Andy is a recovering academic who holds an undergraduate degree in Management Science from Loughborough University and a Master’s degree in Creativity and Change Management from the State University of New York in Buffalo. Prior to starting Knowinnovation, Andy served as a research fellow in the Entrepreneurship department of the Cranfield School of Management, where he co-developed the Centre for Creativity.

Andy ran his first interdisciplinary innovation workshop for academic scientists in 2004. At the time it seemed as though this would just be an interesting one-off experiment. However, it turned out that deliberate creativity managed to do for researchers what they had been trying to do for decades: break down silos and accelerate innovation. According to Andy, it was all a happy accident, which has consumed the next 20 years of his life.

Sneak Preview: Andy’s co-workers appreciate his empowering style. They note he has never been heard telling anyone what they ‘should’ do. Co-workers and clients alike appreciate the way he listens to their stream of consciousness ideas or the challenges they are experiencing. He summarizes what he has heard, giving a novel perspective on how to move forward or resolve difficulties.

At the water cooler? Ask Andy about: Coaching a local FIRST Robotics team, where he is a programming mentor.