whirlpool innovation case study

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Story : Whirlpool's Innovation Journey: An on-going quest for a rock-solid and inescapable innovation capability

Do you believe that innovation is the path to growth and differentiation? Do you want to create outstanding shareholder returns? If you have decided to embark on your own innovation journey, this article will teach you many lessons learned through Whirlpool Corporation’s long innovation history. Be warned, the results won’t come without some “heavy lifting” but the rewards can be big.

With a history of 101 years, Whirlpool Corporation leads an ultra-competitive and mostly mature industry from a small town in southwest Michigan.  Our 70,000 employees generate over $19B in annual revenue by designing, engineering, marketing and selling consumer solutions in more than 135 countries.

After 90 years of constant growth and invention, Whirlpool was looking for a platform to enter the 21 st century in a stronger position. We achieved this by focusing on driving consumer preference by embedding  innovation as a core competency – which everyone at Whirlpool would be part of. During our first ten years of this innovation transformation, a major acquisition followed by the recession posed new challenges.  Emerging and changing players in recent years require us to behave differently.  Our 13-year quest for an embedded innovation approach has answered these challenges with creative approaches that have allowed us to stay focused, relevant and competitive. One would think that after the big-bang approach to embed innovation in the early 2000s we would be in auto-pilot by now, but each phase has required the same level of attention from the innovation architects (those creating blueprints and building innovation capability) to take innovation to new heights.

One of the essential business skills for leaders as well as innovation architects is having an ability to read the times and knowing what will work for the particular state of the organization, the internal and external environments as well as the leadership in place.  There is no single answer or recipe for success, but Whirlpool’s innovation phases can serve as a model for many organizations seeking to make innovation part of their DNA.

Burst: The Sea of White (1999-2003) As described in Nancy Tennant’s book, Strategic Innovation:  Embedding Innovation as a Core Competency in Your Organization , the late 90s represented the beginning of a large transformation: Whirlpool Corporation’s leadership led by Dave Whitwam, Whirlpool’s CEO at the time, was convinced that in order to thrive in the new century it was necessary to create a new platform that would take the company from an operational to a consumer focus. This was the genesis of the Brand Focused Value Creation strategy, in which consumer devotion to the company’s brands would enable Whirlpool to escape what he used to call “the industry stalemate” also referred to as “the Sea of White.” In order to achieve this, all employees would have to become participants of the innovation efforts. This was the genesis of an initiative that in retrospect, changed Whirlpool forever. Every employee would be part of the innovation effort: it would not be exclusive to engineers or be driven only by skunk works efforts. Innovation would come from everyone and everywhere.

Scale: Big time (2004-2008)  Upon Whitwam’s retirement, the new CEO, Jeff Fettig, came with a highly operational approach to bring innovation to its next phase.  It was time to Unleash Innovation .  In a large organization like ours you cannot just ask people to innovate and expect that it is going to happen.  It requires a holistic management system to define it, to make it sustainable, scalable and inescapable.  Many of our “innovating innovation” stories came during this era as some of my predecessors reflect:

• “What helped to open the box was the sand box.  At the beginning the sand box was wide open, well beyond the core business (which is an event in itself for a century-old company which exists only to create "boxes").  This liberated huge pent-up energy to explore, invent, create new businesses, new models, new solutions even without appliances!  Then to make the effort sustainable we created a clear sand box, i.e., the definition of innovation which in turn opened up the organization resource leverage needed to scale up any idea and make it a success.  So in summary not having first and creating later a sand box was the recipe for going big.” – Giuseppe Geneletti , Director of Communications, Corporate Relations and Strategic Competencies for European Region
• “As we looked to move from innovation being driven by separate ‘innovation teams’ in separate ‘innovation rooms’ to innovation by everyone, a major step was to push intact business teams to use the innovation tools to drive new thinking.  Teams were asked to go offsite one to two days per month over a period of three months and take part in facilitated innovation sessions, using our Innovation toolkit to drive ideas for new product and business concepts.   Often the ideas that came out of the innovation offsites were totally unrelated to the business the teams were dealing with on a day-to-day basis.  This is how our Gladiator Brand came about, along with many other ideas across our business.  This approach enabled people across the business to gain experience with the Innovation toolkit and helped them understand how these tools could be used to drive new thinking even within their core business.” – Pamela Klyn , General Manager of Cooking Business Team for North American Region

Up a notch: What Goes Around Comes Around (2008 – today) It was during this phase that we learned that an innovation capability doesn’t necessarily follow a conventional maturity model.  It was in 2010, during the preparation of our 100-year anniversary celebrations, that we challenged ourselves to define the new role of innovation in a new era. There was a general sense that innovation required a new, higher platform to help us deliver a promise of value creation for our shareholders for the next hundred years and to create more relevance to our strategic direction of growth beyond the core.  It was time to turbo-charge innovation.

Intended to either initiate, to scale or to improve upon our innovation capability, our management innovations have one thing in common: they are all purposeful initiatives, not accidents.  They required real organization resources, prioritization and attention from management groups to succeed.  This section highlights the ones that have delivered the most impactful results and lessons that we believe can serve others in search for an inescapable innovation capability.

Exhibit 1 – Whirlpool Innovation Timeline with Key innovations

• Process Adoption ( for a more detailed understanding of our process please read Inside Whirlpool’s Innovation Machine article )

It is not trivial even in today’s world, that when engineers, designers and marketers speak the same language the power of innovation is unlocked.  The adoption and adaptation of the double diamond innovation process and its set of tools was key to demonstrating that an established organization could transform itself through its own people and that everyone can innovate.  During the years after its initial adoption, our toolkit has continued to evolve to become more accessible and the process has become more integrated with other systems as a means to generate scale. 

Exhibit 2 – Whirlpool Corporation’s Triple Diamond Process

• Seeing is believing

Surfacing deep consumer insights is one of the most powerful innovation drivers. During the discovery process this lens is always a must.  As a company that does this for a living, we have access to a massive amount of consumer data generated and managed by experts in the field.  While leveraging this information is important, a mandatory consumer immersion goes a very long way for the team and for any innovation project.  Every time an innovation project is initiated, the teams are asked to create a plan to extract consumer insights by first-hand observation; the use of some tools allows them to create a relevant and robust plan.  See exhibit 3 for an example of a consumer insight immersion.

Exhibit 3 – Consumer Insight Example

The level of empathy, context, and passion that is generated will never be achieved by reading 1,000 reports. The results of the immersion approach are synthesized in insights that become the DNA of an innovation project from this early stage until launch and advertising campaigns are created.  See exhibit 4 for an example of a consumer insight as output from the discovery work.

Exhibit 4 – Consumer Insight Example

• Scaling mechanisms

Management Systems – Making innovation part of everyone’s job and hard-wiring it to its modus operandi requires holistic management system thinking. We work across the elements of this system with the help of the framework illustrated. Read tne Hack: Change the Systems, Free the People for a detailed description of Management Systems. 

Exhibit 5 – Management Systems Framework

If there is one thing that has been consistent throughout the eras, it is our innovation definition (see exhibit 6). The Executive Committee came to the realization that a clear and concise definition was needed as the decision to scale innovation was made; this would provide clarity, allow us to goal it, and avoid many future discussions about what is innovation and what is not. Sr. leaders were going to be assigned an annual innovation pipeline target– How would that be measured? How would we know how good it was? These and other questions forced this group to think deeply about the purpose of innovation and the results that were expected from it.  The result was the innovation definition which represents the essence of why we do innovation and serves several purposes:

• Creates a global, common understanding of what we mean when we say innovation and how innovation is supposed to serve our strategy
• Brings clarity to grey areas and encourages individuals to raise their work to that standard
• Allows us to measure and goal innovation (and the work of those in charge of it) accurately

Exhibit 6 – Whirlpool Corporation Innovation Definition

• Classification 

One thing is to define innovation and another is to have everyone understand it. A scaling mechanism that helped us achieve that was a tool called the “i-box.”  Through the use of this tool, teams around the world measure their projects against the innovation definition and put innovations at test. Through its practice and this common language, they have the right conversations and challenge themselves in areas that would improve the “innovativeness” of a project. See Exhibit 7 for an example of the i-box and helpful materials for a full version of it. 

Exhibit 7 - Sample of i-box

• Innovation metrics

Once innovation is categorized, we can point to it and measure it.  Metrics are directly tied to the definition and focus on the results of our innovation efforts.  Whirlpool runs SAP, and for us to measure our innovation at scale we had to modify the system by including a flag on SKUs that identifies when a product meets the definition.  This change allows us to run reports to size our pipeline and see the returns innovations are generating in the market (i-revenue and profit lift). 

Exhibit 8 – Depiction of Innovation Metrics

Exhibit 9 - Innovation Dashboard

• 100-day plans

It is amazing what a pragmatic limitation on time and resources can do for innovation projects.  After teams present the results of the front-end of innovation process and pitch ideas to leadership to get funding, they are asked to prepare and execute a 100- day plan: an experiment no longer than 3 months and costing no more than $10,000 to answer the most important questions that would make or break the project.  This approach injects a sense of urgency and sparks an unexpected level of creativity to validate the project hypotheses.  This approach is not intended to replace formal consumer research when the time is appropriate, but it forces team members to put some of the most important hypotheses to test.  It is always beneficial to have experts supporting this approach to avoid confirmatory bias, a common flaw of asking questions so we get the answers we want. This is also an appropriate time to engage some of our trade customers so we can win their hearts so we can together win the consumers’ hearts. An overview of a 100 day plan is presented in exhibit 10.

Exhibit 10 - 100 Day Plan in Action

• Launch  and Love, don’t Launch and Leave - For a detailed description of this phase of our process read the full article here .

Innovation processes are typically focused on the front end. Ours is called the Double Diamond (Discovery & Opportunity Development); they are diamonds because we diverge and converge.  But what happens when, 1) an innovation is so disruptive (or unfamiliar) that it requires constant monitoring and adjustment? Or 2), the go to market of some products has to be re-evaluated?  To address these two areas we added the Third Diamond of the process we called “Deliver and Grow” also known as “Launch and Love”, emphasizing the need for nurturing innovations in the marketplace.

• I-turbo projects

As we took innovation to a new level, we felt it was necessary to create a platform to make our portfolio more aggressive and diversified. The i-turbo projects were created to infuse this new stretched thinking, support our expansion beyond the core and to accelerate capability building. To achieve these objectives new inputs and management systems were implemented: Each region would run a full frame-breaking discovery phase to generate new, breakthrough ideas. In the Discovery phase, frame-breaking refers to the approach we use to force radically new thinking in a team and a project. This doesn’t necessarily occur every time (although it is encouraged) as it is not always needed. It needs to be carefully planned.  It is achieved when new learning is injected into projects in the form of lenses or “new voices” introduced in a planned and methodical way. As a result of this initiative, the innovation competency got a full refresh and level of excitement that resulted in the creation of the Strategic Megatrends, a confluence of trends that would serve as the sandbox for the creation of new innovation projects. See Exhibit 11 for an example of a Strategic Megatrend.

Exhibit 11 - Example of a Strategic Megatrend

• Frugal Innovation

As innovation gets momentum and our beyond-the-core strategy continues to advance, the demand for R&D resources increases, pushing Whirlpool to improve its technology capability to rapidly develop new knowledge and technologies while containing costs, budgets and investments in R&D. “Doing more with less” has therefore become an expectation and a structured practice. To develop new knowledge while rationalizing the project expenditures, Whirlpool innovated in its approach to generate technology innovation by opening up the R&D boundaries through the implementation of an Open Innovation strategy for R&D to de-risk innovation and research activities while leveraging public funding and incentives. This has required a significant mind shift of the way our engineers work as they were not always used to "opening the gates” to establish and nurture a true collaborative approach with external partners. Furthermore, a change in the technology development strategy was put in place to create flexibility and align the internal technology roadmaps with the requirements of the public bodies. To enable and support this transformation, Mauro Piloni , Vice President of R&D established the External Funding and Open Innovation (EF&OI) unit in 2011. This unit is led by Enrica Monticelli , 2012 winner of the “ International Prize for Women and Technology ” in innovation, and acts as a catalyst to different needs coming from the internal R&D categories, proactively managing and coordinating our technology strategic partnerships and the application to public funding initiatives against our roadmaps.

• Advancement of innovation capability
• Custodians of innovation process, tools, systems, assets and metrics
• Consulting support for key innovation projects and initiatives
• Incubation of the futuristic and non-traditional projects and initiatives until they become material for the broad organization
• Identify and develop top innovation talent
• Regional C.O.Es - Each regional C.O.E. is responsible for driving day-to-day innovation activities and projects within the regions, serving as on-the-ground embedment, execution and consulting arm. Whirlpool has C.O.Es in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.  Each team is a little different varying from 2 to 6 total innovation experts. Each region also has a new business unit organization in charge of incubating non-core and non-product initiatives usually working elbow-to-elbow with the regional C.O.E.

When we started to bring innovation to a larger audience during the “Big Time” era, there was such an excitement in the air that the format, style and visuals of our toolkit went virtually unnoticed.  Once this innovation approach was in place in the broad organization, certain things seemed more important and we noticed that the way materials were presented had a significant impact in the results of our innovation sessions.  Our Latin America team led by Mario Fioretti and Ana Lopes took an innovative leap to solve this problem turning our innovation playbook into a fresh-looking, inviting and fun package that creates curiosity just by its look.  A powerful way to teach innovation tools is to make them as engaging as a board game.  This allows teams to play scenarios, get an understanding of the big picture and get engaged in the design of initiatives. This new approach has started to increase a pull, generating more demand for innovation practice.

Exhibit 12 - Whirlpool’s Innovation Playbook and Toolkit

• Bring it up when it is relevant – There are always moments when somebody picks on something you’ve been thinking about.  Grab that moment and say something like “Absolutely! We could even do this and that…” make that person a partner and push hard from that moment on
• Learn to shut up – Many times we are so anxious to share a lesson or propose  an initiative that we can overwhelm people or get rejection if the time is not appropriate. If the moment is not right, shut up; the time will come.
• Use business speak – Put it in terms that are relevant to leaders and that will directly benefit their business. For example: “If we spend 3 days in a relatively large workshop, you will create a bank of refined ideas that will be relevant for the next two-three years and you will be able to put all your energy on execution moving forward.”
• Leverage captive audiences – There is no better time than the kick off of a project when you have 20-30 faces staring at you that you send one or two powerful messages to the audience in the opening remarks.  If they can connect that to their project, you can gain a number of supporters. If a powerful person is in the audience and creates that connection, you’ve got a win.
• Share big issues in confidence, gain advocates – It is ok to be provocative at times but there are some things that you just can’t say in public.  Leverage moments of confidence with those you trust, share your concerns and brainstorm solutions. This will help when you have an opportunity to do any of the above.
• Customers - By our definition innovation delivers unique consumer solutions. One of  the results of satisfying consumers is not only the immediate satisfaction of a particular solution but loyalty over time, which translates into longer term value creation. And when people love your products they come back to you.
• Trade partners – In our industry this group plays an important role. Innovation has impacted our relationship with them in positive ways: 1) Before we sell our innovation to the end consumer we must to sell it to the trade.  Our deep consumer understanding and creative approach to consumer solutions makes our negotiations meaningful in consumer terms.   2) Engaging the trade in certain phases of the process allows them to more deeply understand the customer and translate the learning into new sales approaches in the merchandising of the product.  3) The “voice of the sales associate” is an important input into our discovery and go-to-market processes allowing us to identify solutions that help them communicate the benefits to the customer in “the moment of truth”, when the consumer pays for our product.
• Suppliers – Suppliers are an important part of the innovation “value chain”. They have been directly impacted by the supplier innovation program established by Terry Deegan during the “Big time” era. In this program suppliers were familiarized with our end consumer and engaged in ideation. This created a new level of supplier advocacy and a more open relationship with them. For a detailed view of how this can be done read the “ Multiplying Your Brain Power and Capacity ” hack.
• Employees - Innovation has been a significant driver of engagement and attraction. This can be measured in our internal annual surveys, but cannot effectively communicate the level of passion, pride and excitement of employees who participate in innovation. It is very common for those of us who have innovation in our title to be approached unexpectedly by people telling us about their experiences and asking how to become more involved.  For many, Innovation was the reason to join Whirlpool. Once candidate employees see behind the curtain and realize how innovation is a big driver of the company’s performance and aspirations they get inspired to engage and participate.
• Shareholders – It almost goes without saying that innovation has played and will continue to play an important role in attracting investors. I encourage you to listen to any of our investors calls and pay attention to how frequently the word innovation is mentioned – it is embedded in our strategy and is the fuel for consumer relevance and margin realization.

Exhibit 13 – Transformation of the Industry

• Average Sales Value

Despite our ongoing efforts to continue to bring innovation to the market, during the 1990s the average sales values in the industry were declining given very intense competition and day-to-day fights on the retailer floors.   As we started the new phase and structure of innovation, there has been a reversal of that trend driven by the introduction of solutions that consumers value and are willing to pay for (See Exhibit 14).

Exhibit 14 – Average Sales Value improvement in the fabric care category

• Historical i-pipeline and i-revenue

Before a new product or service hits the market, and once it passes an opportunity business plan, we classify it if it meets the innovation definition and estimate its steady state revenue.  This is the pipeline measure which has continued to grow since we started measuring it. Once innovations hit the market and while they continue to meet our criteria, we measure the revenue (i-revenue) they generate.  As innovation is intended to drive better returns than our base business (as the third element of our definition calls for), we also measure the profitability increase (or “lift”) that innovation delivers in the market. At the end of 2011 our innovation revenue accounted for $3.6 billion, close to 20% of our total revenues.

Exhibit 15 – Growth of Innovation Pipeline and Revenue

• External recognition - The innovation progress of organizations is increasingly observed.  Whirlpool Corporation has been broadly recognized for its innovation impact as some of the many awards and mentions of renowned publications testify.  2011 examples are:  Most Innovative Company by Negocios Magazine in Brasil, Fortune’s #1 Innovation Ranking for Home Equipment, 2011 Edison Awards, among many others.
• Leading the innovation chart - Innovation as a competency is still a new and evolving field.  Whirlpool was one of the first, well-established companies that took a bold approach of transformation.  We’ve continued this effort over the last 13 years.  We are often benchmarked, and this demand proves to us that we are seen as a leading organization in this practice. I’ve had the opportunity to share my experiences with many companies that are in the process of starting their own journey.
• Defining innovation is a big part of making progress

Defining what innovation is has a significant impact on your overall innovation efforts. I believe that every company that has an innovation effort should spend defining innovation and making sure that the innovation initiatives are aligned to it.

• Embedment curve fallacy

Maturity model theory helps us differentiate ad hoc practices versus formally adopted processes. We entered our journey with that mindset of expecting to go through its phases from the initial and possibly chaotic launch to a continuous improvement stage. As we reflect on this 13+ year journey, we think innovation doesn’t follow this software-driven theory so closely. Innovation is still a growing and evolving business practice and our experience tell us that the level of intensity and initiatives to make it work depend on the business priorities and the internal and external environments. Without an in-depth study, we could venture to say that our maturity curve looks more like this:

Exhibit 16 – Maturity Model of Innovation

• Innovators must spend time innovating

Metrics give us a pulse of our progress, establish benchmarks and allow the organization to make rational decisions on a number of dimensions of the innovation efforts. However, metrics should serve the business and not the other way. The job of innovation architects is to protect innovation executors from becoming servants of the metrics and distracting their innovation efforts by spending time in irrelevant data gathering. This can be accomplished by establishing the right levels of granularity in the data, simplifying the reporting processes and hardwiring innovation data with information systems, automating it to the extent that is practical without losing sight of the big picture and the intent of the metrics.

• Manage tensions

Innovation is expected to drive new thinking, to be different. In established companies innovation initiatives may go against the grain of what people in the organization are used to doing or simply cause a reaction as they may challenge standard operating procedures or accepted behaviors. This generates tensions in the organization. These tensions allow the organization to make progress and raise the capability level. Innovators should learn to assess the organizational readiness and dial programs and initiatives to keep a positive balance when these tensions surface.

• The best innovation is the next

As innovation initiatives take off there is a sense of excitement and optimism. Many times innovations are not as successful as expected or successful at all. This applies to innovations in the marketplace as well as innovation initiatives within the organization. When things don’t work, it is easy to give up, get discouraged and move on to the next thing. Making innovation a mindset and not an initiative is what makes the difference. Taking the failures as lessons, adapting our concepts and persistently trying to improve upon our previous attempts are what sustain innovation in the long run. Being able to go through the initial stages successfully, assessing the progress, and adapting or evolving the initiatives are what can ultimately transform an organization. Leadership plays a very important role in taking failures as lessons and encouraging the organization to take risks. Isn’t it a bigger risk to do nothing?

In summary, our experiences reveal that:  

• What worked once won’t necessarily work again
• We always need to assess the ecosystem and the times and design our initiatives to match them
• We should always actively manage the tensions and management systems
• Innovation can be taught and is not exclusive to a few privileged brains. When equipped with the right tools and support system, anyone can innovate. The fruits of innovation are results of the hard work (yes, innovation is very hard work) of a broad and increasingly growing segment of an organization.

Nancy Tennant , Jason Schmidt , Adrian Estrada , Dan Velez , Enrica Monticelli

Appendix 1 – I-Box

The i-box was used as a scaling mechanism to help team understand and align to the innovation definition. The document was the basis of discussions and allowed us to advance the thinking in the innovation related of the projects.

  Appendix 2 - Graphics

To facilitate the view of the graphics in the article, the attachment puts all of them in a printable PDF format

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Thanks Moises for sharing Whirlpool story; I can testify the pride on Whirlpool employees, I have seen it. I work for a company that supplies User Interfaces for Whirlpool ("TouchSensor, LLC") and have had the opportunity to visit different facilities and Whirlpool design centers. Your story has helped me to see what is the backbone of Whirlpool movement!

I can also see some of the elements of Innovation helping not only our companies but also they can relate to our own communities and families, i.e. understanding neighbors or family members, involving everyone, not blocking, etc.

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Moises, I am a MBA student and we were asked to read your article as part of a homework. It is incredible to find the story of such successful organization as Whirpool so thoroughly explained. It is remarkable the organization´s capacity to find its way through the market changing their strategy when needed - even though innovation is the leading factor. Few companies consider manager involvement and high employee participation as part of their growth project towards the future. And times do change; so should your products and services as Whirpool has experienced. Thank you for sharing this knowledge which hopefully will provide many new good ideas in other organizations.

Mariana, I am honored that someone asked students to read as an assignment. I truly appreciate your comments. If the assignment had a report out I'd love to hear your conclusions. Innovation is an exciting field and I hope that this article inspired some of you to pursue it. Best wishes.

Excellent story - I think many companies can learn from your quest how to build an integrated innovation capability. Further thanks for sharing very useful tools and metrics!

This is very inviting and motivating reading speacially when your job is completely linked up with tranforming and generating value to the organization.

It is admirable the way Whirlpool engages all employees to create new ways of giving value and not only to a selective group. Something we should do leverage.

And also to understand that in order to create value, we will we fall several times along the way, but we should continue looking for better ways either in a disruptive manner or constructive.

Laura, I think persistency is the name of the game. I am glad you got that from the article.

Hey Moises, Certanly this is a great story.

All of us should learn the benefits of inovation such as WHIRPOOL CORPORATION. In fact, i will shame this story withmy employees so they can use it widely in their daily activities.

Hi, Moises,

Thank you very much for sharing this journey with the level of insights and details that made it very educational. I particuarly liked your comments on "seeing is believing" and "launch and love". That really shows me your metrics are giving you deep insights on what drives in-market success.

Best regards,

Mike Friedman

I enjoyed the article very much. The length of Whirlpool's journey provide unique lessons about adapting innovation efforts to support changing strategic contexts. Your article provides an interesting picture of how this evolution occurred, all while maintaining focus on essential innovation principles. Thanks for sharing this.

Regards, Chris Jones

Hi Chris, as I've learned from some of the masters at this, acting with the principle in mind is one of the most important elements, if not the one, that brings success to innovation. Thanks for your comment.

Hello there,

I liked this article, I believe that it could be so much better if it included some links to explanations into the whirlpool jargon like: sandbox and Sea of white. It's so good that I think that I'm now biassed into looking especially into whirlpool in the next appliance I buy, specially if it's something of the Gladiator brand, that garage is rad.

Best regards Kevin Herrera B.

It is really interesting your approach about innovation and how Whirlpool has take advantage of it and not only this, Innovation is just part of Whirlpool DNA.

The part that represents core idea from your article is "Making innovation a mindset and not an initiative is what makes the difference".

Best regards

Rogelio Ceja IBM Storage Engineer

Thank you for your comment. I agree with your observation and I would also say that probably one of the most challenging things to overcome is the mindset at a broad organizational level given the different priorities that prevail throughout organizations. I can testify though, that once people get exposed to the results that having the mindset can achieve, they become believers and advocates.

Great Post Moises.

I have been following the progress of your program at Whirlpool for several years and continue to believe you are on the forefront of developing Innovation as a business discipline.

Your understanding of holistic elements, as shown in Exhibit 4, required for making Innovation part of everyone job is often the major blind spot of other programs. Without that understand, developing a innovation framework can be fundamentally flawed.

I also appreciate your sharing your i-pipe growth metrics, Exhibit 7. These types of hard metrics are scarce at this point of maturity for most other programs. Hopefully, more organizations will track similar metrics moving forward to provided further justification for formalizing their innovation programs.

Again it is great to see your success and hope it can inspire others.

Vincent COO www.brightidea.com

Thank you for sharing this extraordinary journey about the history and the evolution of the innovation in Whirlpool Corporation. I enjoyed the way you connected, the innovation deployment through the understanding of the consumer insights, the company processes, the execution and the follow up after lunch as critical process on the successful lunch the new product innovation. With your explanation in layman's terms it was easy for me to grasp the essence of all the complexity and effort needed to create the innovation into the company culture.

Thank you sharing your experience and knowledge with us.

I've been sharing this story widely because it is rich and powerful in all the ways readers have already commented.

The aspect that particularly intrigues me is the third diamond: Launch and Love.

I'd be interested to know whether your team is using storytelling in this phase, and if so how. Stories capture the ways in which customers experience and articulate a product's value to their lives. This can be useful pre-launch but also stories may provide compelling feedback into the improvement or innovation cycle.

I believe storytelling can be a powerful 'lens' in the Third Diamond - I think we use it in some way. One of the inputs into this phase is the articulation of the voice of the consumer. When this manifests as a story, it can be better internalized by innovation teams and those involved in the process of generating the solutions to improve upon or adapt the innovation. Thank you for sharing my story, I hope it is useful for people in the pursuit of innovation.

For some time I have appreciated the long-term horizon embraced at Whirlpool (and by its patient innovators) to pursue the random walk of innovation success, which as we practitioners know, is NOT linear and sometimes even retrogrades into lower levels of maturity at points. Thank you for the clarity, candor and commitment to put this out there!

What a great story of 12 years of sustained effort and results at Whirlpool.

I spent several years working on the Customer Loyalty side of Innovation at Whirlpool in the "Sea of White" stage.

Your article has proven several things to me: 1. Innovation is more than just "the next shinny thing" 2. Innovation can be embedded as an organizational competency

Bud, thanks for your comment, I agree. I also believe that what makes innovation sustain is its integration in the organization's strategy. Not matter what the sign of the times force you to do, the leadership in place, or the new processes in vogue, if your strategy is to drive sustainable differentiation, innovation is the answer. The challenge in large and established organizations is that structures do not naturally support and foster these approach, and that is when creating an organizational competency and management systems to drive it make a difference in the long run.

Moises - this is an inspiration to us all. Whirlpool have truly created a system for innovation that spans the whole organisation. I especially appreciate the combination of using customer insights to spark the process and the i-box to help you keep track of whether or not you are getting enough breakthrough ideas.

The i-box helps us stay true to our goals. It is a dangerous tool if not applied correctly. We encourage the teams not to fill the tool for sake of fulfilling a requirement but to document their thinking, making this a living document that moves with the product during its commercialization. Thaks for your comments.

It is so true when you mention about surfacing deep customers insights is the most powerful innovation drivers. I work for Freescale Semiconductor, one of the Whirlpool's suppliers, and having in touch w/ our clients and customers is basic to grow together, innovate and do the R&D. I am so glad to hear when clients and suppliers work together there is always a win-win scenario. Great paper....

Moises, thanks for this article. The industry transformation and the impact of innovation on that transformation are incredible. I appreciate the emphasis on listening, focusing on customer preference, and surfacing consumer insights as catalysts of innovation. Also getting many people in the organization involved, and the willingness to respond and change in the name of solving customer problems. Thanks again for this insight. Martin

Thanks, Moises, a very good article. What's also clear from your experience is that every few years innovation practices need a review and major relaunch. in order to create new momentum and fresh energy. It's similar to a consumer brand with a new ad campaign.

I think the analogy is a good one. In fact one of the things that is important in this journey is to develop a brand for your own internal innovation and as you suggest, re-launch as appropriate. Thanks for the comment.

Very intersting article and defenitly will be a challenge to involve our suppliers in this holistic vision currently the suppliers are part of us and this model can help to acelerate their vison in our innovation jurney, the metrics that currently mesure our suppliers must be re orineted according to the innovative demand that we are creating.

Impressive story and approach. I believe valuable lessons are built into your messages for any industry, at the end of the day innovation without disciplined processes is more an accident than a sustainable success. On the other hand I see a lot of the innovation focused in the line of products itself rather than the daily approach for everyone in the company to fulfill their role. Taking innovation from its commercial aspect to a lifestyle / workstyle is a challenge. How can we assure everyone innovates, everyday? I bring this out because this is a challenge that I believe has been somehow addressed at Whirlpool and would love to know more about. Finally, I love the "Launch and Love". Is this also built on a full PLM (Product Lifecyce Management) process? If it does not, I believe there is huge potential in it. Cheers!

You are correct, our focus is primarily driven to consumer solutions, I would not say strictly products as there are offerings that fall into our innovation definition but are not necessarily phisical products.That has been our choice for our innovation focus but the point is well taken. In fact, many of our innovation tools and creativity, combined with some six-sigma ones are part of a "problem-solving" approach that encourage and support people to think differently, the challenge with this is to create a mindset that permeates across the organization which quickly leads us into a corporate culture discussion. Launch and Love is not built into PLM (yet) and yes, I think there's huge potential. Thanks for your insightful comments.

Fascinating case -- thank you for sharing it! I especially valued your discussion of metrics (and that they have to be at the right level of granularity). Thank you also for the templates and helpful materials, those are very valuable in helping us implement some of your ideas.

Andrea, appreciate your comments. I believe in the open sharing of some of the management elements we've created like the templates I shared can only help us advance as we get reactions from people in the outside. The key to success and competitive advantage relies in the holistic management system and its execution, not on its elements.

It's particularly heartening that Whirlpool is doing it's magic in Michiana. "Harbor Country" is primarily a tourist and agricultural region and Whirlpool is one of the few remaining large employer manufacturers. Their presence in the region is essential and their success, through on-going deliberate innovation, is a case study in economic leadership. This is a great comprehensive article that really goes behind the curtain, and the transparency, and openness to share tools, techniques, and frameworks is greatly appreciated. Kudos Moises, and Kudos Whirlpool, may your journey continue.

Whirlpool has been and continues to be a source of inspiration to us in the Toy industry. Moises has done a great job of supercharging the process and his organization. the article captures the core aspects! great job.

Tom, thanks for the comments. I can imagine the challenges the Toy industry faces these days with the evolving wants from children and the electronics becoming a "toy" of choice from early developmental stages, I think that adopting approaches we've used can certainly help in product differentiation.

Whirlpool is very dedicated to using consumer insights as a foundation to all it's innovation processes. It also constantly seeks to unite commonality of global needs while respecting local cultural needs.

Innovation is fuel for growth and having the right structure and mindset is a must for celebrating constant success. The way Moises is presenting innovation in this article touches all points which enterprises and individuals need to address. Impressively complete. The one that finds me very inline is that “the best innovation is the next”…key is mindset and again mindset!

Moises has offered many useful lessons here. One of the most useful is debunking the myth that at some point your innovation engine or system can go onto cruise control. All companies need to continuously attend to developing, maintaining, and updating their innovation system and culture. This article provides specifics and makes that point in very tangible fashion.

WOW!...one of the critical points in this bussines case is about the change management and how the organization has been able the capacity for manage uncertainty.... tell us more!...

Carlos, thanks for your comment! There has certainly been a massive change at Whirlpool during this time. Interestingly, not driven through traditional change management principles. That theme alone is probably worth an article in itself that I hope I can write in the future.

All companies are forced to innovate. The innovation has become a critical success factor. This article is very comprehensive, shows beyond theory how to build successfull businesses in a competitive world. Congratulations Moises and Whirlpool, thanks for sharing

Mr. Tavira,

You are right, in fact innovation is a matter of survival in many industries. I hope this article was helpful as you think how can BISM become an innovator in its own right.

Very Well Structured Process...!!!

Abraham, thanks for your comments. Structure is important where structure belongs. More than anything our process is a framework and a methodology for work, procesizing it too much kills the creativity. The most important of all is the mindset or the principles applied throughout its application.

Moises, thank you for sharing this story. Your transparency and level of detail make it easy for others to see the reality of innovating vs the hype. Great "class" in how to innovate for real!

Claiming how good we are at innovation is easy, but this article proves how far the horizon was set, how high the bar against which we compare ourselves in terms of real innovation. Whirlpool is to innovation what Toyota is to productivity. Congratulations Moises and Moises' team for setting the path.

Rodrigo, thanks for your nice comments. It is humbling to be compared like that even though I think we have a long way to go. Setting the bar high is what allow us to make progress and always challenge ourselves to do better.

Well done Moises. Easy to read and comprehensive. It is a very complex story that you have reduced to a very teachable document.

Clearly Moises knows his area of expertise very well. Furthermore, Whirlpool continues to build an environment of trust that encourages curiosity and freedom to experiment. This paper is an outsanding example. Well done!

José Ignacio Sordo

I think that "we" think the same and can fully agree to the sentance "It is amazing what a pragmatic limitation on time and resources can do for innovation projects. " as constraints lead to innovation and if you find a method that works for you that can foster innovation through systematic constraints - you can be extremely creative!! tha "Sand Box" is a good example that shows how we can evolve through and INSIDE THE BOX thinking and creating process. its looking at what you have and exploring the reasources to comeout with new ideas. i like it a lot ! thanks for the article, it speaks for itself

Omri, I believe that pragmatic approaches can drive great results but the way some of these things are driven matters a lot to, that can only be achieved with the right tools and experts to make it happen. I believe your team has an approach that enables these types of results. Thanks for your comments.

A very thorough, insightful look at how the appliance maker re-invented itself to prevent commoditization of it's products and business model. In addition to the internal transformative process described above Whirlpool also developed a noted parallel process to engage key suppliers in developing their own Innovation skills to increase overall value

Terry, you are right, I think the supplier innovation process is worth another paper in the future. Thanks for your comments.

Mr. Norena tells the story of how a Midwest appliance manufacturer competing in a commodity product changes itself into an innovative global consumer goods company. Rarely do we get such an insightful inside look at how this is done. There is much we can learn from Mr. Norena's article.

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Case 5: The Whirlpool Corporation in 2020

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The Whirlpool Corporation is the world’s largest manufacturer and producer of home “white-goods” – kitchen and laundry appliances. Currently led by CEO Marc Bitzer, Whirlpool manufactures goods in 13 countries, and sells products in nearly every corner of the world, with revenues of approximately $20B in 2019. Major competitors in the space include Samsung, LG, Electrolux, Philips, GE and more. Since being founded in 1911, Whirlpool has made major strides globalizing its supply chain and creating new products for customers. However, competition has risen alongside Whirlpool, challenging their market share and profitability. To combat increasing competition, stagnating revenues, and scarcely differentiated products around the year 1999, an innovation revolution occurred inside the corporation. The internal mantra behind R&D was completely changed to be inclusive of all employees, always, in all functions. Whirlpool adopted open innovation models within the company, encouraging employees to think of ways to better serve customers’ unspoken desires. The changes were successful and, since 1999, Whirlpool has continued to dominate the home appliances market through product innovations and strategic partnerships.

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How Whirlpool Spun The Home Appliance Market

Table of contents.

Look around your house; you will surely find a device or two from Whirlpool, be it a washing machine, a food factory, or a fridge.

An American multinational corporation that manufactures and markets premium quality home appliances, Whirlpool has a long and illustrious history of over 100 years, redefining lifestyles, one innovative home appliance at a time.

Here are a few statistics from 2020 that highlight the scale at which Whirlpool operates:

• Annual sales of $19 billion
• Employs a diverse workforce of 78,000 people
• Invested $0.9 billion in capital expenditure and R&D
• Manufactures products across 13 countries
• Achieved an impressive 10.9% return on invested capital
• Reached No. 7 spot on Newsweek’s 2021 list of America’s most responsible companies

Whirlpool started as a family venture that steadily grew into one of the most innovative and respected businesses worldwide. It went from being a family of two to having over 78,000 employees across the world. Yes, that’s right! 

Let’s take a closer look at the company’s impressive growth journey…

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It All Starts With An Idea

Whirlpool’s history can be traced back to 1911 when Louis and Emory Upton founded the Upton Machine Company - the original predecessor to the present-day Whirlpool Corp. Louis Upton’s imaginative and enterprising nature was the main reason behind the company’s establishment and early success in acquiring customers.

The Man Behind The Business

While still in high school, Louis Upton was forced to take up a job to support his family when his father died in a streetcar accident. He started off by becoming an insurance salesman. His job led him to cross paths with W.S. Klein, the secretary-treasurer of the Commonwealth Edison company. Although Louis failed to sell him insurance, he received a job offer instead.

The job at Commonwealth Edison introduced Louis to the rapidly developing field of electricity. It was here that Louis Upton also conceived the idea of making an electric washing machine.

An Unexpected Opportunity

While working at Edison, Louis was approached by E.C. Williams, a hardware merchant who wanted to set up a company to manufacture home washers. Upton was intrigued by the idea and offered his savings, $500, to Williams as capital for the company.

However, the venture failed utterly, and Williams’ business went bankrupt. Feeling responsible for Louis’ loss, Williams offered him a choice to take a patent as recompense.

Louis chose the patent for a manual washer that became the key for the founding of the company. He wanted to attach an electric motor to this design in light of his goal of manufacturing an electric washing machine.

The patent offered Louis the unexpected opportunity to realize his dreams, and he intended to make the most of it.

The Electric Washer Is Developed

After getting the patent, Louis approached his uncle Emory Upton, a mechanic, to consult him over the feasibility of his idea of attaching an electric motor to the design. Emory himself set about devising a transmission for the project.

Louis Upton approached the Federal Electric Company - one of commonwealth Edison’s divisions - with the new machine and convinced them to order a hundred washers for the retail market. He set up shop in Benton Harbor to fulfill the order. There, his brother, Frederick, also joined him to help build the electric washers.

Initial Challenges

After fulfilling its first order and successfully dealing with a few complaints regarding a fault in the gear transmission of the machines, the Upton Machine Company had successfully procured Federal Electric as a customer.

The manufacturing of the washers was financed by a $5,000 investment from Lowell Bassford, a retailing executive. Thus, the Upton Machine Company was formally established and was ready to start producing electric wringer washers. However, the relationship between Upton and Federal Electric came to a grinding halt after three years as the latter began manufacturing its own electric washers.

The loss of its customer was a major blow for the newly established company. Still, it managed to survive the harsh turn of events by diversifying and manufacturing toys, camping equipment, and automobile accessories.

The company finally experienced a breakthrough in 1916 when they managed to reach an agreement with Sears, Roebuck & Co. to produce two types of washers. Sears marketed the washers under the brand name “Allen.”

However, the company had learned from its previous experience with Federal Electric not to be over-reliant on a customer, which is why it began marketing a washer under its brand name as well.

The Merger With Nineteen Hundred

During the 1920s, the sales volume saw a rapid increase due to Sears’ expansion into retail and its selection of Upton as the sole supplier of washers.

Thus, Upton felt the need to increase its production capacity and enhance distribution efficiency. To do so, the company initiated a merger with Nineteen Hundred Washer Company of Binghamton, New York, in 1929. The company also changed its name to the Nineteen Hundred Corporation after the merger.

This new company was able to survive through the Great Depression while remaining relatively unaffected. It actually expanded and modernized its manufacturing facilities to cope with the increasing sales volume. It could very well be said that the company was thriving.

Key Takeaway 1: Every Challenge Is An Opportunity

Louis Upton encountered various challenges early on in his career. He invested in savings in E.C. Williams’ venture and it went bankrupt. However, upon receiving the patent as compensation for his loss, he embraced the opportunity to start his own business by developing an electric washer.

Rather than being disheartened by the previous failed venture, he wasted no time in approaching his uncle and setting his plans in motion. From there on, the company expanded its production capacity, partnering with large-scale customers and becoming a leading manufacturer in the industry!

The Business Takes Root

The company had now found its footing after an uncertain beginning. It was in a position to look towards expanding its business and establishing a presence in the industry.

Business During War Years

When World War II broke out, it resulted in the suspension of manufacturing all consumer products. Unfortunately for the Nineteen Hundred Corporation, this included washing machines. The company gave the production of military equipment precedence, and it received a contract for machining and assembling gun mounts.

Despite the drastic shift in the nature of products being manufactured, the company excelled at the new task. It was mass-producing military equipment such as propeller controls on an assembly line, even though they were usually custom-made. 

In 1942, Louis Upton was called to Washington and was appointed the Chief of the Consumer’s Durable Goods Division of the War Production Board. His task was to coordinate 19 industries into the war effort. He worked tirelessly during this time, with the company operating for 24 hours, six days of the week - sometimes even seven.

Throughout the duration of the war, the company’s 1,595 employees (620 of which were women) worked relentlessly to contribute to America's war effort.

Post War Years

Louis Upton demonstrated once again that he was a man with vision and foresight. While fully dedicated to contributing to the war effort, he was also thinking about what unique products he could offer the consumers once the war ended. Even during the war, he worked to develop a fully automatic spinner type washer that underwent as many as 25 major refinements and 50 working models.

Coincidentally, the company finished work on the washer just as the war was ending. Only a week after Japan surrendered, i.e., August 27, 1945, the company announced its new automatic washers: the Kenmore and Whirlpool. In 1947, Sears introduced the first automatic spinner type washer produced by the Nineteen Hundred Corporation, nicknamed “Jeep.”

Originally it was marketed under the "Kenmore" brand, but then after a year, it was reintroduced under the brand name “Whirlpool.”

Elisha Gray Takes Over

In 1949, at the annual meeting of the concern, Louis Upton announced his retirement and appointed Elisha Gray as his successor and Chief Executive Officer. He did, however, remain active in the firm, serving as Chairman of the Board.

Elisha was responsible for leading the company through the post-war era that ushered in increased consumer demand for labor-reducing appliances.

Therefore, the company introduced home laundry products, such as the wringer and automatic clothes washers, electric and automatic clothes dryers, and irons to capitalize on the demand.

In 1950, the company changed its name to Whirlpool Corporation as a move to propel brand awareness around the new automatic washer launched under Sears’ Kenmore brand. Elisha had noted the product’s popularity and devised a dual-distribution approach that would allow the company to build its brand name while retaining its partnership with Sears.

Enhancing Competitiveness And Market Share

By the mid-50s, it became evident that in order to increase its market share and to grow the company, Whirlpool needed to diversify its products. Its emphasis on laundry equipment was profitable, but it would not sustain the business for long in the industry, where the company was facing competition from more diversified firms.

Thus, Whirlpool merged with Seeger Refrigerator Company and introduced a refrigerator line. The company also introduced its own air conditioner and cooking range products that were previously being manufactured by Radio Corporation of America (RCA). It took on the name Whirlpool-Seeger Corporation and adopted RCA-Whirlpool as its brand name.

In 1955, the company was also listed on the New York Stock Exchange, contributing a great deal towards its growing popularity.

Key Takeaway 2: Explore Multiples Avenues For Growth

After the war, the company came back with the goal of expanding its business and pursued all possible options to help in its growth journey. Whirlpool did it all, whether it be diversifying through mergers and acquisitions, introducing unique new products into the market, or changing its name to consolidate its brand identity.

The company’s leadership recognized that the business needed to establish itself in the industry if it was to survive in the long run. Hence, even though its washing machine was thriving in the market, it added several new products to its portfolio and moved towards a complete electronic appliances brand.

Riding The Changing Tides

The 1960s saw an increase in consumerism that intensified the industry’s competitive aspect. The company had to try out new strategies during this time to maintain its edge in the market. In 1961, the company celebrated its 50th anniversary and reported $438 million in sales.

Catering To The Customers

The rise in consumerism saw businesses scrambling to put the needs of their customers above everything else. Whirlpool was no exception. The company recognized the significance of manufacturing better quality products and services for ensuring its survival in the market.

As a result, Whirlpool launched a continuing range of the latest products, such as the residential trash compactor - the first completely new major home appliance to hit the market in more than 30 years.

It also introduced new support services such as its toll-free, 24-hour Cool-Line service, through which customers could access information on issues pertaining to installation and repairs.

Going With The Flow

The 1960s also saw the demand for household gadgets and appliances dwindle, causing prices to fall. At the same time, the competition in the industry was also intensifying.

Therefore, the company deemed it necessary to implement certain changes to maintain its competitiveness in the market. It streamlined its production process and focused on decreasing manufacturing costs.

Moreover, it sought to consolidate its brand identity around the name “Whirlpool,” which had gained significant traction over time. In 1966, the company dropped the RCA name from its products, and “Whirlpool” became its flagship brand.

Diversifying Through Acquisitions

The company was not content with just broadening its range of appliances; it was determined to seek out various avenues of growth. Thus, it turned to acquisitions as a means for expansion. In 1966, the company ventured into the consumer electronics market by acquiring Warwick Electronics and its division, the Thomas Organ Company. Warwick Electronics was a major television producer for Sears.

However, the new line of business could not last for long, and Whirlpool decided to exit the television market in 1976. Japan’s Sanyo Electronic Co. bought its television operations; however, Whirlpool retained the Organ business for its electronic technology.

Despite the mixed results of the acquisitions, Whirlpool reported sales worth $1 billion for the first time in company history in 1967.

Moreover, in 1969, Whirlpool acquired a 33% stake in John Inglis Co. Ltd. - a prominent manufacturer and marketer of home appliances - allowing the company to penetrate the Canadian market. The subsidiary remains Whirlpool’s Canadian stronghold to this day.

The Market Takes A Turn For The Worse

The new decade opened on a challenging note - consumerism was rising, the 1973 energy crisis was wreaking havoc, the housing industry was collapsing, and an economic recession was in swing. Such disastrous developments compounded the pressure on the appliance industry to pursue energy-efficient products and enhance the overall efficiency of the production processes.

Consequently, Whirlpool’s dealers and Sears liquidated their inventories, forcing Whirlpool to lay off one-third of its workforce to cope. Sears was still Whirlpool’s largest customer, and its actions had a significant impact on the latter’s operations.

Prospects Start Looking Up Once Again

By 1977, the major disturbances in the market were beginning to smooth over. The upward turn of prospects manifested in the rise of demand for household appliances.

Interestingly, the drivers behind the strong demand were mostly first-time customers from the post-war generation, households looking to replace old devices, and the military post exchanges with whom the company had entered into a buying agreement in 1967.

Whirlpool continued to grow during this period while being guided by its commitment to improving products for residential use. Some of its notable products from the time included the first automatic clothes washer with solid-state electronic controls and a line of microwave ovens.

Key Takeaway 3: Be Prepared For Change

This phase in the company’s history was marked by the drastic changes in market conditions and how they impacted the overall business during the two decades. The reason why Whirlpool was able to survive through this tumultuous business cycle was that it had laid the groundwork to face any situation.

It diversified its operations so that it was not overly dependent on one line of business which would have been extremely risky during such uncertain market conditions. Hence, despite all the challenges of changing markets and trends, Whirlpool continued to thrive.

Whirlpool Reaches New Heights

Despite an uncertain start to the decade, the company underwent remarkable growth during the 1980s that ensured its long-term rise.

Spark Takes The Reins

The 80s began with Platt’s retirement and appointment of Vice-chairman Jack D. Sparks as the new chairman and the CEO.

Spark shifted the company’s focus towards greater goals and brought worthwhile additions to the company through his sales and marketing strategies. These new goals helped the company maintain its edge in the domestic market, especially since the US market was getting more foreign competition.

Spark introduced the five-year plan to address trends in the market and placed the company on a major capital spending program to increase productivity. This change in focus helped the company bring a variety of home appliances under the lineage of Whirlpool Corp. Not just that, but it also introduced consumer durable goods in its product line.

Venturing Into The International Market

Sparks had come into office with an international agenda. He wanted to tap into the global market, for which the company underwent a series of important acquisitions. Whirlpool acquired the KitchenAid division of Hobart Corporation, Mastercraft Industries Corporation, and a cabinet manufacturer, St. Charles Manufacturing Company.

These purchases proved to be incredibly beneficial for Whirlpool in the long run as they helped the company gain international experience and broadened its perspectives. Spark also initiated the Whirlpool Trading company in 1984 to help Whirlpool grow internationally. It even resulted in a joint venture with N.V Philips, two years later, to manufacture and market household appliances overseas. The company focused attention on cabinet manufacturing during this time as well, with stock and custom cabinets being primarily distributed in the Southwestern and Western US.

The Transition To Whitman’s Time

In 1986, the company celebrated its 75th anniversary, with its sales reaching up to $4 billion. Moreover, the company acquired the Kitchen Aid brand - a business unit of Dart & Kraft - in an attempt to expand the company’s brand portfolio and meet a broader segment of consumer needs around styling, endurance, performance, and heritage. In 1987, Whirlpool was listed on the London Stock Exchange.

In 1987, David R. Whitman succeeded Jack Spark to take on the role of President and CEO of the company. He continued the company’s five-year global strategy. He also focused on increasing production and reducing costs by using new technology for appliance production. The company also delved into manufacturing and developing prototypes of appliances for use in U.S. space stations.

A Different Management Approach

Up until 1988, the company was working under a centralized structure, with the decision-making power in the senior management's hands. But in the year 1988, they reorganized the company’s activities into seven separate categories.

The categories were:

• Kitchen Aid
• Whirlpool appliance groups
• Whirlpool International
• Inglis Limited
• Whirlpool Finance Corporation
• and the company’s export group

The reorganization enabled Whirlpool to maximize its profits and reduce its costs to the minimum. This move also helped them optimize efficiency and market responsiveness.

Shortly afterward, Whirlpool tried to acquire Roper Corporation, another major manufacturer and supplier of appliances to Sears, but the attempt failed due to interruption from General Electric (GE). Subsequently, after a long controversial dispute, GE and Whirlpool forged a two-year agreement, in which the former was to supply appliance motors and gas and electric ranges to the latter.

Key Takeaway 4: Stay Open To Options

The 1980s were a time when Whirlpool was open to exploring its options in terms of what strategies it would pursue or how it would maximize its efficiency. The company underwent its first major restructuring in 1988, which showed that it was willing to take a new approach in order to improve its performance. The decade also marked the first time Whirlpool seriously ventured into the international market and established itself as a global business.

Growth Through Globalization

Whirlpool was rapidly expanding and branching its business out to international markets. Its progress in previous decades had firmly established it in the industry as a force to be reckoned with.

The subsequent years saw the company continue its upward climb despite the occasional hurdles along the way.

Reaping The Benefits Of Successful Strategies

Whirlpool had relentlessly pursued an internationalization strategy that had solidified its place as one of the most globally diversified companies in the world. By the early 1990s, the company was steadily expanding and leading the industry as the largest appliance manufacturer in the world. In 1992, Whirlpool’s revenues reached $7 billion.

By the latter half of 1994, its manufacturing facilities spanned across 11 countries while it marketed its products in over 120 nations.

Setting Sight On Greater Heights

Whirlpool recognized the need to branch out the business over potentially profitable regions across the world and consolidate its overseas operations to sustain expansion. Thus, in 1990, it formed “Whirlpool Overseas Corporation” - a subsidiary to conduct marketing and industrial activities beyond North America and Western Europe.

Moreover, the aim of establishing this organization was to conduct market research and enhance the company’s understanding of consumer needs internationally. In 1993, it was divided into three separate regional organizations: Whirlpool Europe, Whirlpool Asia, and Whirlpool Latin America.

By forming these separate organizations, the company could strategically tap into the target markets by addressing local lifestyles and consumer needs.

Whirlpool In Asia

While Whirlpool was enjoying remarkable gains from its success in the European market, it was still looking forward to accelerating growth by tapping into Asia.

Whirlpool Asia’s executive office in Tokyo was responsible for strategic development that led to the company’s rapid growth in the region. In 1994, it had sold 700,000 units in Asia and in 1995, it was expecting to sell 3 million.

The company was confident about sustaining its sales growth in Asia and continued to pursue its expansion strategy.

Whirlpool Enters India

In 1995, following its goal of tapping into profitable markets, Whirlpool made the move to acquire a controlling interest in Kelvinator India Ltd. - India’s largest manufacturers and marketers of refrigerators.

The same year, Whirlpool also acquired majority shares in TVS. In 1996, the company merged both these acquisitions to form Whirlpool India Ltd.

By doing so, the company succeeded in expanding its range of products in the region to include washing machines, refrigerators, microwave ovens, and air conditioners.

Restructuring To Enhance Growth

Although Whirlpool’s overseas operations were excelling, the company was also mindful of the subdued North American appliance market. It decided to tackle the problem by restructuring.

In 1994, it closed some plants in Canada and the U.S., leading to a reduction of 9% in its global workforce. The same year saw Whirlpool’s total revenues climb by more than 8%, and by 1995, profits were at an all-time high.

Ending The Millennium On A Strong Note

The company had experienced another great decade in terms of its overall performance. By 1997, Whirlpool was manufacturing in 13 countries across the globe and boasting a workforce numbering up to 61,370. It continued to expand by adding more products to its line-up and acquiring significant footholds in various regions worldwide.

During this period, the world was growing more aware of the need for technological advancement, and governments welcomed foreign investment coming into their countries - especially China and India.

Whirlpool chose to capitalize on this opportunity to reach out to those markets and establish strong footholds that would ensure the company’s long-term growth. In 1999, Whirlpool reported total revenues worth $10.5 billion - its highest yet. The company was geared to enter the new millennium with bright prospects of sustained growth.

Key Takeaway 5: Research & Planning To Penetrate New Markets

Whirlpool was immensely successful in expanding its business all over the world because it had strategically identified and tapped into essential markets. Its growth was guided by extensive research into local lifestyles and consumer needs which is why it was successful in not only penetrating these markets but maintaining its lead.

The company also focused its overseas expansion on specific regions, which it deemed especially profitable. Whirlpool’s foreign acquisitions were planned out such that they would provide the company with reliable footholds in the target markets.

Becoming The Whirlpool Of Today

Whirlpool entered the 21st Century with a commitment to enhance product innovation and invest in people and communities. The major developments of the new millennium helped the company pursue its goal of becoming the best kitchen and laundry company worldwide.

Investing In Innovation

In the year 2000, Whirlpool’s CEO, Dave Whitman, highlighted the need for investing in employee education and skill development; not only out of ethical responsibility but also for the sake of continuing a healthy growth trajectory.

The same year, he initiated a program to select 75 global employees to teach them innovation methodologies so that when they returned to their home regions, they would help pioneer unique solutions for a global consumer base.

Whitman was guided by his vision of ushering in a new age of innovation, one that would transform every job at Whirlpool.

His approach of pursuing embedded innovation yielded the successful Gladiator® GarageWorks line and resource-efficient Whirlpool® brand Duet® washers and dryers.

Embracing Social Responsibility

The company’s commitment to pursue growth while upholding its social responsibility can be gauged by the following significant developments, among many others:

• In 2002, Whirlpool Latin America launched a social program to teach women from limited-income backgrounds entrepreneurial skills and provide earning opportunities.
• In 2003, it became the world’s first appliance manufacturer to set a global greenhouse gas reduction target.

Weathering The Storm

In 2004, Jeff Fettig took over as chairman and CEO. 

He continued his predecessor’s successful strategy of embedded innovation and investing in energy-efficient products. Fettig was also instrumental in guiding the company through the global financial crisis of 2008. He undertook strategic measures, such as announcing the closure of certain plants to ensure that the company emerged out of the crisis on a firm footing.

Investing In Important Projects

In 2010, Whirlpool announced plans to invest $85 million to build a centralized North American headquarters in Benton Harbor, Michigan. The project marked the company’s commitment to staying true to its roots.

It also invested $30 million to build a new Refrigeration Tech Center, creating a total of 180 new jobs. Moreover, it made a $120 million investment to build a new LEED-certified manufacturing facility in Cleveland, Tennessee. The company made the huge investment to enhance the competitiveness of U.S. manufacturing.

Looking Ahead

In 2011, the company celebrated its 100th anniversary and unveiled an updated corporate logo. It reiterated its commitment to offer innovative solutions to improve life at home. 

The company also committed to the Catalyst CEO Champions For Change Pledge to increase Whirlpool’s female representation in executive and senior-level positions. 

In 2013, Whirlpool continued its global expansion through the strategic acquisition of 51% majority stakes in Hefei Royalstar Sanyo - a joint venture between a Japanese and Chinese firm. The acquisition worth $552 million provided the company with added leverage to establish itself in the Chinese appliance market. By the end of the decade, the company had posted record financial results.

Addressing Present-Day Problems

The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic stimulated the company’s aim for improving life at home as it completely transformed people’s home and work life.

It introduced new health and safety protocols for employees and extended financial support to its communities across the globe. The company even donated medical supplies and appliances to hospitals worldwide. 

Whirlpool also joined the fight against climate change by pleading to achieve its target of net zero emissions by 2030. Moreover, to help mitigate its impact on vulnerable communities, it also committed to building over 250 climate-resilient and energy-efficient houses through Habitat for Humanity.

Key Takeaway 6: Take Care Of Your Own

Whirlpool’s past few decades in business went beyond just maximizing profits; it also emphasized the need to empower and support its people and communities. It upheld the principles of social responsibility with integrity and was rewarded with not only a healthy and supportive work environment but also enhanced productivity and innovation.

The company demonstrated its awareness and commitment to addressing modern-day problems such as the pandemic, climate change, and female representation in companies. Thus, by empowering all its stakeholders, the company is primed for sustainable future growth.

Summary & Strategic Takeaways

After 110 years, Whirlpool has become a corporate entity whose growth and development actually benefits not only its employees and associated communities but the society at large.

The Whirlpool of today is much more than a manufacturer and marketer of household appliances. It is an industry leader in pursuing competitive growth without neglecting social responsibility.

Growth By The Numbers

Innovation Is Key

Whirlpool operates within a highly technologically driven industry where innovation is essential for long-term survival. The company has always sought to introduce products developed from the latest technology. The electric washer, the first automatic spinner type washer, and the residential trash compactor are just a few notable examples from Whirlpool’s legacy of innovative product development.

Good Leadership Is At The Heart Of A Successful Business

Whirlpool has been in business for over 110 years now and it has only had 7 chairmen and CEOs. The values that were passed on by Louis Upton have been preserved by his successors. The company’s leadership has been its center of stability and has guided it through extremely harsh and tough times such as the Great Depression, the two World Wars, the global financial crisis of 2008, and finally, the pandemic. The responsibility for the company’s performance is also shared by all its employees across all levels of management. This is why the company has managed to deliver excellence over the years.

Always Put The Customer First

Whirlpool was able to attain such monumental growth because it always emphasized the needs of the customer above anything else. It devised numerous ways of facilitating its customers by providing services such as the Cool-Line. It also ensured that its product development was guided by the latest data on customer needs across various lifestyles and cultures. By doing so, it maintained its competitive edge by offering products that the customers needed.

Prioritize People - Profits Will Follow

Whirlpool never hesitated to invest in its people and communities because it recognized that these very people are the drivers of company profits. In this day and age, social responsibility and ethical practices can provide the business an extra boost as it shows the consumers that the company is not just obsessed with maximizing profits. By investing in people and communities, Whirlpool was able to differentiate itself from the competition and gain an edge in the market.

Case Open innovation helps Whirlpool discover new market opportunities Amy Muller and Nate Hutchins

Strategy & Leadership

ISSN : 1087-8572

Article publication date: 29 June 2012

Gorrell, C. (2012), "Case Open innovation helps Whirlpool discover new market opportunities Amy Muller and Nate Hutchins", Strategy & Leadership , Vol. 40 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/sl.2012.26140daa.007

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2012, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Article Type: Quick takes From: Strategy & Leadership, Volume 40, Issue 4

While innovation at Whirlpool is pervasive and the innovation process has yielded great success, Whirlpool realized that it could benefit from tapping into the large talent pool outside the company. Spurred by the desire to get innovations to the market faster, and by the need to gain deeper insights into its customers, Whirlpool began to augment its current innovation system to make it more open.

Approach The Whirlpool approach to open innovation is a thoughtful overlay to its existing three-step innovation process: insight/idea generation; idea development; commercialization. Whirlpool thinks of open innovation as a complimentary set of principles and tools – not a “new” approach to innovation. In its open innovation “toolkit” are the “macro-tools” of crowdsourcing, partnerships, technology scouting, technology brokering, and consumer collaboration. At a more granular level, the “tools” used are basically a set of questions and discussion guides that help to inform the decision to go “open” or not at each step of the innovation process (see Exhibit 3 for screening questions).

Maintain a balance of open innovation and internal innovation Open innovation is not the answer to everything. By overlaying open innovation tools on their existing innovation process, Whirlpool is able to evaluate in a very deliberate way where and how open innovation can help it achieve its goals in each step of the innovation process. In general, Whirlpool relies on internal innovation more in the familiar spaces of appliances and seeks partners when exploring adjacent or complementary spaces. The example of how Whirlpool worked with outside firms and consultants to develop its affresh appliance cleaning products is explored.

Benefits of open innovation at Whirlpool Besides accelerating and streamlining the path to market, Whirlpool also realized another benefit: a new point of view. The question: “do we have the competences to do this?” has been supplemented with the question: “if not us, who else could provide the necessary competences to do this?” By changing the context to competences within any organization, the company is now considering and pursuing a number of opportunities that would have previously been rejected, and Whirlpool is successfully expanding its business to adjacent spaces through the help of open innovation partners.

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The WCM Way – A complete New World for Manufacturing

Sep 29, 2020 | Manufacturing , Workplace Culture

Everything starts with a purpose! Nothing matters without it. World Class Manufacturing (WCM) wasn’t different, and it’s 100 percent linked with the Strategic Imperative of Reinventing our Value Chain at Whirlpool Corporation.

The natural feeling after this very first step was to be afraid of the unknown, mostly because of the ZERO Optimum Concept, which is the “mantra” of WCM. ZERO is a beautiful number when talking about potential accidents, consumer complaints or waste. Then comes the second question: Is it really possible to reach ZERO? In that case, the answer is easier: YES, it’s possible! To put into practice and make it happen is not as simple as the answer, hence comes the key figure of all this process: the PEOPLE!

A successful process goes far beyond having the right tools and methods to address all issues, It’s totally based on the right people at the right opportunity, scope or position. The beauty here is how leadership requirements go to another level; forget about regular skill sets, rockstar profiles or role model pupils. Now, we really understand the importance of having a diverse team, with different skill sets and thoughts, with different views on learning, thinking and making decisions. 

Each pillar requires a different knowhow and approach. Every team member should be chosen based on having a mixed team as much as possible, achieving the best results for the program and for the company. Team building is a continuous process. People keep rising in knowledge, capabilities and positions. Every operator is a key figure within the program, and leadership is accountable to show them the purpose of getting into WCM, and the benefits of living it.

So now that we have Senior Leadership support and the right team set, let’s make it happen! But this is not a one way/short time trip. It’s a long journey of changing processes and people’s lives. For Whirlpool, this journey started about two years ago, and it’s impressive to see how the changes at the factories so far, with the model areas and several expansion areas. It’s a good example of how our plants can be a benchmark in a short period of time, and reaching the ZERO Optimum Concept is starting to become real.

I have mentioned changing people’s lives, and this is the most valuable part. It’s so substantial that you can feel it on the shop floor. We can easily see people rising in their roles and achieving the company’s results. The WCM journey has just started. Some of our plants were granted their very first recognition of becoming Bronze Level, which is related to the transformation of part of our shop floor. So far, these great achievements keep our teams engaged and excited to maintain the RIGOR and PACE to accelerate evolution!

– Vinicius Tokuda Kouichi, Plant Lead – Rio Claro

Did you hear the news?

• Summer Youth Golf Program Supported by Whirlpool Foundation Introduces Teens to Careers in the Golf Industry
• Whirlpool Community Golf Event raised $3.2 Million for Southwest Michigan Youth
• Whirlpool Corporation’s SlimTech™ Insulation Technology Wins “Innovation by Design” Honors from Fast Company
• Whirlpool Corporation Named A “Best Place to Work” for Disability Inclusion for the Eighth Year in a Row
• Whirlpool Corporation Named One of the 100 Best Companies for Working Parents in 2024 by Seramount
• Whirlpool Corporation Named to Selling Power’s 2024 “60 Best Companies to Sell For”
• Whirlpool Employees Help Improve Homes and Lives in Colombia
• More than 200,000 Appliances Donated to Habitat for Humanity in the 25 Year Relationship Have a Lasting Impact on Homeowners
• KitchenAid Brand’s Support of Michigan Hospitality Foundation Competition Gives Students Invaluable Culinary Experience
• Whirlpool Corporation and City of Benton Harbor Team Up to Revitalize Community Park for Third Consecutive Year

How Digital Innovation Helped Whirlpool Create Seamless CX and a Connected Field Team

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“The impact of Covid across the world gave us the opportunity to completely rethink how we delivered customer care as well as communicating with our engineers in the field visiting customers' homes. WhatsApp provided the perfect solution for both of these issues and meant we could continue to meet our care targets despite the extreme circumstances we were operating under.” Taylor Mumby Customer Service & OMNI Channel Business Manager, Whirlpool UK

Whirlpool Corporation is the world’s leading kitchen and laundry appliance company with nearly 80,000 employees worldwide. Customer service, warranty planning and field services are the foundations of Whirlpool’s dedication to its customers’ post-purchase experience for all its brands including Hotpoint, Indesit, Whirlpool and KitchenAid.

Whirlpool prides itself on delivering outstanding customer experiences across all of its brands. It’s at the core of their business culture and operational model.

The Challenge:

The majority of Whirlpool’s employees in the UK are deployed in the field either to deliver new appliances or for in-home repairs of existing products. Covid-19 brought a huge challenge; continuing to provide this service without any reduction in quality of care.

In-home visits continued but were carried out under strict social distancing rules and the 500 person strong contact center was closed. It meant the customer service team were unable to rely on the telephony systems to communicate with both customers and engineers in the field. On top of this, in the four month period following the first lockdown announcement, there was a 106% year-on-year increase in inbound customer inquiries.

The Solution:

Whirlpool approached Conversocial, A Verint Company, for a solution that helped tackle both the volume of customer inquiries and the increased demands of a newly home working workforce.

As a channel familiar to customers and engineers, Whirlpool set up WhatsApp Business accounts for two main audiences: one for field technicians to provide assistance to engineers in the field undertaking repairs and the other focused on customers needing to request an in-home repair appointment – adding automation to help customers self-serve or escalate for warranty repair requests.

The customer-facing WhatsApp account saw the number of conversations treble in the early days of the first national lockdown after being added to the website’s ‘Contact Us’ page. Whirlpool also simultaneously reduced mentions of its phone number for all brands to move inbound call volume from voice to WhatsApp Business.

The appointment booking bot achieved an average containment rate of 27%, meaning more than ¼ of inbound inquiries were not escalated to contact center agents.

The business impact:, for customers.

• Efficient Booking Process: The appointment booking bot achieved an average containment rate of 27%, meaning more than ¼ of inbound inquiries were not escalated to contact center agents.
• Round the Clock Availability: Automation allows customers to arrange their own bookings outside of office hours. With WhatsApp bots appointments can be cancelled or amended all within the channel 24 hours a day.
• Quicker Resolution: Average call times for issues that began using WhatsApp were 33 seconds shorter than those that were purely phone calls. Utilizing automation, Whirlpool were able to collect key information for agents ahead of speaking to the customer, leading to swifter resolutions.

For Field Engineers

• HQ Communications Simplified: Engineers are able to send images and videos over WhatsApp to support staff in HQ whilst on home visits. Before private messaging channels were launched, email was the only solution for this and wasn’t widely used. WhatsApp now allows for more efficient conversations between engineers and Whirlpool HQ for suggestions and solutions, which has been especially helpful for newer engineers encountering issues they hadn’t seen before.
• Prior Case Referencing: The asynchronous nature of WhatsApp gives Whirlpool’s field engineers access to every interaction between them and agents at HQ. Any fault they have previously encountered has a ready and waiting solution to refer back to all within the app. It’s helped reduce the number of calls between engineers and support agents by essentially providing a solutions channel for reference whenever they need it, rather than relying on single interaction phone calls.

The Future:

Whirlpool is looking to expand its integration of WhatsApp into customer interactions in 2021, with two key goals:

• Complex Conversations: Move beyond initial bot capabilities such as appointment booking and information gathering, to implement more Natural Language Understanding (NLU) into the company’s CX strategy. It will mean the bots are able to identify the specific intent of a customer and route the conversation into the right flow, adding an extra layer of seamless automation to customer conversations.
• Proactive Notifications: Reaching out to customers over WhatsApp requesting pre-appointment information. By engaging ahead of the engineer visit, it will allow Whirlpool to pre-order any spare parts that may be required, with the aim that most appliances will be repaired on the first visit.

“The initial integration of WhatsApp into our CX operation has changed how we approach customer conversations. We want to make digital platforms like WhatsApp our customers’ preferred and most used method of contact when getting in touch with our technical team to improve the scope and quality of the experiences for both the Whirlpool customer and us as a company." Taylor Mumby Customer Service & OMNI Channel Business Manager, Whirlpool UK

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The Luxury of Open Innovation: A Case Study of Whirlpool

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Whirlpool Corporation Had to Transform Its Business A Legacy Network Stood in the Way. Standardisation on a Cisco® Platform Opened Innovation Floodgates.

• Case Studies

Company Whirlpool Corporation

When you're a worldwide manufacturer with a premium brand, you can't afford production bottlenecks or live with creaking systems that stifle your inventiveness. Now, with a new Cisco network architecture implemented by Black Box Network Services, Whirlpool Corporation has greater operational agility and efficiency.

Whirlpool Corporation, the world's largest appliance maker, keeps consumers focused on what matters by helping them do what they need to do: cooking, cleaning, washing, drying, heating, humidifying—so they can do what they want to do.

With market-leading products sold in 170 countries, Whirlpool needs to run its business on the right settings. Just like its customers' homes do.

Yet its history had left a legacy of mixed network devices, even in the same plants. Wireless networks were struggling to keep pace as logistics looked to go beyond barcode scanning. This unstable set-up was costly to run and hard to troubleshoot.

"Limited network access left management without real-time views or control of production processes," says program manager, Greg Fisbeck. "We decided to standardise IT operations around the world."

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Launching D2C Success Through True Partnership

Whirlpool entrusted Wpromote to help develop and deploy its D2C go-to-market strategy across multiple brands. Since launching right before Q4 2019, the partnership has expanded beyond the traditional agency-client relationship to a true collaboration that embraces innovation.

Their Story

The World’s Home Appliance Destination

Whirlpool Corporation is the world’s leading major home appliance company, with approximately $20 billion in annual sales, 77,000 employees, and 59 manufacturing and technology research centers in 2019. The corporation includes Whirlpool, KitchenAid, Maytag, Amana, JennAir, Indesit, and other major brand names, with customers in nearly every country throughout the world.

“Our partnership has built a community of colleagues that trust and push each other while also striving for continuous improvement.” CAROL WOLOWIC SENIOR MANAGER OF MEDIA STRATEGY, WHIRLPOOL

The Challenge

Bringing Brands Straight To The Consumer

Whirlpool came to Wpromote in 2019 looking to develop and launch a multi-brand, go-to-market D2C strategy. This was a complex ask with distinct challenges:

• There were many stakeholders, client teams, and third parties involved.
• Each brand or business unit was at a different stage in their D2C journey: for example, the major appliance brands had only recently enabled D2C functionality with no supporting media, whereas KitchenAid Small Appliances had been gaining some momentum online and had campaigns live already.
• Consumers were comfortable with and confident in the D2C buying experience for some brands and products, but still heavily reliant on the in-store experience when purchasing major appliances.

The Solution

Transforming The Company, One Business Channel At A Time

Wpromote adopted a custom approach to each business channel and brand to maximize the learnings and associated KPIs.

• KitchenAid Small Appliances (USA) – Wpromote worked successfully to complete a tailored go-to-market Q4 holiday plan which included a full-funnel approach in order to reach the target consumers–the passionate maker and gift-givers. This included launching refurbished vs. new product campaigns, as well as adding a customization feature to create a unique value proposition.
• Major Appliances – Maytag, Whirlpool & KitchenAid – Wpromote initially launched with the Maytag brand in Q4, with a robust learning agenda guiding our strategy. The team then replicated the most successful campaigns for the launches of the other two brands, which meant it was possible to accelerate the go-to-market strategy. Wpromote partnered with other agencies and the brand teams to create “swimlanes” to help avoid competing against ourselves while maintaining various touchpoints with the consumer.

Post-launch, the partnership between Whirlpool and Wpromote has focused on new opportunities and potential for innovation.

• Pivoting Strategies – As the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Wpromote partnered closely with the team to develop a tailored plan for each business vertical, to great success. Specifically, the team responded to the significantly increased demand across KitchenAid Small Appliances during this time, launched new campaigns and initiatives, and quickly assumed the role of the primary retail channel. On the Major Appliances side, the Wpromote team worked with brand teams to adopt a nimble framework to help tackle inventory challenges as production slowed, as well as capture interest from consumers that could no longer shop in stores.
• Growing The Partnership – Finally, Wpromote recently expanded our support to Whirlpool by launching KitchenAid Small Appliances Canada on a super tight turnaround time. The first weekend after launch, the KASA Canada campaigns drove a blended ROAS of 16x, which highlights the team’s determination to drive strong performance for clients and tailored approach to the build and targeting. Wpromote has also partnered on a new campaign for Whirlpool’s extensive corporate discount program, Inside Pass.

Strong performance is the foundation of this partnership, but it is not the only way to evaluate the success of the Whirlpool-Wpromote partnership. In the spirit of innovation and collaboration, the Wpromote team attended the Whirlpool brand team’s annual discovery trip as a trusted advisor to discuss trends in digital and brand journeys. In addition, Carol Wolowic, Senior Manager of Media Strategy for Whirlpool, was able to share her brand expertise at Wpromote Challenger Summit 2019, and has participated in various panels.

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Defining Success Beyond Metrics

Comparing our first Black Friday promotion period to our most recent July 4th promotion period, through a combination of media optimizations, website enhancements, COVID-19 strategies, and overarching teamwork across Whirlpool & Wpromote, we have seen the below increases by business unit:

For Major Domestic Appliances

• 3575% Increase In Adobe ROAS
• 675% Increase In Media Conversion Rates

For Small Domestic Appliances

• 212% Increase In Adobe ROAS
• 54% Increase In Media Conversion Rates

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Whirlpool Corporation Essay

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Brief Background Of The Company

Problems or issues the firm encounters, strategic analysis, operational strategy, ethics and sustainability issues, action plans, works cited.

Whirlpool Corporation, one of the world’s leading home appliances manufactures, prides in its variety of different products in its market niche. Dealing with home appliances, the whirlpool corporation recorded an annual sale of $19 billion in the year 2011 alone (Kindel 49). It has an employee network of about 68,000 employees and has around 66 manufacturing and technology research centers (Oster and Rossant 98).

The company began as a partnership between three brothers Louis, Frederick, and Emory. The three, commonly referred as the Upton Brothers’ greatest and first invention was the motor-driven wringer washers. This product overwhelmed their market and the demand was far beyond their production capacity. It was at this point that the brothers decided to join hands with another company The Sears, Roebuck and Company in 1916 (Kindel 46).

Through research and development endeavors, the whirlpool corporation has championed the water efficiency measures and has continually worked very closely with the U.S. department of energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star (Kindel 46).

Some of the corporation’s achievements include becoming an Energy Star seven times. The company offers a wide range of products under a number of different brand names such as the Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, Amana, Brastemp, Consul, and Bauknecht among other major brands.

One of the major challenges that the whirlpool corporation encounters in the market is innovation resistance. Due to the long-term nature of innovation, consumers are less interested in new products or improvements mainly because it is an interruption to already existing established routines. Consumers get used to a particular product and it becomes a problem to convince them to change to a different outfit altogether.

Innovation resistance can be due to two main factors, which are the degree of change or discontinuity with regard to the change, and the extent of conflict between the innovation and consumer belief structure (Oster and Rossant 98). Another challenge that the corporation have been dealing with is the issue of quality and efficiency. Whirlpool products have had its share of consumer complaints with regard to the standard of performance.

Electronic malfunction is a major setback on the corporation’s reputation and can cause unimaginable damage to its market share globally. Most of the issues raised by consumers are related to company’s response to consumers complains.

The company is mainly involved in the production of basic home appliances and other related products (Kindel 49). It operates mainly in Europe, America, Latin America, and Asia but the headquarters is in Benton Harbor Michigan. It maximizes its profits through careful reduction of operating cost a strategy that has been successful over the years. The organizational culture also has helped the company to achieve greater success and has positively had an impact on its performance.

The company’s commitment to produce environmental friendly products gives it a cutting edge and enhances its reputation in the global market. The company practices a market driven strategy aimed at gaining competitive advantage backed by its global presence in most of the regional markets (Kindel 49). The company’s market mix differs from country to country since every region has unique preferences according to environmental, custom, and economic influence.

The company acquired the right to distribute materials involved in the production of appliances in all the production facilities (Kindel 49). This gives the company a competitive and influential position in the appliance industry as both a manufacturer and a raw material supplier to other players in the market. The strength of the company includes their capacity to innovate and create new production concepts identified through their market research (Benway 33).

This translates to consumer satisfaction in the end by addressing consumer’s needs specifically as well as having environmental friendly products. The company has the ability through its resource base and organizational infrastructure to focus on the highly profitable products and features (Benway 33).

The whirlpool corporation has a long-term commitment to conserve the environment by establishing best practices to the same effect. Environmental protection and natural resource efficiency are at the core of the company’s commitment (Oster and Rossant 99). The company endeavors concentrate on creating high performance products that help in the conservation of the earth’s recourses.

Their products aim at giving the consumer the advantage of utilizing and exhausting resources more efficiently. Whirlpool Corporation undertakes researches to identify to what extend does their business influence environmental degradation. With such information, it strives to ensure that the damage caused by their products is at the lowest level of influence possible through innovations.

The company has received global recognition owing to its commitment to social and environmental performance (Oster and Rossant 100). The company’s code of ethics, which requires every worker to maintain the heist level of personal, business, and legal conduct, contributes greatly in the excellent performance.

With the growth and success of Whirlpool Corporation, the opportunity is not fully exhausted with regard to its major markets especially in Europe, North America, and Asia. The company should put more efforts in these regions to maintain their market and maximize their profit.

Nonetheless, there is also need for the company to consider emerging markets in the African continent. Investing in new markets will not only increase its market share and financial proceeds, but will also support their globalization strategy (Benway 34). This will go a long way in absorbing the current pressure influenced by competitors. The company has an upper hand already as it has the infrastructure to spread wings into new markets as opposed to some competing parties in the market.

To keep the company on top in the market, the management must respond positively and effectively to consumer complaints and seal all the loopholes that may taint a bad image on the company’s credibility. In addition to that, the company’s reputation is on consumer-based production. Research on the particular needs of consumers and addressing these needs in vital for the company.

As discussed in this paper, the whirlpool company is a global enterprise and a reputable home appliances company. Consumer confidence in its products is admirable and these have enabled the company to get a global recognition. This paper has outlined a few problems that the company is facing in the midst of its operation. Above also is a brief history of the company and its growth over the years.

One thing that is striking about the whirlpool corporation is the ethics and sustainability strategies laid out. The company’s efforts to help communities exhaustively utilize the available resources and its commitment to conserve the environment are clear in this research paper.

Oster, Patrick, and John Rossant. “Call It World pool.” Business Week. 1.1 (1994): 98-110. Print.

Benway, Susan Duffy. “Giving Growth a Tumble: Whirlpool Pushes Expansion,” Barron’s. 15.1 (1986): 32-35. Print.

Kindel, Stephen. “World Washer: Why Whirlpool Leads in Appliances, Not Some Japanese Outfit.” Financial World. 4.2 (1990): 42-50. Print.

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IvyPanda. (2018, November 30). Whirlpool Corporation. https://ivypanda.com/essays/whirlpool-corporation-case-study/

"Whirlpool Corporation." IvyPanda , 30 Nov. 2018, ivypanda.com/essays/whirlpool-corporation-case-study/.

IvyPanda . (2018) 'Whirlpool Corporation'. 30 November.

IvyPanda . 2018. "Whirlpool Corporation." November 30, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/whirlpool-corporation-case-study/.

1. IvyPanda . "Whirlpool Corporation." November 30, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/whirlpool-corporation-case-study/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Whirlpool Corporation." November 30, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/whirlpool-corporation-case-study/.

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