Innovation | Avery Dennison

Our teams - Avery Dennison — Until he joined Avery Dennison as a member of the European Graduate Program, Ben Sy Savane thought a label was just a label. After becoming part of the engineered solutions team, where innovation drives the creation of unique products for challenging applications, he began seeing labels and packaging in a new light.

So where are you from originally and how did you join Avery Dennison?

I'm from Noordwijk, which is a coastal town in the west of the Netherlands, and I joined Avery Dennison through the European Graduate Program after getting a master’s degree in marketing management at Tilburg University.

I'm doing the second rotation in the program right now, and I get to work on different projects. For example, in the first rotation, I was managing the paper wash-off label portfolio and taking care of engineered solutions, which allows people to create custom products that meet their needs.

Now I’m in the second rotation and I’ve moved to the durables team. This program provides an opportunity to work across different segments of the company, so you get to see more aspects of the business. This lets you see where you fit in best, which is helpful if you want to apply for a permanent role once you’re done.

What made you interested in labels and Avery Denison?

Well, at first, I never thought about labels like I do now. For me, as a consumer, it was like ‘This is just a label that’s on a product.’ But when I started working for Avery Dennison, I began learning about the technologies behind labels, the functionality they enable, and what Avery Dennison does to create labels that get the job done, no matter what it might be.

But when I started working for Avery Dennison, I began learning about the technologies behind labels, the functionality they enable, and what Avery Dennison does to create labels that get the job done.

For example, I learned about the potential pitfalls of using the wrong label. I found out that you can actually wash off some labels and that the right one can enable the reuse and recycling of packaging, whereas other labels are meant to last a lifetime. I also discovered there are labels to prevent counterfeiting and ones that can endure very low temperatures. As a consumer, I never knew about these things before.

And once I had that information, it became more interesting for me. I was like ‘OK, labels are not just labels – there is so much more to them.’ And for me, that’s where the curiosity came from.

What was your favorite part about working on the engineered solutions portfolio?

What I liked most was that I had the opportunity to work on products that are not necessarily known to the public. I like that this portfolio enables our customer to have labels with specific functionalities.

With engineered solutions, we have things that are very different from standard labels, like label-on-label constructions that have two adhesive layers and two release liners, gum twins that allow people to make their own labels, and solutions that really help our customers in fields like logistics. That’s what I liked the most – working with labels that enable something more than what they usually do, and getting the chance to develop things that serve the brand owner’s needs. There’s this innovation aspect linked to engineered solutions that lets us try new stuff. And I really enjoy that.

Speaking of innovation, what does that word mean to you in terms of your work at Avery Dennison?

From my personal perspective, there is no single definition of ‘innovation,’ but I believe it requires two different fundamental elements: understanding the needs of product users and addressing those needs by making something new. That's the mindset I use during my interactions with stakeholders.

For example, when talking with our sales and customer support teams, I try to collect a lot of information. They know our products and our customers, and often have a list of the features they want, the issues they experience and even the wishes they have. This information, combined with other research methods, helps me discover customers' challenges and develop solutions for them.

It's very important that the labels we offer are compliant so brand owners can meet different rules and requirements and get their products to consumers.

Now you’re working with the durables team. What do you enjoy about that?

It’s a bit more technical than engineered solutions, but what I like is that it's a different market segment. Performance is very important, but there's also the compliance part. It's critical that the labels we offer are compliant so brand owners can meet different rules and requirements and get their products to consumers.

For example, a brand owner could say, ‘We have this specification and this label needs to be flame retardant.’ So, we need to develop and test a label that’s flame retardant. These brand owners make choices for the longer term to meet legislative demands, so you need to provide something that will last.

There’s also a lot happening with the automotive sector. The electric vehicle market is growing fast and creating new needs for car manufacturers and suppliers around battery labeling, so we’re working hard to develop innovative solutions.

What’s moving between teams been like?

I joined my first team with a very open mind, because I'm here to learn and that's also the essence of the program. I like how Avery Dennison gives people in the program a chance to explore, grow, train and contribute. Keeping an open mind is important and I enjoy learning about the dynamics of different markets, where customers are coming from and what’s important for them.

The teams I’ve worked with have also been very welcoming and supportive, which helps things to go well.

I like how Avery Dennison gives people in the program a chance to explore, grow, train and contribute.

Can you tell me about an accomplishment you’ve made during your time at Avery Dennison that you’re proud of?

I think what I’m most proud of is the case study with Svenska Retursystem. Getting everything in place to do a project like this and getting all interested parties to agree requires patience, so it’s challenging to put something like this together.

But this project was important because we want to know how the end-users of our products feel about them. We want to know if they are happy with the way everything performs, because their satisfaction is important to us.

In the end, I was able to convince Svenska Retursystem, which is an important partner for paper wash-off labels, that participating would benefit them. And together, we set up this case study and it was very well received. So, I’m proud of that, and thankful for the support of the marketing team.