P&G's A.G. Lafley
P: Our goal today is to look at what it takes
to make innovation an everyday practice in your organization.
This caused both the theme of your new book
and also one of the key drivers
of what've really been a remarkable run of success in P&G
under your leadership.
So you open The Game-Changer by saying
"My job at Procter and Gamble is focused on
integrating innovation into everything we do".
A.G. what is innovation at P&G? How do you define it?
L: Well, Paul, we define it differently
and more broadly than we did 10 years ago
and certainly differently and more broadly
than we did 30 years ago when I joined the company.
Historically P&G, and I think, a lot of companies
have defined innovation rather narrowly
as technology or product and technology.
That's just the beginning for us.
Ok, we define it, we try to define it
in the terms that our consumers view it and experience it.
So for us, innovation is the brand
in addiction to the product.
It's the design of the shopping and the usage experience
in addition to the functional attributes or benefits.
It is the business model.
It is the way we go to market and the supply chain.
It is the way we create a cost structure
so we can deliver delightful new products at affordable costs.
P: Ok, so we've got the "what".
Let's look a little bit at the "how".
You use a phrase at P&G that I love—
the customer is the boss.
Let's dig into what that means really.
How do managers at P&G make sure
the innovation efforts are really focused
on the needs and demands of the customer?
L: When we get it right, and where we get it right,
and this is a journery —OK,we're not at the end point.
We really try to put the customer,
or in our case, the end consumer
at the center of everything that we do.
And in the case of the innovation process,
we want the consumer engaged at the frontend.
What does that mean?
Right after we have an idea,
right after we have the kernel of a technology,
right after we have the most primitive of prototypes,
we engage with consumers.
It mainly be a few at the beginning,
but what we ideally would like to do
is literally cocreate and codesign
with target consumer prospects
who are most likely to become buyers and users
of the eventual brand and product.