Change, creativity and innovation are essential to the success of Terra Cycle, a company that makes consumer products from garbage. Tom Szaky, founder and CEO, hopes to reinvent consumer products and how they are made by capitalizing on the growing trend toward environmentally friendly lifestyles.

The notion of change, flexibility, and the ability to identify new ways to respond to consumer demand permeates every part of the culture at Terra Cycle. A core team is dedicated to innovation, but novel ideas are welcome from anyone, and employees are encouraged to try new things. Getting products to market quickly is an important component in Terra Cycle’s competitive strategy, so the company looks for ways to circumvent traditional processes that can be time-consuming.

In fact, although time to market at a traditional company is about three years, at Terra Cycle it’s just nine months.

The company also prides itself on its ability to find quick fixes to problems in the production process. At one point, for example, the company used swimming pools and horse troughs to mix fertilizer in an effort to get around the time constraints involved in waiting for customized equipment. Milton Oppenheimer, assistant production manager, clams that being open-minded and willing to try new things is a characteristic of all employees at Terra Cycle. Change and thinking outside the box are part of the job, and everyone is expected to contribute ideas and find new solutions to problems. Tom Szaky also encourages employees to be innovative. His philosophy is that it is acceptable to fail because failing is better than not trying at all.

Discussion Questions

1. How does Terra Cycle promote a culture of creativity and divergent thinking as described in Chapter 14?
2. How are the basic components of creativity in teams and individuals as presented in Chapter 14 displayed at Terra Cycle?
3. In your opinion, is innovation at Terra Cycle radical or incremental in nature?