In this episode of IP Innovators, host Steve Brachmann sits down with Emily Teesdale, Founder of Pivot IP, to explore what fractional IP leadership actually looks like, and why smaller engineering companies are leaving serious value on the table without it. Drawing on more than 20 years in the field, including senior in-house roles at Airbus and GKN Aerospace, Emily makes a compelling case that IP strategy and patent prosecution are not the same thing, and that confusing the two can cost companies far more than they realize.

She walks through the real risks hiding inside collaboration agreements—from confidential information that lingers on company servers long after a project ends, to IP ownership structures that can leave a business permanently beholden to a former partner. Emily also unpacks the three silos she sees most often—within companies, between in-house and external counsel, and across collaborating organizations, and explains why the biggest one is also the hardest to fix. On AI, she's pragmatic: use it, but know what it can't do. Human judgment, she argues, is still the thing no contract review tool can replicate.

👨‍💼 About the Guest:
Emily Teesdale is the founder of Pivot IP, an IP strategy consultancy serving small and mid-sized engineering companies. A UK Chartered and European Patent Attorney with over 20 years of experience, Emily has held senior in-house IP roles at Airbus and GKN Aerospace. At Pivot IP, she works on a fractional or project basis, helping engineering companies build and protect IP strategy without the overhead of a full-time hire.

🔧 Sponsored by DeepIP — your patent intelligence platform, from idea to enforcement.

🛎️ Subscribe to hear more real stories, evolving practice, and the future of IP law.