Reflecting on our experience supporting startup and corporate partnerships has given us insights into scaling sustainable technologies. We are sharing some of those insights that we have developed over the years to spark ideas in others or give context to the current landscape of sustainability as it relates to business and innovation.
Here are 3 strategic opportunities that make environmentally-sustainable technology implementation successful.
Assess areas of opportunity, then start small.
Hannah Ranieri has been an innovation and strategy consultant for OSB since 2021. She has worked in the food service space to guide pilots that implement carbon-neutral food delivery across the country. In her experience, many of the obstacles to implementing sustainable technology within an industry are not shortcomings of the technology.
“For sustainable technology like autonomous delivery or compostable packaging, the technology solutions exist, but most corporations do not have the business model or existing infrastructure to integrate these new solutions. By piloting, we are able to gradually chip away at those existing barriers and prove the feasibility and necessity in an incremental way,” Ranieri.
For startups and corporations alike, pilots can be invaluable. Pilots allow us to test, at a small scale, the feasibility of the technology. Many times new technology can seem promising but isn’t actually suitable in a real-world scenario. So, before dedicating significant money, time, materials, and energy to scale technology across an industry or organization, conducting a series of small tests beforehand can be financially savvy and environmentally resourceful.
Even so, there is a lot of background work that goes into starting a pilot. “Typically, we begin with a market landscape scan to identify and understand the types of technology that exist, existing legislation/regulations, key partnerships within the space, relevant trends, and existing opportunities. With that background information, we look at how this technology could apply to our client’s business and identify potential use cases. We’ll make a roadmap of how we want to strategically test use cases. From there, we’ll identify interesting/innovative startups in the space and structure pitches and deal flows to hear their proposals for what a pilot could look like. Once we pick one, or several, we’ll begin piloting,” Ranieri.
Lean on what makes the technology different and communicate it simply.
Sophie Becker has been a design innovation strategist for Orange Sparkle Ball since 2020 and has experience working with alternative energy startups. She knows many companies in this industry default to greenwashing practices that highlight sustainable values, without explaining what differentiates their technology.
“Making sure that companies in this space are able to differentiate themselves and have impact requires benchmarking both competitors and the market landscape. Once you have that baseline understanding, then you can strategically examine how to position the client. Where will they stand out? What are their differentiators?” says Becker.
Distinguishing what makes the technology stand out is important, but translating those differentiators into an easily understandable offering is equally important. To ensure constructive partnerships between startups and corporations, the values and vocabularies used to explain the technology and its differentiators must be clear enough for both parties to understand. That’s where strategic translation, the work we do at OSB, becomes important. By understanding the points of view of the start-up and corporation, we help to contextualize the startup’s technology within the broader scope of the corporation's organization.
“Being generalists, we are great facilitators since we can see outside perspectives and translate ideas and language between groups. Startups can often be so in the weeds of their offerings that they don’t grasp that everyone else isn’t even clear on the basics of their products. We can come in, take the time to understand, and then translate it more broadly. You don’t want a [partnership] to fail because of a simple communication error,” Becker.
Utilize change management strategies to guide all stakeholders.
Diego Pérez has been an innovation and strategy consultant for OSB since 2017. In his role, he has worked with food service organizations to guide the implementation of sustainable packaging. When integrating new technology, Diego has seen the success of creating a roadmap and accompanying toolkit for all in the organization to use.
“This approach provides a collection of tools, steps, and strategies that when used collectively, can be very effective for implementing new programs, projects, initiatives, and proof of concept pilots.”
This approach provides clarity on the project and action steps for all stakeholders. Because we are always introducing something new, we utilize this approach to keep all stakeholders on the same page when implementing a technology that's never been used in the organization before.
“When we think about roadmaps and toolkits, we are looking to bridge the gap between implementation and practice. This change management approach provides an action plan so people know what to do, when to do it, how to do it, and why to do it, as well as what language to use. Sustainable goals can be obtained by providing a well-thought-out plan that can be understood and followed by all stakeholders,” says Pérez.
Conclusion
Ultimately, strategy is vital to implementing sustainable technology. Not only does it help get the technology to market, but it also helps get stakeholders on board to try something new that might feel risky.
“I think the main way strategy can support eco-conscious innovation is by making it more easily digestible to people who are risk-averse. By creating a roadmap for strategically testing use cases within an overarching initiative, it’s more actionable and directional and can help outside stakeholders understand more clearly how they may fit into the process,” Ranieri.
It's easy to forget that behind every new, sustainable technology, there was a strategic process that helped that technology get to the market. This is the work that we do at OSB, and we are proud to continue accelerating sustainable startups and challenging corporations to prioritize sustainability in their practices.
Writing by Nia-Simone Eccleston, Design Strategist Apprentice.
Illustration by Hannah Ranieri, Design Strategist.
