Open Innovation Strategies

🌟 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐢𝐠 - 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐢𝐝𝐞! The biggest breakthroughs don’t happen by digging deeper into one area - they happen when ideas, industries, and technologies collide. Think about it: AI combined with IoT has transformed healthcare. Sustainability powered by cloud solutions is opening new markets. The magic lies at the 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 - where fresh opportunities emerge. 🚀 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 1️⃣ 𝐅𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Combining technologies like AI and cloud accelerates growth. 2️⃣ 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡: Partnerships across industries unlock untapped customers. 3️⃣ 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞: Cross-industry collaboration lowers costs and drives new value. At Deloitte, I’ve seen the power of collaboration. By partnering with organizations like #Celonis, #Schaeffler, #HumboldtInnovation, and #GermanEntrepreneurship, we’ve established the European non-profit AI ecosystem, #KIPark. This initiative brings together players from different industries to unlock innovation. For example, we’ve developed an ESG platform, marking a significant step toward sustainable solutions that are robust and business-relevant. 🛠️ 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐀𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝 1️⃣ 𝐋𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐎𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲: Who could you partner with to create something new? 2️⃣ 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐌𝐢𝐱𝐞𝐝 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬: Pair data scientists with operations or customer-facing teams. 3️⃣ 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐁𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐥𝐲: Start small pilots that combine tech and business ideas. 🌍 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐨𝐦 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐞 The future belongs to businesses that connect the dots others don’t see. Breadth - not just depth - is the key to growth and resilience. 💬 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐓𝐮𝐫𝐧 What’s one unexpected partnership or idea you’ve seen recently that sparked innovation? Let’s exchange ideas. Who knows what new intersections we might uncover together? #Deloitte #AI #Innovation #Leadership #BusinessStrategy #Partnerships 𝐴𝑟𝑡𝐵𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑙. 𝐶ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒𝑂𝑓𝑃𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒. 𝐹𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑡 @𝑔𝑎𝑏𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑒𝑒𝑟𝑢𝑡ℎ

Would you use a phone that only lets you download apps from one company? One where every update costs a fortune and you can't connect it to your other devices. Of course not. Yet that's exactly what closed automation systems are doing to industrial companies today, and the hidden cost is staggering. Research shows these locked-in systems are quietly draining around $11 million a year from mid-sized firms, and over $45 million from large enterprises. But the real cost isn't just financial. You're missing opportunities. Losing agility. Struggling to attract talent. 🔗 You can read more about it here: https://lnkd.in/g9gAaNNa I've been talking to CEOs across India, the Middle East, Australia, and Brazil, and they're all wrestling with the same puzzle. They need their plants to run faster and cleaner, handle supply chain disruptions, and bring in AI, all while working with equipment that's been there for decades. Like trying to renovate your house while everyone's still living in it. You can't just tear everything down and start over. Open, software-defined automation changes the equation entirely. It's not about replacing everything you've built, it's about augmenting it. Think of it as bringing cloud principles to the industrial edge: interoperability, continuous innovation, the ability to compose solutions rather than being locked into them. What Shell, Nestlé, and Evonik are doing with EcoStruxure Automation Expert isn’t just modernization. It’s creating a real feedback loop where operations shape design, data drives decisions, and teams are empowered to keep improving. The companies moving to open systems now will be the ones who can launch new products faster, transition to cleaner energy quicker, and attract the digital talent everyone's competing for. The question for every leader is: will your infrastructure amplify your people and your strategy, or constrain them? Gwenaelle Avice Huet Rafael Segrera Deepak SHARMA Colette Munro Walid Sheta Schneider Electric Omdia #AdvancingEnergyTech #OpenSoftwareDefinedAutomation

Are closed industrial systems silently draining your bottom line? New research shows they can cost manufacturers up to $45.18M annually for large enterprises and $11M for mid-sized, but there’s a smarter path forward. Openness isn’t just a tech trend, it’s a business advantage. ✅ Open, software-defined automation (SDA) breaks free from vendor lock-in by decoupling hardware and software. This gives manufacturers the flexibility to choose best-fit solutions, scale at their own pace, and accelerate innovation. ✅ With #EcoStruxureAutomationExpert, companies like Shell, Nestlé, Zicaffè, dhp Technology, and Evonik are already proving that openness drives speed, sustainability, and resilience. ✅ This isn’t just swapping architectures, it’s a new operating model where data flows seamlessly across design, operations, and optimization, enabling faster decisions and continuous improvement. Curious to read more? https://lnkd.in/eU5nh6M9 What’s your take, are open ecosystems the future of industrial automation? Let’s discuss in the comments! 

The winner takes all narrative in startups? It’s broken. It’s redundant. And it’s failing founders. Mangrove wasn’t built within a single geography or a closed ecosystem. It was forged by collaborating with accelerators, investors, and operators across the UK, the US, Australia, and Africa. Nairobi Startup Club built member by member from across Africa and the globe! 𝗡𝗼 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿. If I’ve learned anything as an OpsRes practitioner, it’s that the most effective solutions emerge when we stop hoarding secrets and start sharing lessons in real time. Here is how we approach this in the industry to keep that flow moving: 💡 Ecosystem Stress Testing: Investors and founders should coidentify single points of failure across their portfolios; whether it’s a specific banking partner or a regional cloud provider. To ensure one failure doesn't trigger a domino effect (*cough cough* SVB 🥲). 💡 Standardised Resilience Metrics: We move past vague profitability talk and use shared industry benchmarks. This gives investors confidence and founders a clear roadmap for scaling safely. 💡 The Open Source Playbook: Instead of each startup building from scratch, we share modular frameworks. This allows scaleups to focus on growth while maintaining institutional grade protection. The result? We've built frameworks that actually hold up, whether you’re scaling in Kampala or London. But what if you’re a founder without a massive team or a deep local network? You can still build a resilience ecosystem. Start with these three practical moves: - Peer Incident Reviews: When something breaks, debrief with founders facing similar scaling pains. You’ll spot patterns you’d never see in a vacuum. - Shared Intelligence: Pool notes on tools and vendors. One founder’s expensive mistake becomes everyone’s saved capital. - Cross Company Collaboration: In Nairobi, we built a community that turned individual struggles into collective insights. By sharing resources, we didn't just survive; we built a buffer against market volatility. 🌱 Collaboration is a competitive advantage. The startups that endure aren’t the ones hoarding knowledge. They’re the ones building trust and capability across borders. What is one way you’re building resilience into your network?

From my new Harvard Business Review article, here’s how to create the last of four pillars that innovative organizations need – Innovation Communities: Innovations often happen at intersections, yet many companies lack ways for innovators to connect informally and see where conversations go. This can also make innovation a lonely endeavor. It doesn’t cost much or take a lot of time to provide people with common innovation interests a means to connect and exchange ideas. At the very least, it’ll help keep them motivated. At best, it may trigger new kinds of cross-disciplinary collaborations that open up previously unseen vectors for change. Don’t be Atari, which was abandoned in frustration by an ambitious innovator: Steve Jobs.   What to do instead? Cultivate community. Take the German life sciences company, Bayer. Bayer has created an internal community of 700 innovators around the world who use common resources, join competitions against one another, and nominate local representatives to participate in an annual meeting. These connections then enable discussions about ways to cross-apply methods, business models, and other capabilities that can translate across business units. For instance, the program helped create agricultural finance options that are now offered around the world, stemming in part from an idea that originated in Bayer’s corporate finance and marketing departments in Greece. (How have you built innovation communities? Please share your approaches in the comments!)

The Power of Outside-In Thinking Are you making decisions based on what is or what could be? Too often, leaders fall into the trap of inside-out thinking, relying on familiar playbooks and echo chambers. But the most impactful decisions come from embracing an outside-in perspective—seeing the world through fresh eyes and challenging conventional wisdom. Here's how some visionary leaders have done it: -> Elon Musk (Tesla): Instead of accepting the limitations of traditional automotive, Musk envisioned a future of sustainable transportation and revolutionised the electric vehicle industry influenced from his tech not lack of automotive experience. -> Melanie Perkins (Canva): Instead of targeting professional designers, Perkins empowered everyday users with accessible design tools and democratised the creative process influenced from tutoring students. -> Indra Nooyi (PepsiCo): Instead of solely focusing on profits, Nooyi integrated social and environmental responsibility and transformed PepsiCo into a purpose-driven company influenced by her lived experience. How can you embrace outside-in thinking in your decision-making? 1️⃣ Seek diverse perspectives: Actively listen to voices outside your usual circles—customers, frontline employees, and even critics. 2️⃣ Challenge assumptions: Question the status quo and be willing to rethink long-held beliefs. 3️⃣ Embrace experimentation: Treat every decision as a learning opportunity and be open to pivoting based on new information. The world is changing fast. Leaders who can see beyond the horizon and embrace outside-in perspectives will be the ones who thrive. #leadership #innovation #outsidethinking #decisionmaking #elonmusk #canva #pepsico

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 𝗶𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺. 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟯 𝗮.𝗺. 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄. Most companies get innovation completely wrong. They hire expensive consultants. They build five-year roadmaps. They launch top-down "transformation offices." But real innovation? It rarely starts there. I just read a powerful piece that captured exactly what we often miss in HR and leadership: 👉 The people closest to the work are the ones best positioned to transform it. The article shares the story of a woman in contract operations who worked until 3 a.m. every quarter-end, missing time with her young children. No executive asked her to fix the broken process. No consultant studied it. She just built her own AI agent – without a budget, without permission – because the friction was unbearable. And it spread organically. Within days, a team of 20 was using it. Not because anyone mandated it. Because it simply made sense. What this means for us as leaders: 🔹 Stop assuming innovation needs a formal project plan. 🔹 Start looking for the people quietly solving their own impossible workflows. 🔹 Ask yourself: Have we made it safe enough for their solutions to spread? Too often, we wait until talented people burn out and leave. But somewhere in your organisation right now, someone is working hours that would appall you, doing work a machine should be doing. The question isn't whether they exist. It's whether you've created the environment for their solution to be seen. 💡 𝗠𝘆 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿: Your job isn't to have all the answers. It's to remove the obstacles for the people who do. https://lnkd.in/gxSWsXkW #DrJaclynLee #Innovation #FutureOfWork #Leadership #AIatWork #EmployeeLedChange #HRLeadership

Over the past year or two, I’ve had the opportunity to work closely with innovation ecosystems through our Strategy Hub Qatar projects, an area that has increasingly captured my interest, particularly for the potential it holds to drive real-world impact. What I’ve noticed is an under-tapped opportunity to further strengthen these ecosystems by anchoring them in demand-led, partnership-driven innovation, where startups are not building in isolation, but are closely linked to clearly defined industry needs. When large industry players are engaged as active problem owners and potential adopters, the dynamic becomes far more powerful. Startups are able to design solutions that are grounded in real, validated challenges and closely aligned with operational realities. In this context, design thinking helps anchor innovation in real user needs, encouraging early testing and iteration to shape solutions that are practical and implementable. The real opportunity lies in creating a clear pathway from solution to adoption, where ideas are not only developed, but tested, refined, and ultimately taken forward by those they are designed for. This makes innovation more targeted, more responsive to local needs, and far more likely to scale. There is a compelling opportunity to deepen this model by fostering more intentional partnerships between industry and startups, creating a more connected, closed-loop system where challenges inform innovation, and innovation feeds directly back into industry. In this model, large players benefit from agile, locally developed solutions, while startups gain clearer pathways to adoption and scale. Realizing this potential requires embedding the right enabling mechanisms within these partnerships, particularly procurement and funding models that support experimentation, iteration, and ultimately, implementation. #InnovationEcosystems #PublicPrivatePartnerships #StartupEcosystem #IndustryPartnerships #DesignThinking

I am convinced that the textile industry, like many other industries, must undergo a complete system transformation to reduce its carbon footprint. So many processes still rely on fossil fuels, and the entire system is still based on a take - make - waste mentality. Shifting to more sustainable methods and practices will require significant effort across various fronts. While this is challenging, it’s not impossible. We know the main emission drivers and see investments in new technologies and introduction of more renewable energy. These developments, along with shifts in everyone's mindset around consumer behaviors, can move the industry in a positive direction. 🎯 I believe innovation is essential for creating a socially inclusive and planet positive industry. We need impactful new methods and technologies. However, I also think we sometimes define innovation too narrowly, focusing solely on inventions and high-tech solutions. These alone won’t take us all the way. If we broaden our definition of innovation to include new ways of doing things, regardless of their technological complexity, we can better achieve this vision. And ideas about new ways of doing things is definitely something that the industry needs and will need if it is to achieve net-zero by 2050. There are excellent examples of innovations that have impacted, or have the potential to impact, sustainability practices in the industry. One notable example is HKRITA - The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel Limited’s initiative to transition their scientific solutions from a closed lab to an #OpenLab, creating an innovation hub aimed at collaboration, problem-solving, and showcasing solutions on a larger scale. The impact could be significant if the right stakeholders, brands, retailers, and manufacturers, come together to work collaboratively. Another example is the emerging recycling and sorting technologies focused on textile waste. Previous winners of the #GlobalChangeAward are developing automatic sorting technologies to address bottlenecks, and separation technologies like the Green Machine are enabling the recycling of blended textiles. My most important learning is to avoid viewing the transformation that is needed as a solo effort. Many of these challenges are too large for any one entity to solve alone. Collaboration and partnerships are crucial. Often, a solution in one area depends on system conditions in other areas. Therefore, solid partnerships among industry peers, manufacturers, and those involved in the value chain are critical. It sounds like a cliché, but only together can we drive meaningful systems change of the textile industry and secure a just and fair transition for both people and the planet. 🤝 🤲 At the H&M Foundation we are happy to connect with anyone sharing the same drive to transform and decarbonize the industry, so don’t be a stranger, let’s explore how to join forces!

After a decade in the innovation domain, I can tell you this: Open innovation stopped being about “introductions and handshakes” a long time ago. The old idea to put startups and corporations in the same room and hope something magical happens is outdated and, if I may add- dangerous. This is largely due to the fact that organizational readiness - culture, processes, alignment, appetite for change to work with a startup matters just as much as finding the “right” startup itself. Which is why open innovation requires something deeper, more consultative, more... open. Over the years, at Plug and Play Tech Center, this has taken the form of: 1️⃣ Preparing organizations for change. Not just radical moonshots, but often the small shifts that drive meaningful impact. 2️⃣ Helping teams "zoom out" to see their organization for what it is - getting their heads out of the sand to understand capabilities, culture, and execution holistically. 3️⃣ Building platforms for knowledge exchange. Not just startup-to-corporate, but also corporate-to-startup (yes, we have events where corporations pitch TO startups!). 4️⃣ Facilitating peer learning among competitors. Because in the age of AI, no one can innovate alone. It truly takes a village - a collective of corporates, governments, universities, researchers, investors and startups all collaborating. This end-to-end, consultative approach is what makes open innovation work today. And I’m grateful to be contributing towards building the bridges that connect these diverse perspectives, and unlocking possibilities that simply wouldn’t exist otherwise in silos.