Gijs van Wulfen

Gijs van Wulfen — Innovation Keynote Speaker, Author & Founder of FORTH

Gijs van Wulfen is an international keynote speaker, author and innovation authority who helps organisations turn innovation ambition into real impact.

For more than 25 years, Gijs has helped leaders and organisations overcome the barriers that make innovation slow, political or ineffective. His central message is simple: successful innovation is not just about generating great ideas. It requires ownership, discipline, collaboration and a structured journey from idea to impact.

Gijs is the founder of the FORTH Innovation Methodology, a structured innovation approach used by organisations around the world. FORTH brings multidisciplinary teams and decision-makers together on one innovation journey, building both better solutions and the internal ownership needed to implement them. This philosophy is at the heart of what Gijs calls WE-nnovation: innovation is not the achievement of a lone genius, but the result of people creating, learning and committing together.

His work focuses on five interconnected themes: Innovation Effectiveness, Breaking Innovation Barriers, Innovation Discipline, Innovation Ownership and Structured Innovation with FORTH.

In his keynotes, Gijs challenges conventional thinking about innovation. Why do promising ideas get stuck? Why does management say no? Why do organisations generate ideas but struggle to implement them? And how can leaders create the trust and ownership required to turn uncertainty into progress?

These questions have become even more relevant in the age of artificial intelligence. AI gives organisations unprecedented speed, but it cannot give them trust or ownership. People still need to understand the journey, believe in the solution and take responsibility for making innovation happen.

Gijs is the author of several books on innovation, including Breaking Innovation Barriers, The Innovation Expedition and The Innovation Maze. His practical innovation methods, maps and tools are used by professionals and organisations worldwide.

Known for his energetic, visual and highly practical speaking style, Gijs combines inspiring stories with concrete tools that audiences can immediately apply. Rather than presenting innovation as theory, he takes audiences on an expedition—showing them how to navigate uncertainty, overcome resistance and turn innovative ideas into meaningful impact.

Keynote Topics

Double Your Innovation Effectiveness

How organisations can dramatically improve their ability to turn innovation ambition into implemented solutions that create meaningful value.

Breaking Innovation Barriers

Why innovation gets blocked—and how leaders and teams can turn resistance, uncertainty and the inevitable first “no” into progress.

The Innovation Maze

How to choose the right innovation approach when there are countless methods, tools and methodologies competing for attention.

Inspire to Innovate

A high-energy journey into creativity, innovation and the behaviours that help people move beyond habitual thinking.

Gijs van Wulfen inspires leaders not merely to have better ideas, but to create the commitment, ownership and discipline needed to make those ideas happen.