What: H&M is fostering a creative work environment by granting its design teams more autonomy and encouraging cross-departmental collaboration, allowing for a more dynamic and innovative product development process.

Why it is important: By empowering its creative teams and streamlining decision-making, H&M aims to meet consumer demand more effectively while fostering a culture of innovation and inclusivity across its global workforce.

H&M is enhancing its creative process by granting its design and creative teams increased autonomy and promoting cross-functional collaboration. Designers now work closely with product managers, developers, planners, and other departments, allowing for a smoother, more integrated development process. This shift has eliminated layers of decision-making, enabling teams to steer collections from concept to execution with more freedom. Department stores can learn from this approach by breaking down traditional silos between buying, merchandising, visual merchandising, and marketing teams. They can develop more cohesive and innovative retail experiences that respond quickly to changing consumer preferences by creating more collaborative spaces and encouraging cross-departmental input.

H&M boosts creativity through increased autonomy and collaboration