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Alex Goryachev

Senior Director, Innovation Strategy & Programs

Corporate Strategic Innovation Group

Alex Goryachev is an entrepreneurial go-getter. He takes risks, thinks ahead, and loves making way for new innovations. Over the past 20 years, he’s made it his business to turn disruptive concepts into emerging business models.

For him, it’s all about a passion to create a strategy and then drive it home to “get things done.” And as Cisco’s Senior Director of Innovation Strategy and Programs, he has plenty of opportunities to put this passion to the test.

He sparks internal innovation by providing employees at all levels the chance to share their big ideas, many of which make their way into the company’s innovation engine. Alex also carries the torch for co-innovation across Cisco’s ecosystem.

He’s especially excited about Cisco's Innovation Centers, which can be found in major cities around the world. Led by Alex, these hubs bring together customers, partners, startups, accelerators, governments, research communities, and universities in a lab setting. Their goal is to discover, develop, and implement game-changing, outcome-based solutions.

He also heads up the Cisco Innovation Grand Challenges. These polished events help creative thinkers bring their technology ideas to life. And then there’s the Cisco Technology Radar, the company’s engine for identifying emerging technology transitions.

Alex began his Cisco journey in 2004 with a singular focus: Innovation. He defined and operationalized several high-profile Cisco initiatives, including the company’s Country Transformation plan for Cisco in emerging markets. He also held senior roles in Development, Marketing, Finance, and Channels, providing him a 360 view of how a great company ticks.

Prior to Cisco, Alex was a successful consultant with extended assignments at Napster, Liquid Audio, IBM Global Services, and Pfizer Pharmaceuticals.

Articles

February 25, 2016

INNOVATION

Co-Innovation Juices Overflowed at Cisco Live! Berlin

3 min read

During Cisco Live! in Berlin last week, 43,320 oranges were squeezed to fuel the creative juices of customers, partners and developers who converged to co-innovate around the Internet of Things. That’s a lot of orange juice! And what a smashing success! With more than 12,000 attendees and hundreds of thousands who joined online, this was […]

February 15, 2016

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

IoT in Action: Innovation in Sydney Gains Traction

2 min read

What do idyllic beaches, a breathtaking harbor, iconic opera house, efficient agriculture, smart transportation – and the Internet of Things – all have in common? Answer: Sydney, Australia. Now, one of the world’s most vibrant communities and tourist locations is rapidly becoming another kind of global hub – a showcase to incubate and bring IoT […]

January 12, 2016

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

Cisco Innovation Centre Toronto Creates Big Bang in Digitization Universe

3 min read

Technology innovations fueling the mass digitization of countries, cities and companies are reignited today with the highly anticipated opening of Cisco Innovation Centre Toronto – the first in North America and ninth worldwide. Yes, the opening created a Big Bang in our expanding universe of Innovation Centers made possible by the Internet of Things (IoT). […]

December 8, 2015

INNOVATION

Innovation Grand Challenge Winners Present Glimpse into the Future

3 min read

During three days in Dubai – what many call the Silicon Oasis — I joined a new and changing world of thinkers and doers. We experienced first-hand the smartest advances in 21st century technology and glimpsed into the future of what’s possible with the Internet of Things (IoT). That future is breathtaking in scope, imagination […]

November 23, 2015

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

Countdown to Winner’s Circle at IoTWF Starts for 2015 Innovation Grand Challenge

3 min read

So now the countdown begins to name the winners of our second annual Cisco Innovation Grand Challenge at IoTWF. Today we unveil the six finalists selected by Cisco judges after a highly complex evaluation process, which started six months ago with 3,000 entries from more than 100 countries. I am calling these next-generation innovators, the Super […]

October 16, 2015

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

New Berlin Innovation Center Accelerates ‘Network Multiplier’

2 min read

At yesterday’s inauguration of Cisco’s ninth Innovation Center in the world, Berlin’s smartest new facility was abuzz with startup-like excitement for the possibilities of what the new digital world can deliver. I mingled with Cisco colleagues, customers, partners, app developers, entrepreneurs, thought leaders and the media in our latest showcase working lab, embedded with more […]

October 5, 2015

INNOVATION

IoT Disruptors: Announcing Innovation Grand Challenge Semi-Finalists

2 min read

I am thrilled to be the first to announce our 15 semi-finalists in Cisco’s second annual Innovation Grand Challenge. Culled from more than 3,000 entries in over 100 countries since June, I can sum up the semi-finalists’ innovations in one word: Disruptors. I want to congratulate all the semi-finalists for making it this far. It […]

September 22, 2015

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

IoT Innovation: Accelerating Rapidly and Exponentially

2 min read

Co-Innovation. Hyper-Collaboration. Sharing Economy. Whatever you call it, it’s clear to me that the global community of innovators around the Internet of Things (IoT) keeps accelerating — rapidly and exponentially. I have personally experienced this disruptive growth in just the past three months, especially in how co-innovators are focusing more and more on solutions for […]

September 3, 2015

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

Tomorrow’s IoT Women Rock Stars

3 min read

Whoever said, “Youth is wasted on the young,” didn’t meet the next generation of innovators. This year’s winners of the IoT World Forum Young Women’s Innovation Grand Challenge demonstrated amazing technical and industry know-how – plus a whole lot of heartfelt social awareness – far beyond their years. They’re not wasting any time at all! […]

IoE Innovation Hinges on Hyper Collaboration

2 min read

Once upon a time, the world’s greatest inventions always seemed to come from individual geniuses locked in a room day and night on their own.  We often think of Alexander Graham Bell inventing the telephone by himself, Thomas Edison inventing the light bulb solo or Johannes Gutenberg working mostly alone to develop a mold that […]

Unleashing Value with Today’s IoT Innovation Leaders

2 min read

Who is innovating the next big thing? Where are they? Will it be you? Whether in a garage, lab, university, startup or coffee shop, we at Cisco are searching the world over for entrepreneurs developing the next innovative game-changers around the Internet of Things (IoT). How will we find you? On Monday, June 22, we […]

Co-Innovating With Our Customers

3 min read

In the past couple of years, I have been delighted to see how the digital revolution has accelerated the pace of innovation at warp speed. It has been even more gratifying, however, to experience how this trend has disrupted traditional relationships between technology suppliers and their customers. Today, the most successful suppliers and customers have […]

Game Theory and the Power of Innovating as an Industry

2 min read

The recent passing of John Forbes Nash made me wonder how his ingenious game theory can be applied to technology innovation. Very simply put, Nash’s theory of equilibrium puts forth that outcomes are more attainable for all parties when they work cooperatively toward a goal rather than against each other in isolation. Knowing each other’s […]

September 26, 2014

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

Announcing Finalists for the IoT Innovation Grand Challenge!

2 min read

When the IoT Innovation Grand Challenge was announced in April 2014, I was a little concerned and apprehensive about the number and quality of submissions the contest would attract.  But looking back now at the overwhelming response and the fantastic submissions, I can honestly say the IoT Challenge was a tremendous success.  And it is […]

Congratulations to the IoT Innovation Grand Challenge Semi-finalists!

2 min read

In April 2014, Cisco announced the IoT Innovation Grand Challenge, a global, open competition aimed at recognizing, promoting and accelerating the adoption of breakthrough technologies that will contribute to the growth and evolution of the Internet of Things.  The response was overwhelming with fantastic submissions. We received over 800 submissions from startups all over the […]