Innovation for Generations Z and Alpha
GOL Smiles' internal idea gathering program, aimed at creating solutions for the new generations of consumers. I worked from strategic structuring to the validation of the winning idea, including mentoring, facilitating research, prototyping, and testing with beta users.
Services
Strategic Design
Product Design
Innovation
Year
2024
Client
GOL Smiles
The Turbina Program was born to strengthen the culture of innovation within GOL Smiles, involving employees in the development of solutions aligned with the company's strategy. In a special edition, the program focused on Generations Z and Alpha - demographics with new consumer behaviors, higher demands for personalization, purpose, and transparency. The goal was clear: to engage the internal team in creating innovative ideas for products and services relevant to these new customer profiles. ⸻ Despite the interest in innovating, the organization faced barriers such as: • Lack of clear processes to transform insights into applicable solutions • Unawareness of the expectations of the new generations • Limited integration between areas to foster real innovation • Risk of misalignment between generated ideas and business strategy The challenge was to create a structure that overcame these obstacles and delivered tangible results, combining training, engagement, and validation of solutions.
I structured, along with the team, an innovation path focused on activation, experimentation, and validation, including: ✦ Launch and engagement • Creation of an internal pitch and leadership buy-in • Partnership with Box 1824 for a lecture and study on Generations Z and Alpha • Communication planning and engagement actions for employees ✦ Challenge and mentoring • Reception of 62 ideas (↑138% vs. previous edition) • Curating and evaluating proposals based on impact, feasibility, and strategic alignment • Individual mentoring with semifinalists to support research, modeling, and refinement ✦ Experimentation cycle (Lab Sprint) The finalist idea was prototyped and tested in a structured process in 6 stages: 1. Hypothesis generation 2. Market research 3. Creation of personas (Generation Z and Alpha) 4. Prototyping (MVP with flows and wireframes) 5. User testing via Maze (qualitative + quantitative data) 6. Structuring the business case and presenting it to the Executive Committee
• Complete structuring of the challenge and definition of evaluation criteria • Development of the strategic and communication plan for the program • Mentorship for semifinalists focusing on research, design, and product • Management of the experimentation cycle of the finalist idea • Presentation of results to the executive leadership ⸻ • +135% growth in participation (46 collaborators) • +138% increase in idea submissions (62 proposals) • Winning solution validated with beta users before implementation • Strengthening the culture of innovation and collaboration among areas • Replicable model for future editions of the program
The Generations Challenge has become a strategic initiative within Smiles, connecting areas, generating insights, and validating hypotheses based on real data. The program not only delivered a validated solution but also served as a foundation for the construction of a new model of continuous innovation within the company. Team: Coordination: André Medeiros Strategy and Innovation: Luciano Alpes UX/UI Design: Maju Mendes Assistant: Júlia Silva