ABOUT DR. DAVID S. RICKETTS






INNOVATION FELLOW
In 2004, David had the honor of becoming an Innovation Fellow in the Technology and Entrepreneurship Center at Harvard. He now co-teaches the popular Innovation in Science and Engineering Class in the Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS).




SCHOLAR AND PROFESSOR
As a scholar, Dr. Ricketts’s is an award winning innovator. His scientific research has won numerous awards from top government research agencies and his innovations have been featured extensively in the press. Together with colleagues at Harvard, he co-created the Innovation in Science and Engineering course at Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
Dr. Ricketts has held appointments at Carnegie Mellon University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and North Carolina State University.
CXO Partner
In an effort to help organizations drive success through innovation, Dr. Ricketts travels the globe as a professional speaker and educator to deliver key insights into how individuals and organizations can spark the innovator inside and utilize those skills for future success. He has worked with some of the world’s leading innovative companies, including Mastercard, Dell, General Motors, Disney Research, and the U.S. Military.
Dr. Ricketts’ desire to improve innovation in the corporate space led him to be a driving force and partner in creating Become 2020, the inaugural edition of an innovation-focused research initiative by Mastercard and Harvard Business Review Analytic Service.

CUTTING-EDGE INNOVATOR
David is a cutting-edge innovator who has worked on ground-breaking inventions including a football tracking system that could one day replace the old “stick-and-chain” measurement system for calling a first down. Created in collaboration with Disney Research and engineer colleagues at Carnegie Mellon, the device, called the Magneto-Track system, uses low-frequency magnetic fields to follow a tracker embedded in the game ball.
AWARD WINNING SCIENTIST
As an innovator and scientist, Dr. Ricketts has been awarded the National Science Foundation CAREER Award and the U.S. Defense Advanced Projects Agency (DARPA) Young Investigator Award. His innovations have been featured by Popular Science, NBC News, CBS News, and Fox News, just to name a few.









DAVID BELIEVES THAT THE CREATIVE MIND IS NOT LIMITED TO A SINGLE DISCIPLINE
An active Performer
David is an avid tenor saxophone player
and has performed for International Audiences.
a Creative Genius
David creates fine furniture and sculptures
by hand – bringing out the complexity and beauty of natural materials.
An Explorer and a Traveller
David sailed from Nova Scotia to the Bahamas
including a month aboard the Barque Picton Castle, a traditional sail training Tall Ship.