The boss of Innovate UK, the national innovation agency, is set to give the keynote speech at the 2023 LeicestershireLive Innovation Awards next month.
Indro Mukerjee will address guests at the awards which take place at the National Space Centre on February 16.
Nominations have now closed for the awards – which are supported by LeicestershireLive sister site BusinessLive and the Leicester Mercury – and judging is about to commence.
Categories include the creative industries, food & drink, med-tech & life sciences and innovation in space.
There will also be an outstanding contribution award for an individual who has achieved the distinction of inspiring and delivering innovation over the course of their career. Previous winners include University of Leicester Emeritus Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys who pioneered genetic fingerprinting and DNA profiling.
Mr Mukerjee is an experienced technology CEO and business leader with a track record within businesses of all sizes across the world, from publicly listed and multinational corporations to new venture and private equity backed technology companies.
Innovate UK has a £1 billion budget to help businesses grow through the development and commercialisation of new products, processes, and services.
The Innovate UK chief executive will be spending the full day in Leicester leading up to the awards, meeting researchers and businesses as part of the Leicestershire Innovation Festival.
That will include a tour of Space Park Leicester, the University of Leicester facility built with backing from the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP).
To attend the Innovation Awards click here
Dr Nik Kotecha OBE DL, chair of the LLEP innovation board, said: “The fact that Indro is making the time to visit the region during the Innovation Festival is testament to all the work done by partners over the last five years to move this agenda forward.”
Professor Nishan Canagarajah, president and vice-chancellor of the University of Leicester, who also sits on the LLEP board, said: “We welcome Indro back to Space Park Leicester, where he participated in the launch of the £100 million space research, innovation and teaching cluster.
"Through world-changing research, universities continue to advance the frontiers of knowledge.
“Nowhere is this more evident than in space, where innovation is driving growth.”
LeicestershireLive editor Adam Moss said: "Indro’s visit reflects how highly regarded our region is when it comes to new technology, innovation and the latest in research and development.
"You only have to look at our annual list of our Top 200 companies to realise how significant innovation is for our biggest employers.
"I'm particularly excited that Indro has agreed to speak at our awards. It's going to be fascinating to hear what he has to say."
The fifth annual Leicestershire Innovation Festival will bring together large and small organisations from all sectors between February 6 and 17. University of Leicester is its headline sponsor.
Last year’s event had more than 1,000 registrations and demand to stage events for 2023 has outstripped availability of places.
This year’s festival launches at Loughborough University on February 6 and closes with the University of Leicester’s long-running Innovation Friday.
