Architecting the 50-Country Protocol
The Context
Allianz Trade (formerly Euler Hermes) had become a global insurance powerhouse by mastering operational efficiency. Their centralized approach had allowed them to monitor the financial health of over 80 million companies worldwide across 50+ countries.
The Friction
A strategic shift to bottom-up innovation created a surge of projects across all markets—but without governance infrastructure to match. Leadership couldn't identify which projects were valuable, allocate resources effectively, or terminate unproductive initiatives. The innovation pipeline was flooding the system without any filtration mechanism.
The Approach
We reframed the problem from 'controlling innovation' to 'enabling innovation at scale.' Governance wasn't about restriction—it was the infrastructure that would allow good ideas to surface and bad ideas to die quickly.
The Stage-Gate Funding Model: A comprehensive governance funnel with clearly defined phases, specific timeframes, and measurable metrics. Regional and global leadership 'gates' with explicit criteria for continuing or terminating projects. The main deliverable: a 'Governance Playbook' defining roles, responsibilities, and decision rights throughout the innovation lifecycle.
The Immediate Impact
Established a central innovation committee and regional growth boards across all European markets. Investment decisions accelerated as unproductive projects were identified and terminated earlier in the cycle.
The Legacy
The governance framework is now the standard operating procedure for all innovation initiatives across 50+ countries. Local innovations are consistently aligned with global strategy, and the 'zombie project' problem has been eliminated.
"We appreciated Forward's expertise and extensive knowledge in innovation, which we didn't find with our other partners."
Ruurd Vander Veen
Digital Transformation Director, Allianz Trade
Facing a similar challenge?
This engagement took weeks, not months. If your team is dealing with the same kind of problem, a 30-minute conversation will tell us whether we can help.
Get started →