Dr. Ron Dvir

Dr. Ron Dvir “Extensive efforts to create bridges between two national professional communities – the KM and the Quality management communities – which can collaborate closely together in order to improve organizational performance.”

“Vision: In this Knowledge economy: 80% of the information and knowledge, which was created, is available to those who need it, when they need it (as oppose to perhaps 20% in the normal organization today).”

Dr. Ron Dvir is an architect of innovation engines and future centers, specializing in integrating the organizational, methodological, physical, technological and financial perspectives of innovation into a working open innovation system. He has promoted the art and practice of Future Centers worldwide to catapult collective intelligence and imagination of people and communities in the public and private sector. He is one of the original leaders in the global Future Centers community and has been involved in the visioning, conceptualizing, planning and implementation of several Future Centers.

In 2000, Dvir founded a research, design and consultancy studio entitled Innovation Ecology, which develops and implements a systematic practice to the creation of innovation-catalyzing working environments.

Before founding Innovation Ecology, Ron was the first CKO (Chief Knowledge Officer) in ECI, a large Telecom (1996-2000). In that role, he developed and managed quality information infrastructures and total quality programs (1993-1998). Before that, working for Programma Ltd., he was responsible for planning advanced material-handling systems (1987-1993).

In the recent decade, Ron initiated, led and was "Conceptual Architect" in several large scale Research and Development projects that developed models and tools in the domains of Future Centers, Robust Business Development, Knowledge Management and Disruptive Innovation.

Dvir is deeply interested in the role of the city in the 21st century. He believes that the city should not be a sterile, neutral space – but can and must be a life-full hothouse for nourishing individual talents, human passions, communities, democracy, freedom and justice. He was one of the organizers of the first Knowledge Cities Summit in Barcelona - an initiative led several members of Entovation. He developed the idea of the Urban Innovation Engine, claiming that any urban institution (e.g., the city museum, town hall and library) can be transformed into an Innovation Engine or Future Center - a meeting place for the city people to invent their future.

Ron is also involved in the most important field of education. The idea of the Education City captured his imagination – the whole city can serve as one big education arena – providing opportunities to everyone to fully realize their potential. Instead of limiting ‘Education’ to within the school walls and strict schedule and curriculum, every place in the city can act as a learning space, every person can act as a student – and teacher. In 2012 he was appointed the director of the International Knowledge Center for Education Cities, founded by the Institute for Democratic Education. The Center explores the notion of the Education City and transfer knowledge to interested city stakeholders.

Ron has co-edited several books, mostly in the domains of innovation and knowledge management, including Open Futures – an Operating System for future Centers, Unfolding the Innovation Cube and Are you ready to Disrupt-IT – a visual guide to disruptive innovation. Ron is author of numerous papers about future centers, knowledge creation and innovation and he edited a book about the desert – Ramon Crater: a Window into Wonderful Worlds. He recently completed the editing of a book about the art of his father, Arye Dvir.

He was one of the first to organize unique events - "un-conferences" - where everything is accepted, expect conventional frontal presentations. He was co-planner and organizer of the Knowledge Management Fringe Meeting in Amsterdam, the Knowledge Management Contactivity Event in Greenwich, the Nomadic Future Center Summit in the Netherlands and an exploration tour in Tuscany, searching for the secrets of Leonardo de Vinci.

Ron graduated from Cranfield University in the UK – where he earned a Masters in Computer Integrated Manufacturing and PhD in Enterprise Integration. His thesis focused on strategies to leverage the exchange of Intellectual Capital between professional communities. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from the Technion – Israel Institute for Technology. Dvir continues to share ideas, experience and knowledge with his colleagues in the school of management, Haifa University.

Ron is an expert in the power of visualization and art in science and business – and promotes this passion in all his projects. He partnered with his father Arye, a landscape architect and artist, and his daughter, Bar, an artist, in adding art, color and intriguing visual works to his books and in multiple other media. In 1996 Arye and Ron joined brains, hands and hearts with Debra M. Amidon and illustrated her book In Search of Innovation.