Page 10 - 2019 Delegate Assembly Conference

SKUNK WORKS: A PATH TO DIVERSIFICATION
Speaker: Julie Rettinger, Vice President, Branding, and
Chief Administrative Officer, Rappahannock Goodwill
Industries Inc. (Fredericksburg, VA)
With revenue streams from donated goods
retail continuing to tighten, local Goodwill
leaders are constantly looking for ways to
diversify their organizational business lines.
During this dynamic session, Julie Rettinger
introduced the Skunk Works model as a way
for Goodwill organizations to identify, assess
and decide upon mission-driven business ideas
within a framework that encourages creativity
and innovation.
The Skunk Works model calls for its users
to establish innovation laboratories. With
companies as diverse as Lockheed Martin and
IBM having implemented the process, the goal is
nearly always the same.
“The idea was to set people apart from the
normal processes that might limit creativity,”
Rettinger said. “The Skunk Works conversation
is focused primarily on business innovation, but
there’s no reason why we couldn’t apply similar
principles to mission.”
Even if a Goodwill doesn't have the wherewithal
to set up an innovation lab, leaders can
implement aspects of the model by convening a
diverse group of people who have experience in
a given business line and an interest in studying
it.
Characteristics Shared by Skunk Works
Models
Successful Skunk Works models in the
marketplace often share the following
characteristics:
• A culture of non-standard thinking.
• Adaption of the look, feel, speed and
language of a start-up.
• Access to budgets of both time and money.
• Vigorous and frequent reporting.
• Clearly defined mission and business
requirements.
• A mechanism for testing with an eye on the
8 market and employer need.
• Urgency created by having multiple projects
in the pipeline and clear criteria for evaluating
them.
Using the BLEW
Once a Goodwill has decided to form a Skunk
Works model, stakeholders can actively weigh
business ideas and document learnings in the
Business Line Evaluation Workbook (BLEW) created
by the Rappahannock Goodwill. The workbook
offers a series of threshold questions and thoughts
to consider.
After participants discussed ways their Goodwills
are continuing to innovate, one attendee asked
about Rappahannock Goodwill’s commercial
laundry and commercial cleaning franchise. Paul
Rothenburg, a board member from Rappahannock
Goodwill Industries, suggested that Goodwill
leaders ensure they know what they’re getting into
if they’re considering buying a franchise or other
type of business.
“When you purchase a business, it’s one thing to
go through the acquisition process,” he said. “It’s
another to execute it. You have to make sure you
commit to making it work.”
GII Business Services Consultant Toni Blais shared
that a list of innovative business lines live on
MyGoodwill’s Business Services Community. She
also reminded session attendees that she can
perform a Market Assessment in each territory to
determine the demand for various business lines in
their market.
Watch, Read, Learn | Curated Resources
1. View the presentation.
2. Business Line Evaluation Workbook (BLEW).
3. EDP Research Paper: A “Skunk Works”
Model for the Goodwill Movement.
4. Visit Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works web
page.
5. Case Study: Organizational Ambidexterity:
IBM and Emerging Business Opportunities.
6. Ideas for Innovation: Taking a Skunk Works
Approach at Your Goodwill.