I-Nova is a truly multicultural enterprise aware that one of the mainsprings of innovation is the blending of different talents from different origins. It brings together youth and experience, dynamism and reflection, and the ambition to excel in its field, that of innovation.

I-Nova was founded in 2001 by two dynamic 32 year old entrepreneurs, Gilles Toulemonde and David Carteret. Since then I-Nova has become a cutting edge software and professional service company dedicated to the Front End of Innovation.
I-Nova has offices in Lyon-France and Munich-Germany.
Our mission is to help companies improve their ability to innovate by setting up a Front End of Innovation IT infrastructure.

The management team

Gilles Toulemonde, Chairman and CEO. Gilles holds a Master’s degree in management from the elite Ecole des Mines in Paris. The innovation management study that he has been conducting on 10 industrial groups since 2001 is the basis of I-Nova’s key know-how.

David Carteret, Managing Director and head of research. David holds a Master’s degree in Maths from the Ecole Centrale in Paris, another elite establishment. He started his career at Peregryne System, 30th leading software company in the world, before joining Gilles Toulemonde, a former classmate.

Stéphane Lardet, chief technological officer since 2007, is a graduate of the Ecole Supérieure d’Informatique et d’Applications de Lorraine. Before joining I-Nova and taking part in developing its innovation management solution, he worked in the USA at the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Thierry Bouissou, vp professional services since 2008, started his career at the EM Lyon Business School as an academic Research Assistant for innovation management. After several years working in the Project Management Office of BNP Paribas Singapore and as Business Consultant to the Banking Industry, he now assists our clients to set up their Idea and Innovation Management Systems.

Jacques Brès, Export Sales Director, joined I-Nova in 2009. He has over 15 years experience of selling software solutions for R & D. After graduating from INSA Lyon, he first went to SDRC (CAD, FEM, PLM), after which he spent 10 years with Invention Machine (New Product Design).

Milestones

• Laureate of Rhône-Alpes Entreprendre, I-Nova was selected in 2002 by the European Business Innovation Centre (EC BIC) Novacité, a department of the Lyon Chamber of Trade and Industry. In 2003, it received a label from the Réseau National de Recherche et d’Innovation en Technologies Logicielles (RNTL) for its management tools dedicated to corporate innovation.
• In June 2004, I-Nova received the Eureka label from the European Commission for its correlation technology. This label qualifies I-Nova for an FCPI innovation grant.
• The French regional delegation for research and technology (DDRT) awarded I-Nova the status of a Young Innovative Enterprise in September 2004.
• In early 2007, Vizille Capital Innovation and Sudinnova became I-Nova’s shareholder.