Rocket Seeder Board
Rocket Seeder provides access to an unparalleled community of successful industry leaders, mentors, researchers, and funding opportunities, all available to provide real-life experience and support.
Emma Coath
Managing Director
Emma Coath is a highly effective business leader in the agrifood ecosystem, with a career dedicated to identifying and developing innovation for global impact.
Using her extensive network and understanding of the agrifood sector, she has a passion for connecting entrepreneurs and researchers with investment and market opportunities.
Emma has deep, hands-on experience in government, corporate and non-profit organisations, from working with agrifood producers and agtech startups to international banking and trade, with a keen eye for the commercialisation of ideas and research.
Emma holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Deakin University), a Master of eBusiness (RMIT University) and is a Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Will Schmitt
Non-Executive Director
Will Schmitt is an Australian-American innovation expert and international business advisor specialising in open innovation, entrepreneurial ecosystems programming and policy and building innovation skills in large/complex organisations. He has 17 years of experience advising governments, corporate and investor clients on designing innovation strategies and programs and encouraging a culture of innovation and change within their organisations. Will currently runs The Innovation Mission, a boutique, Canberra-based innovation strategy consultancy, of which he is the co-founder. For the past five years, The Innovation Mission (formerly Open2Innovate) has served clients in Australian agrifood, including universities, RDCs, government Departments (both Federal and state) and investors. Will holds several advisory positions in Australian agrifood, including as a member of AgriFutures Australia’s Emerging Industries Consultative Committee and as a Non-Executive Director of Rocket Seeder Ltd.
Will’s current focus in his consulting practice is on the design of complex innovation ‘platforms’ and partnerships and on identifying major market entry opportunities in emerging markets for clients. He has held senior innovation advisory positions with the American aid program (USAID), The World Bank, and AECOM International Development (Australia). Will holds the Master of Science in Foreign Service (with Honours) from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts with Distinction in All Subjects in Government and French from Cornell University.