Brian Richards created Accenture's innovation hub before his clients even knew they needed it. Courtesy of Accenture

Brian Richards knew from his first college internship that, even as an engineer, he wasn't interested in a typical engineering position after college.

"The pace was slow and structures are rigorous — as they have to be," says Richards, managing director at Accenture's Houston office. "So, there's not much room for experimentation and innovation. I could tell that those were things that were going to excite me."

He found a position in Accenture's technology labs in Chicago that focused on spotting tech trends ahead of market demand. In 2011, he transitioned to energy innovation, noticing the potential for innovation in the energy industry, yet a lot of companies weren't focusing on new ways to do business more effectively.

Now, that's all changed, and Richards says he's seen an increased demand from energy companies seeking innovation projects.

Last year, Richards opened the doors to Accenture's innovation hub in Houston. The hub acts as a one-stop shop for Accenture clients looking for a new tool or better process to do something. Once Richards and his team find a solution for the client, Accenture is able to deploy its team of consultants to scale up that innovation to the entire company.

A steward for Houston innovation, Richards is on the board of Houston Exponential, the city-created innovation arm dedicated to making Houston optimized for innovation. With both of his HX and Accenture roles, he sees the same goals and ideas — from the need for resources to the need to execute plans.

"What we're trying to do in the city of Houston and within the innovation Hub are similar," Richards says. "Houston needs the right skillsets and mindsets, and we need the right skillsets and mindsets in our talent. You got to bring these people together, which we're doing in the city with the Innovation District, and what we did in our offices."

InnovationMap: You started developing ideas and processes for the innovation hub when you were still in Chicago, but when did you move to Houston?

Brian Richards: In 2015, I decided to move my family down to Houston to give it a real shot — we obviously wanted to build [the innovation hub] in Houston. I got approval in 2016, and we launched in February of 2017.

IM: Did your colleagues question your move to Houston?

BR: It was an odd path. Very few people in Chicago aspire to move into the energy industry. When I was looking at the potential in moving down for this, many of my friends told me to go to Austin or Silicon Valley and not to go to Houston — that's not where innovation is happening. On one hand, [at the time], they were right, but on the other hand, they definitely [ended up being] wrong. It's the fourth largest city, with energy and health industries booming. It makes all the sense in the world to try innovation in this city.

IM: What was the reception of the hub?

BR: I saw the innovation hub as something people didn't know they needed it until it was built — within both the market and within Accenture. Obviously, it was a big investment — it takes time, people, and space — and we were in the middle of an oil downturn, which isn't really a good time. But when it came to digital innovation, it was the right time and the right opportunity to make that investment. It took a lot of advocating, sponsorships, and ongoing support. When we look at repeat visits from clients who have been here a couple dozen times, that to me speaks to the demand and the experiences.

IM: Who are the innovation hub's clients?

BR: Most all fall within the resources — chemical, utilities, mining, oil and gas — range from all over the world. They come here because they are interested in what the market is doing. To develop your own innovation, you need different types of skills. These companies aren't able to have the teams of experts we have.

IM: What types of projects do you work on?

BR: All sorts of things, but I obviously can't talk about specific projects, but we organize our studio to have different domains. We have the data science team, which is focused on AI and things of that nature. We have an Industry X.0 cyber team, focused on automation and securing that. We have a design and engineering team. And then we focus on our platforms and partners as our last pillar.

Then, we use three core methodologies together: Design thinking, agile software delivery, and lean startup. Design thinking is putting the user at the center of what you're designing. Agile is running tests and workshops to ensure we're creating value. … They all fundamentally sit at the intersection of improving the business operations by bringing design capability and bringing developers to create the novel product. Then using the leverage and power of Accenture to scale that up.

IM: What does the scaling up process look like?

BR: Most of the time, if you're trying to do innovation, you're going to come up with ideas, use a whiteboard, concept, but it's usually going to have a mix of a different type of process or use of data. Any time you're doing something with new processes or something, there's risk inherent to that. Our innovation projects are designed around you not wanting to spend a bunch of money, because you don't know what you don't know until you start building it. So, we're very much focused on building it, and then when it works well at one plant, and they want to deploy it at 50 plants. Now, it's not about innovation, it's about the ability to deliver that across time zones and geography. That's where the rest of Accenture comes into play.

IM: What's next for innovation hub?

BR: The key for us is growth in general — we need to be able to support that demand we have. We are looking at our capabilities, the people and the skillsets we need, the facilities we need — we're looking at all of that.

IM: In the few years you've been here, how has Houston's innovation scene changed?

BR: I think it's pretty impressive. In 2016, was when we first got the innovation round table at the Greater Houston Partnership together. There were very passionate people in Houston for some time, so I don't want to make it sound like they finally came to their senses; that's not the case, people have been working on this for a long period time. But, what changed in 2016, was that it really hit at the institutional level of Houston — the mayor's office, GHP, Rice University. That's what led to the innovation strategy and to the commitment from leaders. We can't be the Energy Capital of the World or have the world's largest medical center and not have a focus on startups, venture capital, and more. We need that to maintain our superiority. Companies in Houston are growing these capabilities and working with different types of startups — if they can't find that here to improve their companies, they are going to go somewhere else. That was the major shift in 2016.

---

Portions of this interview have been edited.

Ad Placement 300x100
Ad Placement 300x600

CultureMap Emails are Awesome

Student-led startup runs away with prestigious prize at Rice competition

winner, winner

Rice University student-founded companies took home a total of $100,000 in equity-free funding at the annual Liu Idea Lab for Innovation and Entrepreneurship's H. Albert Napier Rice Launch Challenge.

Known as the NRLC, the venture competition features Rice University's top student-founded startups. The competition is open to undergraduate, graduate, and MBA students at Rice.

Five finalists were named earlier this year to pitch their five-minute pitch before the Rice entrepreneurship community on April 22. Each startup walked away with equity-free investment.

Veloci Running took home the first-place prize and $50,000. The company was founded by Tyler Strothman, a former track and field athlete and senior at Rice majoring in sport management.

Inspired by the foot pain he suffered due to the narrow toe boxes in his running shoes, Strothman decided to create a naturally shaped shoe designed to relieve lower leg tightness and absorb impact.

SteerBio took home second place and $25,000. The startup has a patented single-surgery hydrogel solution for lymphedema. It was founded by Mor Sela Golan, Martha Fowler and Alvaro Moreno Lozano. Lozano was recently named to the 2025 Rice Innovation Fellows cohort and Golan was named a Commercialization Fellow.

Third place, and $15,000, went to Labshare, which is an AI-powered web app that streamlines lab inventory and resource sharing. It was founded by Julian Figueroa Jr, John Tian, Mingyo Kang, Arnan Bawa and Daniel Kuo.

Other winners included:

  • Outstanding Undergraduate Award and $2,500: Kinnections
  • Audience Choice Award and $2,000: Labshare
  • Interdisciplinary Innovation Prize sponsored by OURI and $1,000: Haast Autonomous
  • Frank Liu Jr. Prize for Creative Innovation in Music, Fashion, & the Arts and $1,500: Craftroom
  • Outstanding Achievement in Artificial Intelligence Prize and $1,000: Kaducia
  • Outstanding Achievement in Social Impact Prize and $1,000: Kinnections
  • Outstanding Achievement in Consumer Goods Prize and $1,000 : Actile Technologies
  • Outstanding Achievement in Healthcare Innovations Prize and $1,000: Haast Autonomous

The NRLC, open to Rice students, is Lilie's hallmark event. HEXASpec, which develops inorganic fillers that improve heat management for the semiconductor industry, won the event last year. The team also won this year's Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition during CERAWeek in the TEX-E student track.

Lilie also announced its 2025 Rice Innovation Fellows cohort and its first-ever Commercialization Fellows cohort this month. Read more here.

ExxonMobil and Rice team up to develop sustainable energy solutions

In Partnership

Houston-based ExxonMobil and Rice University have announced a master research agreement to collaborate on sustainable energy efforts and solutions. The agreement includes one project that’s underway and more that are expected to launch this year.

“Our commitment to science and engineering, combined with Rice’s exceptional resources for research and innovation, will drive solutions to help meet growing energy demand,” Mike Zamora, president of ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering Co., said in a news release. “We’re thrilled to work together with Rice.”

Rice and Exxon will aim to develop “systematic and comprehensive solutions” to support the global energy transition, according to Rice. The university will pull from its prowess in materials science, polymers and catalysts, high-performance computing and applied mathematics.

“Our agreement with ExxonMobil highlights Rice’s ability to bring together diverse expertise to create lasting solutions,” Ramamoorthy Ramesh, executive vice president for research at Rice, said in the release. “This collaboration allows us to tackle key challenges in energy, water and resource sustainability by harnessing the power of an interdisciplinary systems approach.”

The first research project under the agreement focuses on developing advanced technologies to treat desalinated produced water from oil and gas operations for potential reuse. It's being led by Qilin Li, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Rice and co-director of the Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT) Center.

Li’s research employs electrochemical advanced oxidation processes to remove harmful organic compounds and ammonia-nitrogen, aiming to make the water safe for applications such as agriculture, wildlife and industrial processes. Additionally, the project explores recovering ammonia and producing hydrogen, contributing to sustainable resource management.

Additional projects under the agreement with Exxon are set to launch in the coming months and years.

---

A version of this story originally appeared on our sister site, EnergyCaptialHTX.com.

Trailblazing Houston entrepreneur brings big ideas to new Yahoo Finance show

tune in

Elizabeth Gore, co-founder and president of Houston's Hello Alice, debuted the first episode of her new video podcast series with Yahoo Finance on Thursday, April 24.

The weekly series, known as "The Big Idea with Elizabeth Gore," will focus on providing information and resources to small business owners and sharing stories of entrepreneurship, according to a news release from Yahoo Finance.

“Entrepreneurs and small business owners drive our country’s economy forward. With a record number of small businesses launching in our communities, my goal is to help every citizen live the American Dream. On the Big Idea, we will break down barriers for entrepreneurs and lift up opportunities for every person wanting to be their own boss,” Gore said in the release.

“By hosting the 'Big Idea' on Yahoo Finance, I’m looking forward to elevating business owners’ stories and providing actionable insights to small business owners at a scale like never before. I am blown away to be joining the number one finance news source that is already trusted by so many.”

Gore was joined by Hello Alice co-founder and CEO Carolyn Rodz in the premiere episode, titled "Got a big idea for a small business? Here's your first step," to discuss the steps they took when launching the business.

Gore and Rodz founded Hello Alice in 2017. The fintech platform supports over 1.5 million small businesses across the nation. It has helped owners access affordable capital and credit and distributed over $57 million in grants to businesses across various industries. The company raised a series C round backed by Mastercard last year for an undisclosed amount and reported that the funding brought the company's valuation up to $130 million at the time.

According to Yahoo Finance, Gore's experience and expertise build on its "mission to be the trusted guide of financial information to all investors, and democratize access to quality content."

“Over the past year, we invested in expanding our programming lineup with the launch of new shows and podcasts, and welcomed new financial creators and influencers into our newsroom,” Anthony Galloway, head of content at Yahoo Finance, added the release. “By diversifying our programming and talent roster, Yahoo Finance is introducing unique points-of-view that make financial topics more engaging, actionable, and personalized. Small business owners are a vital part of our audience, so we’re excited to welcome Elizabeth Gore from Hello Alice, whose insights and expertise will help us serve and connect with this important cohort in meaningful ways.”

The show is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart, Pandora, and Amazon Music for listening. Streamers can view it on yahoofinance.com, Amazon Prime Video, Samsung TV, Fire TV, Vizio, Haystack, DirectTV and other streaming platforms. Watch the premiere here: