Beauty and personal care giant Kao is tapping into the Cincinnati Innovation District's vibe with a mission to transform its third-party communication strategies. In a pursuit to sharpen their game, the Kao team took a trip to the 1819 Innovation Hub's Learning Lab, according to a report by UC News. Their aim was to reexamine how they interact with their manufacturers, with the intent of boosting efficiency and fostering better outcomes.
Under the guidance of Nicholas Partridge, the Learning Lab’s director, the Kao group underwent a unique workshop designed to dissect and enhance their usual way of getting messages across to partners. With poster boards and team discussions, they detailed their current business flow, identifying and pursuing clarity where confusion lurked.
Embracing agile principles, the Kao team learned to build robust communication flows by actively mapping processes and stress testing aspects of their jobs. "At the Learning Lab, we design experiences that help teams see their work in new ways," Partridge told UC News. He pointed out that Kao’s readiness to "embraced the process" with "energy and honesty" was instrumental in unlocking new paths towards innovation.
Beyond just understanding their existing framework, Kao's team played out scenarios that threw curveballs into their business flow. This practical approach allowed them to tackle real-world disruptions and devise strategies to deal with them. A key takeaway included drafting more resilient plans for handling communication barriers with their external production partners.
At the end of the session, the team, tasked with reflections on the likelihood of implementation and potential setbacks, left 1819 equipped with action plans intended to reinforce this critical business function. Partridge concluded with thought-provoking questions, setting the stage for the Kao team's journey back to the drawing board – ready to level up their partnership game.
