Biography
Azi Boloorchi,
Director of Innovation & Project Management Office, Revera
Azi Boloorchi is the Director of Innovation and Strategic Partnerships at Revera, a leading owner, operator and investor in senior living with over 500 properties across Canada, US, and the UK. In her role, Azi is responsible for the design and execution of the company’s innovation strategy and start-up investments focused on improving the aging experience. Azi is also the Toronto Chapter Ambassador for Aging 2.0, a San Francisco-based global innovation platform focused on aging. Previously, Azi was Manager of Personalized Cancer Medicine Strategy at Techna Institute and the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, and prior to that Lead of Strategy and Policy at the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. Azi holds an MBA and MSc both from the University of Toronto. A lover of technology, passionate about helping entrepreneurs and frequent speaker, Azi is a member of the Rotman School’s Healthcare and Life Sciences Advisory Board.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aziboloorchi/
Twitter: @aboloorchi
Boloorchi, A.
Workshop
Innovation Case Study: How Academia, Industry, Government, and Entrepreneurs Can Partner to Develop and Scale Technology for the Aging Demographic
Background: To bring products to market, researchers must demonstrate the effectiveness of a new technology on improving the aging experience as well as validate the need for and usability of their innovation. This is why co-designing their concept with their future customers is essential, and why partnering with senior care providers can support innovation in a practical way.
Workshop Outline:
This session will discuss a case study of how entrepreneurs, industry and research funding agencies can leverage their core capabilities to create an ecosystem that fosters the development and commercialization of technologies for and with seniors. Through an interactive panel format, we will demonstrate the effectiveness of the critical enablers of the partnership between WinterLight Labs (a start-up) with Revera (a senior living provider) and AGE WELL (a federally funded research network).
Topics will include:
- How researchers can bridge the gap between technical, clinical and market validation;
- The specific ways industry can help foster innovations that scale
- How policy makers and research funders can create the conditions which enable commercialization of research with measurable impact in improving the aging experience.
Learning Objectives:
For researchers:
- How to engage meaningfully with seniors to deeply understand their needs and wants;
- How to design solutions with the senior at the centre;
- How to co-create with industry who can help to commercialize and scale.
For industry:
- How to choose strong research and companies that align to your innovation objectives;
- How to understand and use seniors’ insight to improve the aging experience.
For Government:
- How to create a strong innovation ecosystem;
- How to effectively partner with researchers and industry to maximize impact and growth