Our Spring 2023 Rapid Innovation course ended with final presentations on April 21st. Students gathered along with their sponsors and a few special guests from the university to showcase their solutions for the challenges this semester.
Students from a variety of backgrounds made up our teams including students majoring in public affairs, engineering, physics, communications, and more. Many of our teams were led by doctoral students and contained undergraduate and graduate level students coming together. Throughout the semester, students had to practice their skills in communication not just with experts in their field, but also with one another to build a team concept that was most productive. For many, this can be the most difficult part of the course but is also one of the most rewarding experiences.
Our four teams took on wicked challenges from incredible sponsors throughout the semester:
- Moonwalkers (Redwire) - What if we could Imagine new space exploration missions now possible thanks to the newest rockets' ability to carry some of the largest payloads ever?
- Unplugged Buckeyes (Engie) - What if we could reduce fossil fuel consumption by incentivizing businesses to embrace energy efficiency projects that might not show returns on investment quickly?
- Resilient Invenergy (Invenergy) - What if we could accelerate the United States’ independence from fossil fuels by securing effectively state governments’ acceptance of, instead of hostility to, sustainable energy initiatives?
- Fast, Furious, Electric Family (Honda) - What if we could contribute to a more sustainable environment by making Electric Vehicles the Car of Choice for an average buyer?
“The biggest challenge we faced was tempering the students’ expectations of how far they could go over the course of the semester.”
Our teams embarked on a journey that started back in January, starting with interviews with their sponsors and eventually moved to other stakeholders and subject matter experts to learn more about the challenges and opportunities ahead of them. With the guidance of our teaching team, mentors, and their sponsors, students moved through the innovation process to come up with unique solutions.
“The biggest challenge we faced was tempering the students’ expectations of how far they could go over the course of the semester,” one sponsor noted, highlighting the passion of the students.
- Moonwalkers (Redwire) – A multiphase plan that prioritizes Redwire’s capabilities in order to launch new mining and manufacturing equipment to the moon.
- Unplugged Buckeyes (Engie) – A dashboard that helps illustrate the value of energy projects beyond saving money and allows both sides to emphasize their priorities to create more productive collaboration and increase approved projects.
- Resilient Invenergy (Invenergy) – A plan that changes the standard operating procedure for energy development in rural areas that includes interfacing with community members and leaders earlier in the process.
- Fast, Furious, Electric Family (Honda) – A survey and comparative dashboard that allows companies like Honda to better understand the needs of Gen Z as they consider electric vehicles and cater their technology research and manufacturing to the next generation of car buyers.
The teams were able to exhibit their solutions through a 2-minute video and a 10-minute presentation followed by Q&A from everyone in attendance. The students did an incredible job telling the story of how their solutions could solve the challenges facing their sponsors and the path toward implementing them and seeing results.
“They took everything they learned and put it succinctly into the final product,” another sponsor said.
The next installment of our Rapid Innovation course is set to take off in August with four more wicked challenges. You can find them on our website. Want to get involved? Email us at battellecenter@osu.edu to learn how.
