Building Businesses and Backing Futures: Rob Wood

Building Businesses and Backing Futures: Rob Wood

June 8, 2026 · 30 min · Episode 26

About this episode

Dr. Shirley Kavanagh interviews Rob Wood about entrepreneurship and empowering young people in business.

In this episode, I speak with Rob Wood, Portfolio Investor and Founder of the Rob Wood Enterprising Futures Academy, about entrepreneurship, scale, reinvention and widening access to enterprise. Rob founded STEM Healthcare in 2007, scaling it internationally before its acquisition by UDG Healthcare. Today, he is an active portfolio investor, working with technology-enabled pharma services and AI-driven healthcare businesses, including AdvanceAI. Through the Rob Wood Enterprising Futures Academy, created in partnership with Newcastle University in the UK, he is also helping young people build the confidence, tools and support to succeed in life and business. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn. To learn more about Rob’s work, visit the Rob Wood Enterprising Futures Academy or connect with him on LinkedIn

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Shirley Kavanagh

Guest: Rob Wood

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Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Rob Wood Enterprising Futures Academy, STEM Healthcare, UDG Healthcare, Newcastle University, AdvanceAI

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