Build proof-of-concept in terms that matter to your business. These will likely include factors such as fit with brand or key business case metrics such as offer desirability, commercial viability, organisational and technical feasibility. “Launching to learn” with a “works like real” prototype at a small scale is a great way to explore sales potential, brand fit, costs, operational capabilities, and new technology partners.
Identify and involve key stakeholders (cross product category and potentially cross value chain) as part of a multi-disciplinary design team. Task them to explore new questions around how circularity can better meet user needs, business needs, and be technically feasible. This will increase ownership of your circular innovation, as more parts of the business become familiar with the insights behind the idea.
Your business will want to understand that you have a process in place for managing the risks of disruption to the business. Risks can be mitigated through early iterative low-to-medium fidelity prototyping (cycles of design and user testing). This phase allows you to rapidly and cheaply evolve and validate your circular innovation, and the business case for it, before significant investments are made.