Best Practices at Evonik: Third Digital Lab Ecosystem Conference

Evonik, an international leader in specialized chemicals sells its products worldwide to a variety of industries such as the food, consumer goods, automotive, construction and agricultural industries. A forward-thinking leadership team, internal innovation initiatives and regular networking events have allowed Evonik to master the digital transformation process with flying colors. As a result, Evonik´s story has become best practice among large corporations and at the same time demonstrates handsomely how doubleYUU can be of service.

Photo credit: Evonik

Evonik does not solely rely on state-of-the-art IT structures and service processes, but also promotes a true digital mindset on all company levels by utilizing flexible teams and open event formats. To name just one example, Evonik founded a Digital Lab as a new internal unit back in early 2016, which allowed employees from a variety of professional backgrounds to closely work together, generate know-how and share said know-how with the company. Under the lead of Mark Lackner, Head of Digital Labs, the concept of forming internal labs has proven quite successful for Evonik: In just under one and a half years the company has begun working in a variety of labs not only dealing with Big Data, but rather addressing a variety of issues pertaining to digital transformation. With the Ecosystem Conference entering its third year, Evonik encourages the transfer of knowledge and networking—internally as well as with external partners and service providers.

Ecosystem Conference Number Three (#eec17)—The continuation of a success story

This is the third time already that we support our client Evonik in putting into real-life practice the VOPA principles (German acronym) of networking, transparency, participation and agility during #eec17. With this series of conferences, the company has managed to create, foster and expand an exciting ecosystem of internal and external specialists. The person responsible for this accomplishment the most has been Bettina Uhlich, who, back in 2016, was nominated CIO of the Year by CIO magazine.

Company staff shows great interest and enthusiasm where initiatives such as #eec17 are concerned. This year more than twice as many employees and company leaders attended the conference than the year before, for example. The participatory characteristics of the event allow everyone to take part in the transformation process of the company and promote internal dialogue revolving around topics of the future. A great example that demonstrates how adhering to VOPA principles can enhance a company´s culture and create positive energy and commitment.

Under the official hashtag #eec17, there´s obviously been a lot of tweeting.

The great variety of topics covered during #eec17 made one thing utterly clear: This event wasn´t about discussing the company´s business model or products, but rather about facilitating a genuine exchange of ideas. There were 16 BarCamp sessions in total revolving around four key issues: E-Business & Collaboration, Artificial Intelligence, Customer Experience and the Internet of Things. The agenda also accommodated discussions revolving around the issue of new work environments. During the “Work Environment 2020“ session, participants were able to share their expectations and desires for the future.

The existing network of external partners and service providers such as SAP, Microsoft or Siemens were once again of particular interest this year. These companies had the opportunity to present the solutions they offer and participate in all the discussions during OpenSpace and BarCamp. Siemens´ expert knowledge on the topic of cloud-based IoT operating systems and newcomer The Unbelievable Machines Company from Berlin brought new impulses to the table when it came to the issue of Artificial Intelligence, for example.

Our verdict on Ecosystem Conference Number Three: The digital mindset suits a large corporation perfectly— we are eagerly awaiting what the next year will bring!

Would you like to learn more about our open event formats and how to strengthen your network with internal and external partners? We are here to help, please contact us directly!