One of the biggest hurdles to innovation is getting the problem right. So much time and effort is often spent on solving the wrong problem. It’s just as challenging, if not more, to understand the true root of a problem.”
–Shivani Ludwig PhD, Innovation Development Manager at Xinova
This week’s GeekWire- Geek of the Week is Xinova’s very own Shivani Ludwig. With a background in bio-engineering and entrepreneurship, Shivani has always had a passion for solving problems. Her ability to not only understand problems, but also turn them into big solutions has made her an integral member of Xinova’s community.
Geek of the Week profiles the characters of Pacific Northwest tech, science, games, innovation, and more.
Here’s a sneak peak!
“Here’s an idea: Shivani Ludwig should be GeekWire’s latest Geek of the Week. OK, that was easy. For her part, Ludwig has a much more difficult role in the equation.
As an innovation development manager at Xinova, the Seattle-based spinout of Intellectual Ventures, Ludwig is tasked with trying to turn good ideas into great inventions.
“I’ve always been interested in solving problems,” Ludwig said. “So, with medical school in mind, I chose bioengineering as my undergraduate major to get a good foundation. But as I learned how bioengineers built better medical devices, or drug delivery molecules, or imaging systems, I found myself captivated by these technical problems and clever solutions. This scope for technical invention convinced me to continue on to become a bioengineer instead.” (read more)
Learn more about Shivani Ludwig
Shivani G. Ludwig, Ph.D
Innovation Development Manager
Shivani is currently an innovation development manager at Xinova. In this role, she works with innovators daily and manages their solutions from the early review stage in the Xinova pipeline, through presentation to the client, and then through initial development.
She earned her PhD in bioengineering at the University of Washington. Her research focused on developing a new protein tool that could act as a controllable binding agent in many biomedical applications, from diagnostics to drug delivery. During this time, she also earned a certificate in Technology Entrepreneurship, worked as a research analyst at Intellectual Ventures, and served as a commercialization fellow for Washington Research Foundation through the University of Washington’s CoMotion program.