Let’s dive into the session that you’re giving at FEI, and then we’ll talk about maybe some of the extracurricular stuff that you’re helping with, which we appreciate. You are going big here with a focus on business transformation. What will you be sharing with us at FEI in June?
“Basically, I’m going to talk about the way we are innovating, not just at PepsiCo, but more generally into any large-scale corporation,” says Saclier. “And I’m going to talk about the fact that we have all been embracing design thinking for the past decade. It’s been implemented in most of the companies that I’ve been working for, but also the companies that I know are with my peers and colleagues in this room or in this conference. Actually, I think we have reached a stage where we all now became masters of design thinking, masters of the implementation of this cross-functional approach that is helping teams work together towards a goal, mostly navigating through the double diamond or the triple diamond of innovation.”
Artificial intelligence has certainly ramped up the pace of change in innovation as well.
“We know that artificial intelligence has now significantly accelerated the work that we can do with the front end and particularly along those double or triple diamonds,” says Saclier. “And now it’s time to look a bit deeper or to look into what actually scales. So not just what we can take to market by identifying some opportunities for innovation from insights, but really what is going to scale and what is going to be a game changer. Because I think we’ve all passed the ambition of getting to market. We all know how to do that. We know it’s difficult, and congratulations to all of my peers and colleagues who are doing this because it’s really hard. But getting on the market is not enough in the sense of it needs to scale. And this is really where we are in need of embracing new approaches, where artificial intelligence can help in some way.”
Saclier continues, “But most importantly, it’s about being right and making sure that you have the right to win in the space that you want to focus on. And design thinking, yes. Systems thinking probably is an approach that we can embrace now moving forward. What matters really is how are we going to scale this? And this goes along the fusion, and the artful fusion, of branding and innovation. Because very often, I’ve seen in my past life that two agendas working in parallel, the branding agenda on one side and the innovation agenda on the other side. I think it’s time to really reunite the two and actually get into something that is more systemic in the way we are looking at innovation.”
That fits rights with our tagline, which is corporate changemakers unite—uniting two different areas so that we are all stronger together. You’re also the music director for FEI 2024. This is something that you and I created, but we’re getting somewhere now. We’ve got a partnership with Berkeley School of Music.
Saclier adds, “It is awesome. Yes, super excited, and a lot of surprises are going to come on the way.”
Attend FEI 2024
Looking forward to FEI 2024? The conference, which will be held June 10 to 12, will feature a session called “Business Transformation in a World of Technological Blast: Design Thinking, Systems thinking, Change Management & Cultural Evolution To Drive Growth,” presented by Christian Saclier, VP Design Innovation, PepsiCo. Everything, everywhere, all at once. We know that how we do what we do is evolving. The goal is to be the progenitor of that change. When design thinking is coursing through the veins of an organization, anything is possible and evolution becomes certain. Join us as we discuss creating a design thinking culture to drive growth. Register for FEI 2024 here.
More Innovation Resources
Finding the Way to Business Transformation
The concept of business transformation can be defined with a broad range of meanings depending upon the business and the different stakeholders that play a role in it. Even the forces of the marketplace, in terms of disruption, can define what type of transformation is necessary. One concept that many companies tout is that of digital transformation, but transformation can also be one of culture, talent, communication, strategy and more. In today’s environment, business transformation must also generate new value, whether that’s through new growth or other opportunities.
Transforming the Business Through Design Thinking
Disruption is here. The evolution of change is here. Digitization is here and impacting the way we live and work and affecting industries from hospitality to healthcare. Different business models are being used and the customer experience is being transformed. Adding to that is the speed of change and the broader macroeconomic trends such as globalization. But these changes also afford opportunities, especially in terms of business transformation with a focus on design thinking.
