Re-Inventing Innovation at Nestlé

Nestlé is the world’s largest food company with 275,000 employees and 354 factories worldwide (2022). It is also a leader in the industry in research and innovation, with an annual expenditure of CHF 1.7 billion on R&D and innovation, and 4,100 employees dedicated to this purpose. The company defines itself as a nutrition, health, and wellness enterprise.
In the most recent years, its top management has identified rapid and profound changes in the sector. To maintain its leadership, they determine the need for R&D and innovation to not only be more relevant, effective, and efficient but also much faster. To achieve this, significant changes are made in R&D and innovation, including the opening of new research institutes. Additionally, they adopt a new approach to innovation based on simplifying processes, fostering an entrepreneurial culture, external collaboration through an “Open Innovation” philosophy, and the implementation of 14 R&D Accelerators. This entire process of change is carried out under the leadership of the new Chief Technology Officer, Stefan Palzer, appointed in 2018.