Case Study: Baxi Heating achieves cultural transformation and boosts collaboration with HYPE Innovation

How A 150-year-old Manufacturing Company Is Leveraging Online Innovation To Drive Cultural Transformation

Baxi Heating UK, a 150‑year‑old manufacturer of domestic and commercial heating brands, faced a cultural challenge: employees saw innovation as product‑only, collaboration was siloed, and idea submission was informal and non‑transparent. After launching new company values in 2013, leadership identified a need to shorten the distance between front‑line idea generators and decision makers and to make innovation a visible, organisation‑wide activity.

Baxi built a dedicated innovation team, created an “Innovation Bunker” and deployed HYPE Enterprise as a branded platform called Xchange, backed by CEO sponsorship and targeted campaigns. The structured program invited employees, installers and external partners to contribute, evaluate and develop ideas using defined campaign modes and stage gates. By end of 2019 Baxi had run 48 campaigns, collected 1,193 ideas with 79 implemented and achieved six‑figure savings; early campaign metrics (281 registrations, 99 active users, 41 ideas) and double‑digit improvements in employee innovation survey responses show measurable cultural change toward collaboration and transparency.

Baxi Heating

David Willetts

Commercial Director & Head of Innovation