Pay What You Want

I am in love with this idea. I know you will all be shocked to hear that its has to do with socially entrepreneurial innovation. Yes, put on your shocked face now.

Panera opened up the first Panera Cares Community Cafe last year to some skepticism; would people actually feel compelled to pay for something when they were not being asked to pay at all? At a recent conference, Panera CEO Ronald Shaich spoke about the unique balance his pet project has struck: 20% of people pay more than they should, 20% pay less, and the people who can't pay at all can often be found on the other side of the counter, working to defray costs. The trick, Shaich says, is to pick communities in which there is both wealth and need and thus the seesaw finds the middle. And its working! YES! There are currently three locations across the country and plans for further expansion.

This is the kind of innovation and design (though in this case social and financial design) that needs to continue to be at the forefront of our thinking. For a company like Panera, opening one store might have felt risky, but the willingness to experiment far outweighed the potential downside. All this begs the question: how can we inspire ourselves to continue to shift the ways we think as the world is changing around us?

Thanks to GOOD for their post and Panera for the tag!