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Align Innovation with BU H2 Portfolios

This page shows how to align Innovation with business unit H2 portfolios to create measurable, low-risk growth. It covers shared priorities, evidence-based governance, role clarity, and a repeatable cadence that turns exploration into BU-owned execution.

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Align H2 Portfolio

Innovation and business units often move on different clocks. Innovation explores what is next while BUs deliver now. The result is a gap: promising opportunities fail to connect with BU strategy, and H2 portfolios stay fragmented. This page explains how to align Innovation with BU portfolios for measurable, low-risk growth through shared priorities, governance, and evidence-based decisions — the H2 Portfolio Alignment method.

The Problem

Without alignment, exploration and execution drift apart. BUs see ideas that do not map to their goals. Innovation sees limited commitment and late-stage pushback. Funding is episodic. Reviews focus on activity, not outcomes. H2 opportunities stall before they reach P&L ownership.
  • No shared view of BU priorities, KPIs, and constraints for the next 12–24 months.
  • Ambiguous ownership. Innovation runs in parallel while BU adoption comes too late.
  • No evidence cadence. Data does not translate into decisions or budget moves.

The Fix

Align H2 growth bets with BU portfolios using a simple, repeatable method:
  • Set shared priorities. Map BU OKRs and constraints to a shortlist of H2 themes.
  • Define roles. Name one BU sponsor and one innovation lead per theme with clear Gives and Gets.
  • Run evidence sprints. Review metric, baseline, and movement on a 30–60–90 cadence.
  • Stage funding to proof. Release budget based on pre-agreed gates tied to BU KPIs.
  • Plan integration early. Outline process, systems, and hand-offs before scale.
When alignment is built in, BUs become co-owners and H2 moves from slides to results.

Make the Most of It

If you would like to:
  • Create a joint H2 portfolio that BUs agree to fund and adopt
  • Set a governance cadence that links evidence to decisions
  • Reduce late-stage friction by planning integration from the start

You are welcome to book a short call. No pitch. Clear next steps to align Innovation with BU portfolios.

Here’s What Your Peers Say:

Once we set shared H2 themes and a 90-day review cadence, BU co-ownership followed. Decisions moved faster and funding unlocked on time.
(Head of Strategy, Global Industrials)
Aligning initiatives to BU KPIs and naming one sponsor per theme changed the tone. We moved from debate to delivery.
(Innovation Portfolio Lead, European Technology Company)

PS: Learn about the Lean Scaleup framework or explore how we help corporate innovators secure BU co-ownership here.

Related reading:
De-Risk Strategic Growth Initiatives,
and
Run Effective BU–Innovation Strategy Dialogs,
and
Growth at the Edge of Core — Case Examples.

Let Us Get Started

Please add your details below and we will schedule a short call to discuss your situation.