Maria Thompson

Maria Thompson is a seasoned professional with extensive experience in innovation management and strategic leadership across various industries. Currently serving as the Global Innovation Process Director at ITW Innovation Center, Maria collaborates with global business leaders to drive organic growth through a Customer-Back Innovation Framework. Additionally, Maria develops and facilitates workshops on innovation strategy and metrics while also mentoring organizational capabilities in innovation methods. In governance roles at academic institutions, Maria contributes to strategic objectives linking educational programs with industry needs. Previous positions include leadership roles at Motorola Solutions, where Maria championed innovation strategy and managed intellectual property processes, and applied research at AT&T Bell Laboratories. Maria holds a Master of Science in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Waterloo and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Statistics from Iowa State University.