Rob Rubio
Innovation, product, experience and strategy — across industries and continents.
I help teams identify opportunities worth pursuing, connect the evidence and capabilities around them, and shape products and experiences that can deliver value.
I have worked across innovation, product and experience units for global organisations including Heineken, HUGO BOSS, PVH, Cargill, Nestlé, Roche, Rabobank and Schiphol — delivered directly and through consultancies.
Beliefs
Not every problem deserves solving. I look for gaps where customer need, business value and the ability to act genuinely intersect.
Good strategy starts by choosing what matters — and being explicit about what can wait.
Insights alone rarely change anything. I connect evidence, capabilities, tech and people when the relationship matters.
The goal is not more inputs, but finding the few connections that unlock a better product, experience or direction.
Ideas become useful when they turn into something concrete: a strategic priority, service model, proposition, or product direction.
I prefer tangible responses that teams can debate, test and improve over strategies that remain abstract.
A concept is not an outcome. I look for evidence of what changed — for customers, the business or the way a team works.
Testing early reduces uncertainty, improves investment choices and makes the next decision stronger.
The work is not finished when the recommendation is delivered. It has to survive contact with teams, systems, budgets and markets.
I design with adoption, ownership and execution in mind so good ideas have a realistic path forward.
Services
Close the gap between innovation ambition and repeatable delivery by building the structures, governance and capabilities that make it stick.
• Operating model design • Innovation governance • Capability building • Change & adoption
Turn fragmented signals and ambitions into clear choices about where to play, what to prioritise and where to invest.
• Innovation vision & horizons • Opportunity mapping & sequencing • Portfolio strategy • Business case & investment logic
Turn promising opportunities into validated business models and concepts, capturing value and reducing uncertainty.
• Business models design • Experimentation & validation • MVP definition & validation • Investment readiness
Connect customer evidence, business priorities and delivery realities into propositions teams can build and consumers want.
• Proposition design • Product strategy & roadmaps • Value proposition validation • Commercial proposition testing
Shape coherent end-to-end experiences across channels, teams and the moments that matter most.
• Experience strategy • Journey & service blueprints • Concept & prototype design • Experience & operations delivery
Move validated propositions into market with clear positioning, sequencing and the operating rhythm needed to grow.
• Segmentation & positioning • GTM & launch strategy • Growth operating models • Commercialization models
Let's talk about what you're trying to build.
Open to senior in-house roles, collaborations, and selected consulting engagements where innovation, strategy, product and experience need to move together.