Invetech, a full-service provider of product realization services with a focus in healthcare markets, has announced the appointment of Gerald Kent as Global Vice President Operations, Diagnostics. Gerald brings more than 20 years of experience in end-to-end R&D projects in a technical, strategic and portfolio management capacity within the automotive and biomedical design and engineering sectors.
Prior to his new role, Gerald served as Invetech’s Global Director of Program Management. In this capacity, he led an important strategic initiative to establish optimized and consistent program execution while also creating best practices for program management across the organization. Before joining Invetech, Gerald spent more than 12 years in R&D with the Toyota Technical Centre Australia (TTCAu), a wholly owned subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation. He started at Toyota as a Senior Engineer, then moved on to bigger roles, eventually serving as General Manager of TTCAu’s Department of Body Engineering.
In his role leading Invetech’s Diagnostics Division, Gerald plans to focus on growth, innovation and team development. “The objectives for our Program Managers are to approach projects from a wholistic viewpoint and with a development mindset, deploying the leadership to support these. By extending people beyond their current capabilities, you build great teams and stimulate creativity and innovation. This allows us to provide a better customer experience.”
During his time at TTCAu, Gerald acquired a deep understanding of Toyota’s lean business principles and their application in heavily regulated environments to deliver complex, multidisciplinary development programs. His achievements include developing and launching new global vehicles while simultaneously reducing vehicle costs. He also standardized work processes, boosted efficiency, and grew the staff’s technical capabilities.
“In a rapidly changing healthcare environment, manufacturers in the diagnostics and life sciences landscape face enormous pressure to develop products quickly at an acceptable cost,” said Andreas Knaack, President of Invetech. “Gerald brings a deep understanding of lean principles as well as their application in a business setting. His experience will help ensure positive outcomes for our diagnostics clients through innovation and improved IVD product design.”
Gerald has a double bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Mechanical & Computer Science) from Monash University and an MBA from the Australian Institute of Business.