Roger GrayProduct & commercialisation leader
Sydney, AustraliaLocal time

Design, engineering and commercial judgement.
Building products, teams and ventures.

Portfolio / Design and Business Leadership

The Imagination Factory

Building a consultancy

Co-owner, Co-Managing Director and Design Director | 2016–2022

I helped grow The Imagination Factory from a three-person startup into a multidisciplinary consultancy with 12 full-time company members, supported by specialist partners. Alongside design leadership, I shared executive responsibility for strategy, finances, people, resources and delivery.

BUILDING THE BUSINESS

I combined client development with responsibility for the quality and commercial delivery of programmes. Relationships and work I developed contributed approximately half of company revenue. I worked with founders, executives and technical partners to shape briefs, assess opportunities and turn emerging technology into practical development programmes.

LEADING PEOPLE AND DESIGN

A Design Manager reported to me and led the industrial and graphic design team. I set direction through reviews, workshops and client discussions, while recruiting and developing designers from graduate through to senior level. Our full-time team worked with a wider network of specialists in electronics, firmware, software, UX/UI, human factors, regulation, optics and manufacturing.

CONNECTING STRATEGY WITH DELIVERY

My remit extended from research and concept direction through engineering coordination, prototyping, supplier development and commercialisation. The portfolio spanned consumer products, connected experiences, medical technology, professional equipment and circular-design research.

SELECTED PROGRAMMES

Mantis — multidisciplinary next-generation product-range development
eCAP — connected implanted gastrointestinal diagnostics
PolyCE — practical circular-design guidance
SwimAR — product, display and app prototypes
PlasmaTrack — commercialisation and venture governance

Explore these cases through Selected Work and Projects. They distinguish my responsibilities from the contributions of the wider teams. PlasmaTrack’s research involvement and board appointment are recorded separately on its project page.

Next projectPlasmaTrack