"In our highly dynamic world, we’re going to need people who can empathise with others, think ‘outside the box’ and find new ways of doing things. Simply doing what has been done before won’t be good enough — those that can’t continue to innovate and evolve will be left behind. Design Thinking is one of the best things we can teach our students so that they can identify and solve problems and make their world better."

Meet Jon

After completing a Bachelor in Computers Science (Hons) and a Bachelor of Law (Hons) at Adelaide University, Jon studied a Master of Science (IT) at Carnegie Mellon University on a full scholarship. 

Jon then worked in software development at IBM, Internode and the Royal Adelaide Hospital. Jon also founded a profitable web startup profitable with 60,000 users and was responsible for the IT systems and trading platform of a quantitative hedge fund.

In 2013, Jon co-founded Makers Empire with two schools friends and a would-be investor turned co-founder. Makers Empire is now used by students in 40 countries who make 100,000 new designs every day. 

1 Jon Soong, Founder & CEO, Makers Empire
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Key Points About Jon

  • Founding CEO of Makers Empire
  • Winner in the 2018 Impact Awards
  • Expertise in leading a team to create curriculum, professional development, training and teacher resources.
  • Leads a team who has introduced Makers Empire and 3D design and printing to groups of 200+ schools in Australia, the USA and Europe.

Expert on Entrepreneurship

Jon has been invited to speak at conferences and events over the years. Topics he can cover include:
 
  • How to help students develop an entrepreneurial mindset
  • How to prepare our students for jobs that don’t exist yet
  • How to encourage more girls in STEM via 3D design and printing
  • How to building a business across multiple countries

Expert on EdTech

  • The importance of showing the evidence of impact 
  • Why most edtech products fail
  • Essential things edtech companies need to know re schools