Erlangen, Germany · Siemens Energy

Turning innovation
into scalable value|

I'm Salman Khaliq, Global Operational Innovation Project Manager. I build innovation governance, steer portfolios from idea to business handover, and report to senior management up to board level.

Explore my journey → LinkedIn
Portrait of Salman Khaliq
🏛️ CFR Fellow
⚡ 10+ yrs Siemens Energy
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0years at Siemens Energy
0global innovation centers steered
0Innovation Platforms (corporate taskforces) led
0early portfolio alignment before handover

01 — About

Engineer by training.
Strategist by choice.

I started on the shop floor of high-voltage technology — commissioning HVDC systems in Brazil and Germany — and moved into corporate innovation, where I owned Siemens Energy's early-stage R&D portfolio across innovation horizons.

Today I lead cross-functional innovation projects across global transformer factories, from intake through pilot to scale-readiness. I combine an engineering foundation (MSc, TU Darmstadt) with an MBA to make sure pilots are designed for replication, not one-off success.

🌐
Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), USA — CEO Program
Nominated Fellow, Emerging Leaders in Business and Geopolitics — bringing a geopolitical lens to innovation and investment decisions.

02 — What I do

Three things I'm known for

🧭

Innovation governance

Designed a stage-gate and innovation-horizon framework with clear start/stop and prioritization criteria — transparent budgets, faster kills, focused scaling.

🚀

Pilot-to-scale

Scale-readiness plans with timelines, investment, value tracking and risk mitigation — so a successful pilot in one factory becomes the standard in many.

📊

Executive reporting

Portfolio KPIs, dashboards and review cycles that turn complex portfolios into clear decision proposals for innovation councils and the board.

03 — Journey

From 800 kV to the boardroom

  1. 11/2026 — now

    Global Operational Innovation Project Manager

    Siemens Energy · GT Transformers · Network Management

    Leading innovation across global transformer factories; aligning factory leaders, Engineering, EHS, Quality, IT/OT and Finance; building local innovation champions.

  2. 2022 — 2026

    Corporate Technology & Innovation Manager

    Siemens Energy · CEO Function · Corporate Innovation

    Owned the corporate early-stage R&D portfolio. Translated Innovation Platforms (Resilient Grids, Materials, Robotics) into roadmaps. Directed matrix teams across four global innovation centers. Co-led corporate technology foresight.

  3. 2020 — 2022

    Project Lead — HVDC Integration & Testing

    Dolwin6 · 320 kV · 900 MW VSC offshore

    Led the full software lifecycle from requirements to integration testing — delivered on time and within budget.

  4. 2018 — 2020

    HVDC C&P Software Design Engineer

    Offshore wind reference design · Dolwin6

    Developed open-loop control software later reused in two projects.

  5. 2015 — 2018

    HVDC Testing & Commissioning Engineer

    Belo Monte 800 kV · 4 GW (Brazil) · Borwin3 (Germany)

    Directed factory testing, onsite commissioning and energization of full HVDC systems.

04 — Expertise

Toolbox

Innovation Portfolio GovernanceStage-Gate & PrioritizationPilot-to-Scale & Value TrackingKPI DashboardsBoard-level Stakeholder ManagementMatrix LeadershipChange ManagementSix Sigma Green BeltTechnology ForesightStrategy & GeopoliticsPower BITableauCopilot StudioMATLABHVDC
MBAOhm Professional School, TH Nürnberg · 2024
MSc Electrical Power EngineeringTU Darmstadt · 2015
LanguagesPashto · English · Urdu · German · Hindi · Arabic

05 — Contact

Let's build what's next.

Open to conversations on innovation strategy, portfolio management and the energy transition.

salmankhaliq@gmail.com Connect on LinkedIn