Molun Zhang
R&D Director @ Coca-Cola | Emory MBA, Open Innovation
- Role
- R & d Director Experimentation and External Technology Acquisition at The Coca-Cola Company
- Location
- Atlanta, GA, US
- LinkedIn followers
- 500 followers
About Molun Zhang
Molun serves as a Director of R&D at The Coca-Cola Company, where she spearheads the Open Innovation strategy with a focus on strategic execution. She is an alumnus of the Goizueta Business School at Emory University, where she earned her MBA, further fueling her fervor for bridging the realms of technology and business.In her pivotal role, Molun is the driving force behind the identification, experimentation, and scaling of external innovations that directly address pivotal industry challenges, including sustainability, supply chain, occupational safety, and evolving consumer preferences. Her expertise has been instrumental in cultivating and nurturing a vast network of external innovators, encompassing startups, academic institutions, venture capitalists, and accelerators. Notably, she has co-led the prestigious 100+ Accelerator program alongside other leading global initiatives.Molun\'s leadership has been critical in realizing over $100 million in cost savings through strategic productivity enhancements. Renowned for her exceptional leadership and mentoring skills, Molun champions a culture of collaboration, curiosity, and creativity within her team and the broader innovation ecosystem.
Experience
R & d Director Experimentation and External Technology Acquisition
Jan 2019 — Present · Atlanta, GA, US
Lead Open Innovation for The Coca-Cola Company- Inspire the external innovators to develop solutions against industry needs - Source and assess external solutions- Experiment (POC, pilot, MVP.) to prove or disprove success within system- Scale external innovationBuild and expand large external network of start-ups, universities, VCs, research consortia, accelerator and incubators. Manage a large team of internal SMEs to assess and test.Some notable work- Co-lead 100+ Accelerator with ABI, Unilever and Colgate-Palmolive to advance sustainability innovation with 18 pilots across 6 continents ranging from sustainable agriculture, water stewardship, circular economy, climate action, human rights and inclusive growth- Dozen technology landscape in engineering, biotech, processing, equipment- Over 90 pilots run in the space of R&D, occupational safety, quality, sustainability and supply chain- Scout 900+ solutions, assess 130+ and pilot 30+ of them annually with a successful in market adoption rate of 25%- Open innovation challenges, reverse pitching and internal crowdsourcing challenges
Education
KU Leuven
Master of Engineering - MEng, Food Technology and Processing
KU Leuven
Master of Science - MS, Biosciences Engineering - Food Technology & Processing / Leadership & Management
2008 — 2010
Emory University - Goizueta Business School
Executive MBA
KU Leuven
Bachelor of Science - BS, Biosciences Engineering
2005 — 2008
Find verified contacts for anyone on LinkedIn
Unifers gives sales teams verified emails and direct dials, enriched profiles, and outreach that lands in the inbox.
Free plan included · No credit card required
This profile is compiled from publicly available professional sources. Unifers is not affiliated with or endorsed by LinkedIn. Request removal of this profile.