Navigating innovation challenges for success with Dave MacAdam

Dave MacAdam is the Director of Portfolio Management for Global R&D at Novelis, the leading producer of flat-rolled aluminum products and the world’s largest recycler of aluminum. As director, Dave focuses on optimizing Novelis’ global R&D project portfolio, including portfolio and project governance, analytics, and economic modeling. Before joining Novelis, Dave served as an electrical engineer for over 13 years on various aspects of semiconductor design, including product concept modeling, analysis, specification, and design. Dave holds a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering from the University of Waterloo in Canada, and an MBA from Goizueta Business School at Emory University. Dave also holds 13 patents in multiple areas of semiconductor design.

Dave joins me today to discuss navigating innovation challenges for success. He explains change management in portfolio optimization and highlights the role of metrics in strategic decision-making. He discusses the need for resource allocation buffers in portfolio management and outlines the challenges of portfolio prioritization, especially when dealing with constrained resources. Dave also underscores the growing relevance and influence of sustainability on customers’ decisions and offers advice to individuals starting their journey in portfolio management.

Addendum: The Ball Aluminum Cups Dave mentions in 27:22 are made of 90% recycled content.

“Prioritize the change you want and be mindful of the time and investment it takes and of the organization that will use those systems. Keep focused on that as your guiding principle.” - Dave MacAdam

This week on Innovation Talks:

• Dave’s role as Director of Portfolio Management at Novelis
• Novelis products in automotive, aerospace, electronics, and construction
• The importance of innovation and sustainability
• What good and bad data look like
• The evolution of portfolios
• Portfolio management in a sustainable world
• Defining the portfolio
• The impact of sustainability on portfolio management
• The push for environmental sustainability in the supply chain
• Challenges related to portfolio prioritization
• Leveraging the right metrics to drive change
• Dave’s advice on portfolio management
• Novelis’ contributions to sustainable solutions
• Change management in portfolio optimization
• The challenges of driving and sustaining change
  
  

Connect with Dave MacAdam:

• Novelis
• Novelis on LinkedIn
• Novelis on YouTube
• Novelis on Facebook
• Novelis on Twitter
• Dave MacAdam on LinkedIn

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