Introduction
The researcher seeks to discuss innovation and social innovation and attempts to discuss how social innovation has been by Ooooby, an organization whose headquarters is in Sidney. The researcher also identifies various performance measures the organization uses to achieve its goals. The case study about Ooooby also involves research into the potential challenges that the organization faces and possible methods to solve the problems. The report shows that social innovation is an effective method of using innovation to solve social, economic, and environmental issues, as seen from the benefits that the consumers, intermediary organizations, and producers of the products gain.
Defining Innovation and Social Innovation
Innovation is the means of creating new wealth generation resources or enhanced use of existing resources with an ability to create wealth. Social innovation is defined as a branch of innovation that involves the design and implementation of new solutions or improvements of existing solutions with the ultimate goal of enhancing the well-being of humans and the societies formed by humans. Innovation leads to the creation or change of a product, process, idea, or organization (Portales, 2019). A business needs to adopt a governing framework for it to achieve the full potential benefits of social innovation. The new practices adopted by social innovation are meant to address social needs such as health, environmental conservation, and improvement of working conditions.
Businesses thrive where innovation is used to improve social and environmental conditions. Social innovation has enabled businesses to redesign and improve their working conditions. They achieve this by identifying the employees’ pain points, such as the length of working hours, frequency of breaks, and paid time off. With the increased need for remote working, the innovation of social platforms such as Slack, Google Meet, and Skype has kept businesses going despite challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, among other factors. The communication made through the platform allows the participants to know who is online, chat, discuss solutions, and share the work progress (Safai et al., 2022). This is more beneficial than traditional office communication. Social innovation also strengthens the culture of different employees. Online meetings allow the teams to discuss individual social preferences.
Case Study of an Innovative Enterprise
Ooooby is among the enterprises that came up with a good idea for solving the challenges of access to healthy and organic food in Sidney through social innovation. Ooooby is an online platform that links farmers who grow organic crops such as vegetables and fruits and buyers who live in Sydney (Ooooby, 2023). This innovative move solves social and economic challenges. One of the social challenges the enterprise addresses includes connecting the local farmers with buyers. The farmers are equipped with the necessary knowledge to produce food that meets high-quality standards. The platform connects people from different social, cultural, and economic backgrounds, creates income-generating activities for farmers and the organization’s employees, and promotes the consumption of healthy food.
Ooooby also uses a few preservatives on its food products to keep them for longer periods without decomposition. It is also economical and preserves the products’ nutrients and minerals. By following proper guidelines on the use of preservatives, Ooooby farmers and food producers worry less about excessive production, which contributes positively to economic growth. Oooby’s innovative moves include adopting the permaculture form of agriculture and developing software systems that aid the e-commerce and logistic processes.
Evaluation of Performance Dimensions
There are six dimensions of performance, namely quality, service, lead time, manufacturing technology, flexibility, and cost (Kaydos, 2020). According to Ooooby (2020), the organization encourages the suppliers by paying them at least 50% of the retail value and ensuring that the producers are treated fairly. The organization is also said to promote a healthy workplace for employees. Ooooby emphasizes highly on the quality of its food products. The food is locally produced, so it takes a shorter distance to be delivered to the consumers. The short delivery time and use of few preservatives help the organization ensure that the aesthetics of the products are preserved. Ooooby’s reputation has improved since the consumers have a positive attitude towards the freshness of the vegetables and fruits delivered to them by the organization. The order process at the Ooooby platform allows customers to include optional extras in their baskets (Ooooby, 2020). The organization also maintains its standards of delivering products that are reliable and conform to the specifications of the order.
Since Ooooby deals with highly perishable products such as vegetables, their delivery team has to be timely. They ensure that their products reach consumers within the shortest possible time. Ooooby works with many farmers to minimize shortage in supply. The organization has set good pricing for its products in a way that both the company and farmers benefit by earning profit, and the buyers access the goods at an affordable price. The value-addition mechanisms used by Ooooby include the use of preservatives, packaging, and delivery to the buyer’s doorstep at a small fee. The organization has made the order process flexible by providing more than one choice and different volumes in the order process. The organization addresses the environmental concerns by promoting the production of organic products. Ooooby participates in boosting the economic value of the participants through the creation of employment for farmers and employees.
The organization’s major potential challenge for sustainable performance is dealing with climate change. There is an increase in Carbon Dioxide emission to the atmosphere due to industrialization in Sidney and its surrounding region. This threatens the entire ecosystems, leading to drought and scarcity of water. The people in Sidney are facing water shortage, yet they depend on irrigation to produce crops. Air and water pollution is also rampant in the region due to the use of chemicals and inadequate sites for waste disposal. There is increased population growth in the region (Lester, 2019). Traffic congestion in the area is likely to lead to delays in the transportation of produce to the consumers.
To solve the challenges, environmental innovations that can be embedded in the strategy to improve their services can include the use of navigation maps to locate and avoid traffic congestion during deliveries and hydroponic farming methods to deal with water shortage. Hydroponic farming requires less space and water.
Conclusion
The report shows that social innovation generally positively impacts society. Enterprises that use social innovation improve the interaction of different people through the supply of products while supporting key performance measures. Enterprises can find solutions to business challenges by using social or environmental innovation. Therefore, the researcher recommends the use of social innovation in the establishment of profit or not-for-profit organizations.
Reference List
Ooooby (2023) Home. Web.
Kaydos W. (2020) Operation Performance Measurement: Increasing Total Productivity. United States: CRC Press.
Lester, L. (2019) Global Trade and Mediatised Environmental Protest: The View From Here. Germany: Springer International Publishing.
Portales, L. (2019) Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship: Fundamentals, Concepts, and Tools. Germany: Springer International Publishing.
Safai P., Hayhurst L., McSweeney M., Svensson G. P. (eds.) (2022) Social Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Sport for Development and Peace. United Kingdom: Taylor & Francis.