I recently listened to a Harvard Business Review podcast interview with Muhtar Kent the CEO of Coca-Cola.
Now, I have mixed feelings about the value to our society of the products that they produce. However this is not the forum for that discussion.
What did fascinate me was the insight that an organisation the size of Coca-Cola recognises that inside the company is not always the best place for embryonic ideas to flourish. To counter this the company has “incubation projects” outside the company.
This says some good things about Coca-Cola. Firstly, that it acknowledges the need for innovation, and secondly that innovation needs the right environment to thrive. In other words keep it away from the accountants, lawyers, and managers that live quarter-by-quarter.
At Cisco Live last week the closing keynote speaker Guy Kawasaki boiled down the art of innovation into 10 easy and not so easy steps. Always an engaging speaker Guy gives some great insights.
Our Vision into Action (VIA) plan for 2008 to 2011 aligns the energies and efforts of our teams around the world behind a number of priorities which will make the most impact on our revenue and margin performance.
The move to cut the size of their flagship product and replacement of some of the cocoa in the recipe with palm oil might help margins (for perhaps two days…). However, the backlash to these changes is prompting a boycott – so that is not going to have the desired effect on revenue. The competition has been quick to see the opportunity as the video below shows.
There is a certain arrogance and disregard for the customer in these changes. It does begs the question – “what are they doing to all their other products?” And Whittakers must feel like they have died and gone to (chocolate) heaven.
And now there’s a petition to fight the changes. Go sign it yourself if you feel inclined.
Palm Oil is labelled as Vegetable Fat on their chocolate labels. It decreases the quality and pleasant taste of the chocolate, it is higher in saturated fat, and the Palm Oil industry is one of the leading causes of deforestation in Indonesia.
Orangutans are on the brink of extinction due to this industry. Both the Bornean and Sumatran subspecies will be extinct in 12 years unless the slash and burn of rainforests to create Palm Oil plantations is slowed. Countless other endangered plants, animals and local people are also suffering.
Many responsible companies are looking for ways to decrease their use of Palm Oil due to the difficulty in finding a truly sustainable source.
It has been shocking to countless numbers of Cadbury fans to find that Cadbury have gone the opposite direction and increased their usage!
Although Cadbury claim to be using Sustainable Palm Oil we question this claim as they have yet to back it up with details and proof.
The comments and opinions expressed on this blog are Steve Swann's alone. They do not necessarily represent the views of his past, current or future Employers or Clients.
