The Innovation Engine Community - Maddock Douglas Innovation Engine

Are You Ready for a Radically Sustainable Bank?

Marc Stoiber — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 15:15:21 GMT

In my last article, I analyzed the rising tide of sustainability in banking . It appeared that the majority of banks were just dipping their toe in the sustainability pool, adding green features to existing products, greening operations, and boosting their philanthropic efforts. While these innovations would enable the banks to evolve incrementally, they did little to prepare them for the rapidly changing priorities of consumers. In this article, I’m exploring the other end of the spectrum: banks that are taking a far more radical approach to sustainability innovation. What does the leading edge look like? Nimbler banks around the world are rethinking their roles in society. They’re actively strengthening communities beyond traditional philanthropy. They’re opening their books with greater transparency. Internally, they’re enabling employees to redefine what banks should offer customers. And some are providing a new definition of value to shareholders, measuring success with a triple bottom line. Providing thought leadership are people like Ashoka Fellow Bruce Cahan, who has created the GoodBank model . GoodBank, currently organizing in the San Francisco Bay Area, boasts a list of game-changing innovations under the banner of the ‘High Transparency Bank’. A selection of these innovations includes: Transparency in all services...

How Innovation May Have Prevented The Flight From Middle Market

Maria Umbach — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:58:05 GMT

Under-banked, Under-insured, or Just Under-understood? The rear view mirror is a tricky thing. You look in it, you see something, and then you talk about it. And then others will say, yea, but hindsight is 20/20. Ok, you got me there. But we do learn from past experience, and that is good for building the future. And experts in innovation know that failing is the path to success, so the faster the better. As I think about what is happening in the banking world post the credit crisis, the economic crisis and Financial Regulatory Reform, it is hard not to think about the impacts to the everyday consumer. Banks are going to lose significant fee revenue as a result of caps on fees post FinReg. They have to figure a way to make it up. There are likely to go where the money is. Up market. Even before FinReg, a large proportion of consumers were “unbanked”, and relying on check cashing services instead of traditional banks for their everyday needs. While these services are not necessarily cheaper in the end, they are better trusted. A recent Wall Street Journal article published this chart which is very curious. The majority of...

Creating the Sustainable Bank

Marc Stoiber — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:24:32 GMT

Part 1. The trouble with evolution (looking for Part 2? ) Banks are, at first glance, unlikely places to look for sustainability-focused innovation. After all, they don't have smokestacks, chop down trees, pull coal out of the ground or manufacture things that choke landfills. So why are some banks positioning themselves as sustainability champions, authoring sustainability reports, and creating products with a green slant? Are they just keeping with the times? Are they discovering new areas of opportunity? Are their efforts paying off financially? These seemed like important questions to explore, especially for financial and innovation specialists . Where banks stand today Most banks engaging in sustainability today find themselves in one of two camps: Applying the sustainability lens to the bank's mission and business. This includes everything from setting ethical standards for investing, to designing products with sustainability features at their core. Green operations and philanthropy are givens in this category. Tweaking existing business and operations to incorporate sustainability and social responsibility. This might include recycling and energy efficiency measures on the environmental side, and enhanced HR practices and community involvement on the social side. It might also include building green features into existing products. There are notable strides...

Eco-Innovation: The Next Business Megatrend

Marc Stoiber — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 17:28:34 GMT

Corporate sustainability is gathering momentum in North America. Companies like Wal-Mart and GE are indisputably proving the business case for efficiency with an environmental slant, and unprecedented numbers of corporations are jumping on the eco-efficiency bandwagon. Although it is still early days, indicators are that this trend could become a megatrend, influencing not only our economy, but our perspective on how companies should behave. As eco-efficiency gathers steam, however, we are seeing signs of another trend on the horizon. Eco-innovation appears to be the next iteration of eco-efficiency, but with greater potential for both brand and revenue building. Eco-innovation is, by definition, an application of innovation to sustainable development. However, the essence of eco-innovation is best revealed by juxtaposing it with eco-efficiency. The two might be considered as evolutionary stages of corporate sustainability. Eco-efficiency is, for a corporation, the perfect introduction to sustainability thinking. It’s low hanging fruit, and offers almost immediate payback – which emboldens more green corporate action. Eco-innovation, on the other hand, is the stage a corporation enters when it has pushed eco-efficiency as far as possible. It’s definitely fruit that’s higher up on the tree – harder to reach, but tastier for the effort. You might...

Sshhh, It's Green Innovation

Marc Stoiber — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:52:15 GMT

There's something funny happening in the world of sustainable brands. It isn't the fact more and more brands are embracing green. Leaders like Walmart and GE have made the business case for sustainability, and opened the floodgates to other brands looking for a competitive advantage. It isn't the fact consumers are choosing green, either. As the twin stigmas of poor performance and high price fade away, shoppers feel safer buying eco-friendly brands. According to the 2010 ImagePower Green Brands study, 75% of U.S. consumers say it's "somewhat or very important to them" that the brands they buy come from green companies. That's translated into a 500% jump in green product launches between 2007 and 2009. What is strange is an emerging pattern of how brands are marketing their green innovation. Or rather, not marketing it. It better be green Sustainability is a significant brand differentiator. It can be a driver of competitive advantage. So if you've got it, why not flaunt it? I got my answer in a conversation about ingredient innovation with Steve Shriver, Founder and Chairman of Eco-Lips lip balm. When asked about how the palm oil debate was impacting his brand, Shriver responded that Eco-Lips hadn't used...

You Talkin' To Me? How Gen Y Hears "Insurance"

Maria Umbach — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 16:42:36 GMT

If you are an insurance company marketing executive wondering about how to tackle the Gen Y (or Millennial) market, trying to crack the code can be exhausting. Brace yourself. There's something you need to know... They are just not that into you. Sigh... (Junior high feelings come rushing back including anger, sadness and a desire for a new wardrobe or haircut perhaps). The ironic part is that Millennials are into the things you stand for and the value you provide. And they probably want your product. So what gives? They don’t have a clue what you are talking about. How Did The Communication Gap Happen? Let's think about it... The language of the insurance industry was created in an era when there was deference to large organizations who provided jobs, new products and offered prosperity to a community. Noble offerings indeed. In the 1800’s when the insurance industry was an innovation, this was the case. It was about what the company was providing in order to make society better, not about what the individual consumer was asking for. It just so happened that the insight was good because it filled a significant unmet consumer need. Public programs didn’t exist. Organized...