Roby has been connecting the spaces of design thinking innovation, technology and business strategy for 25 years. He was part of the small team that invented design thinking, and with over a hundred clients in dozens of industries, he is a thought leader and frequent speaker on innovation and the connection of the corporate and start-up world.
He has developed technology and innovation roadmaps for resource companies totalling a market cap of $750 billion, and managed strategy, direction and network of the world's largest technology innovation consortium in mining with over 150 member companies. He was the VP of product development and design at the solar start-up Nanosolar, with $0.5bn in funding the best-funded startup of its time and an early unicorn. Other areas of expertise are in automotive, digitalization and hydrogen to name a few.
Teaching at Stanford and as a member of IDEO's global leadership team, he was part of the small group that reshaped Design Thinking into the most relevant innovation methodology.
Roby founded several companies, is a business angel, advises or is a board member at companies in the US, CA, the UK, several EU countries, SA and Australia, was a member of the Digital Advisory Board at Sibanye Stillwater, is a member of the investment committee at Stanford Alumni Ventures/ Spike and Anza Holding South Africa, is on the selection jury of the EU's EIT Raw Materials, serves on the board of the Canada Mining Innovation Council's ventures arm as well as 4 start-ups. He has taught at Stanford for several years, Carnegie Mellon, TU Munich and other universities.
With clients on all continents, Roby works globally, and has visited over 60 countries. He has over 70 patents in his name applied for or granted, has won global awards in design, business and manufacturing, and was a member of Harvard's LILA Learning Innovation Lab, Mensa, and Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes.
