Zubin Varghese, senior director of innovation at Trane Technologies, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of heating and cooling systems, argues that connecting people to each other around a common purpose is a critical enabler of employee-driven innovation. A strong sense of purpose embraced and owned by the people, he observes, can inspire a culture of inclusive innovation that leads to creative business solutions that would not have otherwise been envisaged.

Trane Technologies’ drive for social-environmental innovation was not generated by the development of new breakthrough technology but the drive stems from its stated purpose to ‘challenge what’s possible for a sustainable world’. The company decided to engage its employees proactively: “What would make a difference in fulfilling this purpose?” The responses were overwhelming with measures to reduce food loss and hunger topping the list—one of the world’s environmental priorities, which impacts issues such as human health, land use, water use, and loss of biodiversity.