Anadolu Group employees have generated a value of 1.8 billion TRY in 10 years through the "Bi-Fikir" program

Anadolu Group’s innovation program, “Bi-Fikir,” which rewards its employees’ innovative ideas, celebrated its 10th anniversary. To date, 7,562 quick applications, 2,818 projects, and 47,100 ideas have been brought to life within the program. The total value created through these projects has reached 1.8 billion TRY. Speaking at the Bi-Fikir Festival, where the best projects of 2024 were showcased, Anadolu Group’s Chairman Tuncay Özilhan stated, “Innovation has become one of the most important keys to surviving in competitive markets today.”

Anadolu Group employees have been creating innovative projects for 10 years through the “Bi-Fikir” innovation program, providing added value to all Group companies. The number of projects implemented within the program continues to increase every year, and the best projects of 2024 were showcased at the Bi-Fikir Festival. This year, projects were evaluated in four categories. After the voting in the final, Migros emerged as the winner in all four categories. Migros won the "Digitalization and Technology" category with the “AI What Should I Cook?” project, the “Sustainability and People” category with the “We Are Different, We Are Equal” project, the “New Products and Services” category with the “Fruit Drying” project, and the “Operational Excellence” category with the “Electronic Label” project.

In his speech at the Bi-Fikir Festival, Anadolu Group Chairman Tuncay Özilhan stated that Bi-Fikir, which has generated over 47,000 ideas to date, has become not only a symbol of Anadolu Group's innovative and entrepreneurial spirit but also a massive innovation program that continuously creates value. He further stated: “Innovation has become one of the most important keys to surviving in today’s competitive markets. Generating innovative ideas, optimizing processes, and improving customer experience are crucial for all of us. In order to keep up with rapidly changing and evolving technological trends—and even to be a leader in them—we must constantly produce and improve ourselves. The possibilities offered by technology are expanding every day, and this opens up new opportunities for us. We must always remember that every change or development can bring new opportunities, and even major challenges can be turned into opportunities, allowing us to differentiate ourselves from competitors and stand out in the market.”

Burak Başarır, CEO of Anadolu Group, emphasized the global scale and impact that the Group has achieved. He said, "When you reach such a scale, every innovative step you take, every contribution you make to your business, also contributes to the environment and human well-being. The rapid changes our world is undergoing have become the most significant factors deeply affecting economies and business practices. Companies, especially large groups like ours, must understand the changing needs well, closely follow technological developments, and focus on innovation, growth, and development in all forms. With the entrepreneurial spirit passed down from our founders and our skilled human resources, we make the most of the opportunities brought by change. We position Bi-Fikir, which was established 10 years ago, as a sustainable innovation platform. The increasing participation of our employees every year, the rising number of ideas entered into the system, and the growing number of projects implemented are a significant source of power for all of us. We will raise this bar even higher."

In 10 years, 2,818 projects have been implemented

The Bi-Fikir program is open to all companies of Anadolu Group, both domestically and internationally. This year, in addition to teams from Türkiye, employees from Moldova, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Jordan, and Belarus also participated in the semi-finals. Over the course of 10 years, the program has reached a total of 47,100 ideas. A total of 7,562 quick applications and 2,818 projects have been realized, with an application rate of 22%. This year, 228 project applications were submitted to the program. A new classification system was introduced for project evaluations in 2024. Group companies sent their representatives to the semi-finals by selecting projects in four categories: "New Products and Services," "Sustainability and People," "Digitalization and Technology," and "Operational Excellence." In the semi-final held on October 22, projects competed in these four categories. From these projects, 14 were selected by the jury and presented at the Bi-Fikir Festival. The ideas were evaluated by a jury consisting of employees from various functions of the Group companies.

The Bi-Fikir Festival was broadcast live, reaching all operations across Anadolu Group

The Bi-Fikir initiative, which started in Turkey in 2015, has expanded to all of Anadolu Group's international companies and, for the past six years, has also been open to universities across Turkey. Through the Bi-Fikir KAP university program, a total of 1,604 project proposals have been submitted by university students from 194 different universities and 353 different departments. The final of the Bi-Fikir Festival was broadcast live, reaching employees across all of Anadolu Group's operations, both in Türkiye and abroad.