XEROX
“Earth aWARDS” PROGRAMME
In 2010, Xerox had been looking at how they could become a greener company, so they decided to turn to their employees for solutions. The printing suppliers wanted to encourage a company-wide focus on becoming more sustainable, so they announced the ‘Earth Awards’ program, challenging employees to think up innovative solutions towards saving company resources whilst benefitting the environment. Xerox employees collaborated and innovated around new ideas, helping their company to save $10.2 million as well as eliminating 2.6 million pounds of waste. This program highlights how fostering a culture of intrapreneurship can lead to valuable innovations, operational efficiencies, and enhanced sustainability, aligning with the company’s broader strategic goals.
Notable contributions included the development of packaging for colored ink using entirely post-consumer recycled materials, adjustments to the ink printing rate on paper, the implementation of a more efficient process for handling wastewater at a toner plant, modifications to the printing process for toners on paper to reduce the need for new kits, and the establishment of a system for the efficient return of wooden pallets, recycling of cardboard boxes, and optimization of packaging materials usage.
Today, Xerox remains committed to fostering an environmentally conscious mindset among its employees, encouraging them to share ideas that advance the company’s sustainability efforts.
Managing Innovation: Innovation stimulus, innovation capacity and innovation performanc
academic article
Prajogo, D. I., & Ahmed, P. K. (2006). Relationships between innovation stimulus, innovation capacity, and innovation performance. R&d Management, 36(5), 499-515. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9310.2006.00450.x
The case illustrates the relationship between innovation stimulus, innovation capacity and innovation performance.
The role of leadership in innovation is highlighted in this example and can be clearly seen through the initiation of the Earth Award program. It demonstrates the commitment to innovation and the support from top management, which closely aligns with the company’s motto “We used to be copiers. Now we’re innovators.” Moreover, this program is directed towards creating and maintaining an environment that supports innovation. The company has empowered its employees, gave them autonomy in carrying out their work, provided them with effective means to communicate and share information, thereby facilitating knowledge and creativity management.
It is known that innovation stimulus does not show direct effect on innovation performance, but the relationship are mediated through innovation capacity (Prajogo & Ahmed, 2006). The company’s decision to launch the program reflects the firm’s internal capability to harness and utilize its resources, processes, and structures to address the stimuli. This capacity includes factors such as leadership support, organizational culture, and employee engagement in sustainability efforts.
The program’s outcomes demonstrate the great performance of Xerox’s innovation efforts in both product and process innovation.
These performance outcomes reflect the firm’s ability to effectively translate its sustainability initiatives and employee-driven innovations into measurable benefits for the company.
EFQM excellence model
The continuous flow of ideas from employees and the implementation of innovative solutions highlight a culture of innovation and learning. Xerox’s approach to fostering an environmentally conscious mindset and encouraging ongoing idea sharing aligns with the EFQM model’s underpinning of innovation and learning.
Xerox’s ‘Earth Awards’ program exemplifies the EFQM Excellence Model by effectively utilizing enablers (leadership, people, policy and strategy, partnerships and resources, processes) to achieve comprehensive results (people results, customer results, society results, key performance results). The program underscores the importance of innovation and learning in driving organizational excellence and sustainability.
Sources of business opportunity
By this case, it is evident that the two factors of “Individuals” as employees and “Senior and top management” play a critical role in the generation of business opportunities, especially in a company with a strong innovation culture like Xerox. The aforementioned achievements of saving $10.2 million and eliminating 2.6 million pounds of waste highlight how the synergy between these two groups drives innovation and efficiency. Senior and top management provide the strategic vision, leadership, and resource allocation necessary to foster a culture of innovation. They create an environment that encourages creativity, risk-taking, and continuous improvement. On the other hand, individuals within the organization contribute by generating ideas, collaborating, and sharing knowledge. Engaged employees, motivated by a supportive culture and effective feedback mechanisms, are more likely to propose innovative solutions and improvements. Together, the collaboration between leadership and employees ensures that Xerox can identify, develop, and capitalize on new business opportunities, maintaining its competitive edge and achieving significant operational savings and environmental benefits.
references
Trott, P. (2021). Innovation Management & New Product Development (7th edition)
Xerox employees’ green ideas save company $10.2 Million | GSB Editorial Network | The Guardian