The LAB: Innovating Shredded Wheat with S.I.T. (July 2009)

Post Cereal has recently launched an ad campaign called “We put the ‘NO’ in innovation” which argues that some things, such as their ubiquitous cereal product, just aren’t meant to be innovated. However, the author, using the Systematic Inventive Thinking method, explores how innovation could create new growth potential and opportunities for the 116 year old cereal product. Breaking down the product into its components, the author applies each of the five templates of Systematic Inventive Thinking to uncover hypothetical solutions and potential new benefits or concepts. The exercise explores possibilities such as a binding agent-less shredded wheat to be used as a dried ingredient or topping, to shredded wheat being used as a scrubbing agent, or even to the textures and sizes of shredded wheat changing based on external factors such as heat or types of milk.