San Diego Zoo's Newest Exhibit: Innovation

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Looking at the white space, Brock's team saw lots of opportunity—14 areas to be specific—with a cluster around the notion that many people and companies want to do right by the planet, but aren't sure how.

The next question was how the zoo could take advantage of these market openings. Comparing the new areas with the park's existing strengths, Jump created a strategic plan to help the zoo executives prioritize new projects.

Step One was building the zoo's strengths and credibility. For example, zoo scientists know a lot about environmental issues such as water scarcity. By bringing a group of corporate executives together to discuss the issue with its experts, the zoo added to its experience hosting events and highlighted its in-house knowledge. Meanwhile, the zoo was also building partnerships with entities such as the City of San Diego and the Biomimicry Institute.

Step Two was connecting people with conservation. That meant different things for different people. To connect with younger consumers, the zoo has added more videos to its Web site; at the same time, it has built a zip line ride at its 1,800-acre wildlife park north of San Diego that lets visitors soar across a beautiful natural landscape, offering them the same combination of thrill and reflection that has driven the ecotourism trend.

Step Three, which has yet to be taken, is further cultivating conservation leadership through the zoo's venture business office. The zoo is now expanding its consulting business, which includes clients such as the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and has started using its facilities to showcase sustainable technologies and products, making conservation more accessible to millions of visitors. And, says Debra Erickson, associate director of communications, "there are 11 more strategies to build conservation funding just waiting to be developed."

What can executives learn from how the San Diego Zoo & Wildlife Park has grown through innovation?

Ask the right questions. Consider all of the different ways that you can view the market. Different frames will reveal different opportunities.

Look inward. Talk to people throughout your organization in order to understand your various strengths and assets. The zoo found, for instance, that its facilities provided the space to host events and showcase new products.

Understand people's needs. As San Diego learned, its visitors didn't necessarily use the word "conservation," but they did care about the planet and felt confused about how their actions were affecting the environment. The zoo saw a chance to connect with those people and to get them them more involved.

Prioritize. Create a plan to grow over time. This will help you evaluate new ideas as they emerge. Some of those ideas might have merit, but you'll have to put them aside because they don't fall into the top-priority areas of the opportunity map.

Jessie Scanlon is the senior writer for Innovation & Design at BusinessWeek, where she covers the intersection of design and business.

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