Denver, Colorado, November 5, 2022 — The consumer packaged goods industry has faced an onslaught of recent challenges — including calls for more transparent labeling and eco-friendly packaging — with food companies in particular forced to pivot rapidly in response to consumer preferences and legislation. Smaller, more agile companies have the upper hand, according to innovation experts Jonathan Tofel and Carolina Sasson. How can big companies keep up?
“Data shows that small to medium food companies are driving 45% of the growth in share in recent years,” Sasson said. “There are clear methodologies that can be harnessed and implemented in large companies with great success.”
In their new book, Fire in the Machine: Driving Entrepreneurial Innovation in Large CPG Organizations, Tofel and Sasson share insights on innovation gained from decades spent working with Fortune 500 companies such as Clorox, PepsiCo, and Kellogg’s. They reveal the strategies that have helped their CPG clients harness the startup mindset with big business systems to unleash the best of both worlds.
“Innovators in large companies know that when it comes to creating and delivering products consumers love, size is on their side,” Tofel said. “The power of a Fortune 500 company allows it to leverage its resources to grow by developing new products that greatly enhance consumers’ lives.”
But big-company strength alone won’t cut it when it comes to innovation, explains Sasson.
“The sweet spot lies between large company capability and the entrepreneurial ethos underscoring successful startups,” she said. “This mix is the key to unlocking exponential growth and inspired innovation.”
Fire in the Machine offers an insightful journey into the challenges that all great innovators in large corporations face and shows leaders in these companies how to leverage new approaches and realize the growth possible when entrepreneurial innovation is in the driver’s seat.