Georgiana Menny
Innovation Manager
Main focus: Neurodiversity Innovation Mng
Websites/Blogs/Social Media Accounts:
https://hear-i-am.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgianaelena/
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2kBPy1FUfs3EiINMqbwTpY
Social Media:
Languages: German, English, French, Romanian
City: Freiburg in Breisgau, Köln
State: Baden-Wuerttemberg
Country: Germany
Topics: corporate innovation, corporate learning, future of leadership, inclusion, innovation, transformation, future skills, serendipity, second brain, scanner personality
Services: Talk, Moderation, Workshop management, Consulting, Coaching, Interview
Willing to travel for an event.
Willing to talk for nonprofit.
Here is the English version of your profile for the Keynote database, specifically tailored to attract bookings for both solo speeches and high-level panel discussions.
Georgiana Menny: Neurodiversity, Innovation & Tech-Transfer
The Future of Innovation is Cognitively Diverse Georgiana Menny stands at the intersection of human potential and technological advancement. as an innovator and seasoned speaker, she demonstrates how neurodiversity—ranging from ADHD to Autism—is becoming the ultimate competitive advantage in the age of AI and digital transformation.
Keynote: Neurodiversity – Our Superpower In her flagship keynote, Georgiana dismantles deficit-based stereotypes. She reframes neurodivergent talents as natural-born innovators whose unique abilities in pattern recognition, hyper-focus, and lateral thinking are essential for solving complex modern problems. This session is a powerful call to action to implement cognitive diversity as a strategic "feature" within forward-thinking organizations.
Panel Expertise: Bridging the Gap – Startups, SMEs & Tech-Transfer Beyond the keynote stage, Georgiana is a sought-after panelist for discussions on co-innovation and the practicalities of technological change. Drawing on her extensive experience (e.g., Hekatron, BadenCampus), she provides actionable insights on:
AI Adoption: How diverse cognitive styles accelerate the implementation and ethical oversight of Artificial Intelligence.
Startup-SME Collaboration: Why partnerships often fail due to rigid processes and how to create a "level playing field" between agile startups and established medium-sized enterprises (Mittelstand).
Structured Innovation: Practical methods for identifying technological potential early and translating it into scalable market solutions.
Key Takeaways for Your Event:
The Competitive Edge: Why neurodivergent minds are the ideal innovators for AI-driven markets.
Effective Co-Innovation: Real-world strategies for successful technology transfer between startups and the "Mittelstand."
Inclusive Excellence: How psychological safety and cognitive flexibility drive the performance of high-tech teams.
Nationality: German
WORK EXPERIENCE:
Since Sep 19 Innovation and Sustainability Manager with Hekatron, Sulzburg/Germany
Leading the strategic process of making innovation and sustainability part of the
organizational strategy by considering the strategic foresight impact and the implication for
the innovation portfolio (C-level leadership role)
Leading the transformation process for establishing a sustainable innovation culture within
the organization by introducing learning strategies with artificial intelligence focus and
future leadership principles, e.g., future and data literacy
Leading and conceptualizing initiatives like Working out Loud, Leadership Lunch & Learns,
Communities of Practice and AI Workshops
Jan 14 – Aug 19 Manager Learning & Education with Vitra, Weil am Rhein/Germany
Management of the learning startegies for implementing softwares like Salesforce, SAP
and Success Factors.
Corporate learning and change management agent for the transformation process (New
Work) within the organization
Oct 13 – Aug 16 Lecturer for microeconomics studies with International Business
Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg, Lörrach/Germany
Jul 11 – Dec 13 Project manager with Max-Planck-Innovation, Munich/Germany
Leader of the BMBF Management Program for scouting managers and interim experts to
support the technology transfer within start-ups out of Max-Planck-Gesellschaft
Responsible for entire buy in process of external knowledge in different phases of start-ups
Jul 09 – Dec 12 Key Account Manager with Procter & Gamble, Schwalbach/Germany
Management of a strategic project under the Germany-wide relaunch of a tester unit for a
health care brand
Jul 08 – Jun 09 Consultant Wireless Communication with Phonak GmbH, Stuttgart/Germany
Development of strategically concepts and implementation for the school market by
increasing awareness and pushing target educations campaigns
Jul 07 – Mai 08 Management Consulting/Freelancer CRM Service Line with Accenture, Munich/Germany
Development of strategically concepts for new services within diverse industries
Change Management Consulting Project for an industry company in Bucharest/Romania:
Coordination of the trainings initiative and stream lead of Marketing- and Communications-
teams during a country wide change management project
Jan 07 – Mai 07 Project Management & Organisational Consulting with Sparkasse KölnBonn,
Cologne/Germany
Conceptual re-design of 138 branches and the Corporate Fashion in Cologne and Bonn
Sep 06 – Dec 06 Marketing Consulting with Carlson Brand Enterprise, Minneapolis/USA
Market entry strategy for the US market of a FMCG product with Cargill Inc
Jun 02 – Dec 06 Marketing Conceptual Design with Sparkasse KölnBonn, Cologne/Germany
Observation and interpretation of competitor offers
Production of target group concepts and development of price-political measures
Dressing of business-political decisions of the executive committee
Cooperation in projects and development of short and medium-term marketing concepts
Aug 05 – Oct 05 Internship in After Sales Dealer Development with BMW AG, Munich/Germany
Support with the development of a training tool and data inquiry in central pricing system
Support and elaboration of several collecting mains and area search and composition of
information for an economic analysis
Apr 05 – Jul 05 Consulting Project with Plus Warenhandelsgesellschaft mbH, Essen/Germany
Consulting Project of the CEMS-Master Programme
Developed the market entry strategy and derived the supply chain for the Online-Shop
Feb 05 – Apr 05 Project Management Internship with UNIPLAN Live Communication, Shanghai/China
Project Management for exhibition booth production
Liaison with client and sub-contractors and project budget control and event program
planning
Apr 04 – Mai 04 New Business Development Internship with UNIPLAN International, Kerpen/Germany
Systematic search of strategically important goal customers and qualification of the
appropriate customer data and partner
Providing from goal customer contact contacts to the telephone acquisition
Oct 03 – Apr 04 Market research with University/Chamber of Commerce Cologne, Cologne/Germany
Derivative of an efficient procedure for the covering of the relevant need for information in
form of an integrated investigation plan
Determination of first empirical findings by conversion of the investigation plan in the form
of secondary analyses
Sep 02 – Oct 02 Financial Risk Management Internship with KPMG Deutschland, Frankfurt a.M./Germany
Execution of a comparative study to statements of banks (risk report)
Aug 98 – Feb 01 Bank training with Stadtsparkasse Köln, Cologne/Germany
EDUCATION:
Apr 22 – Apr 22 InterStellar Learning Journey for regenerative business, Berlin with The Dive
Jan 21 – Jun 21 Ecosystemizer Master Class, Zürich/Switzerland with Innovation Leaders
Jan 21 – Apr 21 WOL Working out Loud Frauenstärke with WOL Institute, Online
May 20 – Sep 20 AI for Business Leaders with Udacity Silicon Valley/USA, Online
May 17 – Jul 17 Corporate Learning 2025 MOOCathon of OnCampus
Jan 16 – Sep 16 Certified Knowledge Manager CKM, Basel with Knowledge Management Institute
Mar 16 – Apr 16 Strategic Career Self-Management and Learning how to learn MOOC with Coursera
Aug 15 – Dec 15 Autodidactic participation at the Arbeit 4.0 MOOC of OnCampus
Aug 04 – Dec 07 Community of European Management Schools, Master’s in International Management
(CEMS MIM), Milan/Italy
Specializing in international management and leadership (fluent in three European languages)
Apr 01 – Aug 07 University of Cologne, “Diplom” in Business Administration, Cologne/Germany
Specializing in banking, finance and statistics
Aug 06 – Dec 06 University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management, Minneapolis/USA
MBA Courses: Negotiation Strategy, Group Management, Strategic Management and Business
Ethics
Aug 04 – Dec 04 Universitá Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, Milan/Italy
Courses: Management Consulting, Strategic Management, Derivatives
SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS:
Languages German and Romanian (mother-tongues)
English (fluent), Italian (intermediate learner) and French (beginner)
Skills Collaboration Tools like Mural, Conceptboard, Confluence, Menti, and Obsidian
Hobbies Sports (softball, volleyball, tango, yoga), impro theatre, and building 2nd brain
Examples of previous talks / appearances:
#SecondBrain" ist die Methode, Ideen, Erkenntnisse und Vernetzungen systematisch digital zu speichern, um so freier denken zu können und seine Kreativität freieren Lauf zu lassen. Danke hier an den Input von Georgiana Menny.
#ScannerPersönlichkeiten sind eigentlich #Hochbegabte, #Generalisten oder #Universalisten. Diese Menschen prägt eine starke Neugier auf vielfältige Themen, die in keinem thematischen Zusammenhang stehen. Laut Literatur sind Steve Jobs und Elon Musk solche Scannerpersönlichkeiten.
Neurodiversity: Our Superpower – Unlocking Innovation Through Diverse Minds
In an era of rapid change, the greatest competitive advantage isn't technology—it’s how we think. This keynote by Georgiana Menny challenges the traditional "deficit-based" view of neurodivergence, reframing ADHD, Autism, and Dyslexia as essential "features" for modern business innovation. Through a compelling mix of personal narrative and data-driven insights, Georgiana reveals how neurodivergent traits like hyper-focus, pattern recognition, and radical creativity drive breakthrough results. Attendees will walk away with a clear roadmap for building psychologically safe environments where cognitive diversity isn't just "included," but actively leveraged. Prepare to stop seeing neurodiversity as a challenge to manage and start seeing it as the superpower your organization has been missing.
Key Takeaways
The Competitive Edge: Understand why neurodivergent thinkers are the natural "innovators and disruptors" your company needs to stay ahead in a complex market.
From Awareness to Action: Shift from simple "tolerance" to a high-performance culture that optimizes workplace environments for all cognitive profiles.
Future-Proof Leadership: Master the leadership skills required to foster "Cognitive Flexibility," ensuring your team is resilient and adaptable to any future challenge.
This talk is in: English
Panel-Expertise: Bridging the Gap – Startup meets Mittelstand Neben ihren Keynotes ist Georgiana eine gefragte Panel-Gästin für Themen rund um Co-Innovation und Technologietransfer. Mit ihrer Erfahrung (u.a. Hekatron, BadenCampus) moderiert und diskutiert sie fundiert über:
KI-Adoption: Wie unterschiedliche Denkweisen die Implementierung künstlicher Intelligenz beschleunigen.
Startup-Mittelstand-Kollaboration: Warum Kooperationen oft an Prozessen scheitern und wie man Augenhöhe zwischen agilen Startups und etablierten KMUs schafft.
Strukturierte Innovation: Wege, um technologische Potenziale frühzeitig zu erkennen und in reale Marktlösungen zu überführen.
This talk is in: German
Multiperspectivity in Innovation Management: An Underestimated Skill
In innovation management, many factors play a crucial role in successfully implementing innovative ideas. Often, the "3Ts" - Technology, Team, and Timing - take the forefront. However, an equally important yet underrated skill is multiperspectivity.
Multiperspectivity entails considering various perspectives and approaches to comprehensively assess innovations. This involves not only the company's viewpoint but also the perspectives of customers, employees, and partners. Innovation managers often focus on technological advancements but forget that ultimately, it is the users who determine the success of a product or service.
One approach that fosters multiperspectivity is the Effectuation method. It places emphasis on the resources already available and allows ideas to progress with limited knowledge and uncertainty. Effectuation encourages working with the resources at hand and relying on the diversity of perspectives and skills within the team.
Transversality is another concept that can be linked to multiperspectivity. It involves the ability to connect knowledge and experiences from different domains to create innovative solutions. Transversality promotes the exchange of ideas and collaboration between various departments and disciplines to develop new insights and approaches.
In today's complex and ever-changing business world, multiperspectivity is a key to success in innovation management. It enables the utilization of diverse resources and ideas to develop creative and customer-oriented solutions. While considering the "3Ts" is important, multiperspectivity and the connection to methods such as Effectuation and Transversality should not be neglected to elevate innovations to a new level.
This talk is in: German
In dem Vortrag geht es um die Anpassungsfähigkeit von Organisationen, insbesondere kleiner und mittelständischer Unternehmen (KMU), mithilfe der Kickbox-Methode von rready. Hier sind die wichtigsten Punkte in fünf Sätzen:
Kickbox-Methode: Die Kickbox-Methode ist ein strukturierter Ansatz zur Förderung von Innovation und Anpassungsfähigkeit in Organisationen. Sie ermöglicht es KMUs, flexibel auf Veränderungen zu reagieren.
Phasen der Kickbox: Die Methode besteht aus mehreren Phasen, darunter Ideenfindung, Prototypenerstellung und Umsetzung. Jede Phase zielt darauf ab, die Innovationskraft zu steigern.
Offene Kultur: Die Kickbox-Methode fördert eine offene und experimentierfreudige Unternehmenskultur. Mitarbeiter werden ermutigt, Ideen zu teilen und Risiken einzugehen.
Finanzielle Unterstützung: KMUs erhalten finanzielle Mittel, um ihre Ideen zu testen und umzusetzen. Dies ermöglicht es ihnen, neue Produkte oder Dienstleistungen zu entwickeln.
Empathie: Ein empathischer Ansatz ermöglicht es Organisationen, die Bedürfnisse ihrer Mitarbeiter und Kunden besser zu verstehen. Indem sie sich in die Lage anderer versetzen, können sie innovative Lösungen entwickeln, die tatsächlich einen Mehrwert bieten.
Mut vor dem Unbekannten: Veränderungen erfordern oft den Mut, neue Wege zu gehen und Risiken einzugehen. Organisationen, die bereit sind, das Unbekannte zu erkunden und auszuprobieren, können sich schneller anpassen und wettbewerbsfähig bleiben.
This talk is in: German