize the strength in being more aware of what is going on in the lifestyles of their consumers and understand the benefit of leveraging the future. As COVID-19 has shown us, its always best to be cognizant of the future and model “change readiness” and to understand the diversity in the definition of the term innovation. 

Thanks to our sponsors at PCIV and 1776, we were able to welcome our keynote speaker, Michael Tchong via Zoom technology to connect him to over 50 attendees! Michael is an adjunct professor of innovation at the University of San Francisco, and his third book, “Ubertrends — How Trends And Innovation Are Transforming Our Future,” was published in 2019. 

Michael began the forum by sharing a sage Spanish proverb that goes, “Life is a series of collisions with the future.” The pandemic was undoubtedly a significant incident. COVID-19 had a significant impact on business and consumer market behavior. Michael explained to attendees a superior perspective that requires a thorough grasp of the undercurrents flowing through society today to aid them in understanding ways in which they could revitalize post-pandemic while simultaneously be "change-ready" in the event of a a repeat impact. 

A startup needs to be ready for what’s trending by harnessing the most powerful waves crashing into our future, dubbed Ubertrends. These fast-flowing tidal waves are reshaping society in surprising ways. That explains why “change readiness” is a hot topic on LinkedIn these days. Besides the many human values Ubertrends shape shift, breakthrough innovations tend to gain strength in the eye of the storm, further intensifying their transformational force. In an exhilarating ride through the “landscape of now,” Michael painted a riveting tableau of a world recast by the converging phenomena of Ubertrends and disruptive innovations. 

We thank our keynote speaker, Michael Tchong for providing us an opportunity to boost our innovation quotient (IQ) with insights on the process of innovation, from distinguishing innovation types to creating a culture of innovation. His talk showcased many ideas to jumpstart your ability to think outside the box and we are eager to see this impact in the practices of the startups active in our Pennovation Works network.