A three month innovation process
Innovation is in the DNA of every startup, born of a vocation for change and adaptation so characteristic of our times. But sometimes even startups need a push to develop new ideas and create new lines of business. This was the case with Certicalia, a platform that connects property owners with energy certifiers that want to expand their business. In order to launch these new lines of business, Certicalia deferred to our consulting experience to guide them through this process of innovation.
Through a three month process we helped expand Certicalia´s business. First, we evaluated the company´s current situation and their needs, and established a workstream to detect and define the new business opportunities which Certicalia could capitalize on. “Certicalia has a broad community of technical specialists, to which we brought the necessary methodology to take advantage of their potential”, explained the project lead and consultor from the Ideas department at Opinno, Javier Iglesias.
Next, our involvement included the delivery of four workshops with Certicalia´s staff and the weekly monitoring of their operations. The workshops covered the most innovative and disruptive innovation methodologies, like lean startup and customer development.
From the knowledge provided by us, Certicalia's employees proposed new lines of business during a series of workshops. These ideas formed the foundation for us to assist the company in expanding their product base. “We were impressed by the agility, commitment and talent demonstrated by the team at Certicalia,” says Iglesias.
The result was the creation of a microconsulting service for the real estate market to support Certicalia´s technicians, and a web based document management service for the legal documentation required to start a business. The new services were launched after the completion of field work to define the services´ features. Two pilot websites are now up and running to “evaluate the viability of these products within the marketplace,” Iglesias explains.
In contrast to previous projects through which we have assisted companies in the implementation of innovative methodologies within day-to-day operations, the objective of the Certicalia project was to launch new products in a reduced timescale and generate revenue. Iglesias specifies, “We had to construct new business models to diversity the company´s activity.”
The need to quickly design new products was the reason why Certicalia decided to join forces with us at Opinno. The energetic certification company was previously selected by us to form part of the study Barometer of entrepreneurship in Spain, performed by MIT Technology Review, Spanish Edition. The relationship between Opinno and Certicalia was strengthened through Certicalia´s participation in a workshop held by Opinno to promote innovation in the cultural sector. After experiencing our way of working first hand, Certicalia “decided that Opinno was the perfect organization to assist them in designing their new lines of business,” Iglesias explained.
The previously discussed two new services will help Certicalia to add value to their community of technicians and to improve the experience obtained in the management of energetic certifications. The combination of know-how and community management are two of the characteristics that define us; Opinno has created a community of innovators in Europe and Latin America through the Innovators Under 35 competitions organized by MIT Technology Review, Spanish Edition. This experience has given us a corporate vision and a style of working that have placed us at the forefront of technological innovation.
