Fast Company recently released its third annual Best Workplaces for Innovators list, honoring businesses and organizations that demonstrate a deep commitment to encouraging innovation at all levels—and P&G Ventures, Procter & Gamble’s internal startup studio, earned the #19 position for its unique business model and novel brand-building strategy.
 
Founded in 2015, P&G Ventures is an early-stage start-up studio within P&G that creates new fast-moving consumer goods brands and businesses in categories where P&G doesn’t currently compete. Its model is built on partnering with entrepreneurs, inventors and start-ups to deliver a win-win that brings together the best of startups and the best of P&G. Each P&G Ventures partnership is unique, providing funding as well as access to P&G’s experts, resources, and capabilities to help partners find their best customers, prove their technology, and create their brand.
 
Leveraging this unique model, P&G Ventures has launched four new brands to date: Zevo, a line of insect control products safe for children and pets; OPTE, a smart beauty device to treat facial hyperpigmentation; Bodewell, a line of plant-based products to treat chronic skin conditions; and Kindra, a product line to help women combat the symptoms of menopause.
 
“We are honored to be included alongside so many incredible organizations on this list,” said Guy B. Persaud, president of P&G’s New Business Unit (NBU). “Innovation and creativity are at the heart of our work in P&G Ventures.”
 
How the Winners are Selected
 
Developed in collaboration with Accenture, the 2021 Best Workplaces for Innovators ranks 100 winners from a variety of industries. Working together, Fast Company editors and Accenture researchers received nearly 1,500 applications, and a panel of eight eminent judges reviewed and endorsed the top 100 companies. The 2021 awards feature workplaces from around the world with several of the honorees based outside the U.S.
 
“These leaders and teams created cultures of innovation and sustained them, even as remote work extended into 2021,” commented Stephanie Mehta, editor-in-chief of Fast Company. “This newest list of the Best Workplaces for Innovators honors those organizations that found ways to collaborate and invent despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, ensuring employees were at the forefront.”