People-driven strategies, to
help grow your business.
social-consciousness
to be the change!
Our Approach
Driving Innovation Through Culturally-Attuned Solutions:
Octapult is a boutique management consultancy dedicated to transforming businesses through culturally sensitive online assessment tools and capacity-building workshops. We specialize in helping SMEs and large corporates innovate and grow by seamlessly integrating global best practices with locally relevant tools. Our unique hybrid evaluation matrix and experiential interventions ensure that every solution is deeply rooted in the social and cultural norms of our clients, driving sustainable and measurable change.
Our Framework
Tools spanning cross-section of business processes:
We utilize a unique 6i framework spanning the following business processes:
- Insights (Qualitative): Gathering deep qualitative insights to inform strategic decisions.
- Ideation (Game-storming): Using LEGO Serious Play technique to improve shared vision.
- Integration (People & Processes): Streamlining processes (BPR) for seamless integration.
- Intervention (Experiential Workshops): Tarbiyah Curriculum workshops to drive sustainable change.
- Incubation (Commercial Test Markets): Testing and refining innovations via controlled pilots.
- Innovation (Disruptive): Using structured and disruptive framework to drive growth initiatives.
Our Story
Founded in February 2014, Octapult Platforms was established with a focus on studying SMEs and start-ups within their unique innovation ecosystems. Our initial mandate centered on understanding collaboration, experience levels, and disruption within organizational networks. Through our research, we developed and tested specialized tools to measure and enhance these dynamics, leading to the creation of a ‘hybrid equation’ tailored to the culturally distinct teams and enterprises in Pakistan. This methodology became the foundation for driving innovation within our clients’ businesses.
Over the years, Octapult has participated in a variety of innovation-driven projects, many of which have been disruptive and occasionally supported by cutting-edge technology. Our growth has centered on providing crucial organizational building blocks for SMEs and start-ups, covering areas such as business strategy, value proposition and experience design, organizational development, project management, and experience re-engineering.
Genesis
The name “Octapult Platforms” has two parts.
First one is “Octapult”, which is a fusion of two words: Catapult and Octave, each symbolising the core principles that define our approach to innovation, business transformation and growth.
Together, “Octapult” represents a powerful blend of momentum and harmony, aiming to launch organisations to new heights while ensuring that growth is balanced, sustainable, and culturally attuned.
The second part “Platforms” in our context extends beyond mere technological infrastructures. It encompasses the intricate interplay of business models, operational systems, and, most importantly, the human element. In a world where rapid technological advancements and shifting market dynamics are the norm, organisations often find themselves grappling with the challenge of aligning their business strategies with their organisational capabilities.
Services
At Octapult, we are dedicated to facilitating human-centered change through communication, collaboration and technology, creating sustainable impact within progressive organisations. Our hybrid tools and techniques are designed to align with Pakistan’s unique cultural and behavioural context, making them more meaningful to our clients. Our work across social and commercial sectors continuously provides insights that enhance the effectiveness of our services. Our 6i framework encompasses six key services that form the backbone of our innovation and organisational transformation approach:
Insights (Qualitative)
Gathering deep qualitative insights to inform strategic decisions.
We delve deep into understanding people, processes, and environments through qualitative research. This phase helps gather actionable insights that inform strategic decisions, guiding organisations toward innovation by focusing on human behaviours and experiences. By understanding user needs, motivations, and challenges, we create strategies rooted in real-world insights.
Ideation (Game-storming)
Using LSP technique to improve shared vision of the problem and ideating solutions.
Creativity is central to innovation. Using interactive techniques like LEGO® Serious Play, we foster shared visions and co-create solutions with teams. Our Game-storming sessions are designed to unlock creativity, encourage open collaboration, and ideate on opportunities that can lead to innovative breakthroughs within organisations.
Integration (People & Process)
Streamlining processes for cross-functional committed consensus and seamless integration.
Innovation without seamless execution falters. We focus on integrating people and processes through Business Process Reengineering (BPR). Our aim is to streamline workflows, improve efficiency, and ensure that both teams and processes work in harmony to drive organizational success.
Incubation (Commercial Test Markets)
Testing and refining innovations via controlled pilots.
New ideas need nurturing before they can succeed. Through carefully designed pilot projects (stage and gate) in commercial test markets, we help organisations test and refine their innovation pipeline. This incubation process allows for real-time feedback and adjustments before a full-scale launch, mitigating risks and ensuring readiness for market success.
Innovation (Disruptive)
Using structured and disruptive framework to drive growth initiatives.
Growth often requires disruptive thinking. At Octapult, we leverage structured and disruptive frameworks through a hybrid and customisable equation to spark new growth initiatives. By challenging conventional norms and encouraging fresh perspectives, we help organisations innovate in ways that drive sustainable, long-term growth.
Intervention (Experiential Workshops)
Social-consciousness workshops to drive sustainable change.
To achieve lasting change, organisations must shift mindsets. Our experiential workshops, including the Tarbiyah Curriculum, focus on fostering sustainable transformation through hands-on learning and personal development. These interventions are designed to align individuals with the organisational vision, ensuring everyone is equipped to drive positive change.
Our Clients
Diamond Fabrics
As Principal Consultants for Diamond Fabrics Limited (DFL) from 2014 to 2017, a leading family-run business within the Sapphire Group, Octapult played a pivotal role in transforming the organization. Working closely with the Managing Director, we spearheaded efforts to transition DFL into a more agile and structured corporate entity capable of managing its existing operations and future subsidiary ventures. During this time, Octapult introduced DFL’s first Management Trainee Program, tailored specifically for the Marketing function. Additionally, we led an evaluation of greenfield expansion opportunities in the food sector.
Sapphire Dairies
Octapult provided consulting and operational services to Sapphire Dairies’ home-grown milk delivery brand, White Gold. Our engagement involved designing comprehensive business processes, ranging from customer experience and credit management to organisational development and customer acquisition strategies. We also conducted an evaluation of greenfield expansion opportunities in the food sector, particularly in cheese and desserts categories. A key initiative included gathering consumer insights and incubating a direct-to-consumer fresh milk delivery service, which was tested through a hub-and-spoke pilot model.
Mediatech.
Under the brand Mediatech, Octapult spearheaded commercial test markets for three innovative, tech-driven products targeting both captive and on-the-move audiences in the Out of Home (OOH) advertising space. The first initiative utilized a Social Wi-Fi application to enhance consumer visibility for cafes and restaurants, integrated with digital menu screens. The second focused on On-Vehicle Advertising (OVA), leveraging mobile app-based tracking technology. The third involved deploying a tech-enabled security solution at a food festival. Sponsored by Coca-Cola Export Corporation, these test markets paved the way for groundbreaking innovations in the OOH category.
Lahore Garrison University
As Principal Consultants, we led an 18-month commercial test market for a Skills Academy at LGU, aimed at improving the employability of undergraduate students. We developed a socially relevant solution centered around a 6C framework for product-based learning, integrated with assessment, evaluation, and up-skilling of the pilot cohorts. The program focused on enhancing functional skills, problem-solving abilities, and decision-making for both intrapreneurs and entrepreneurs, aligning education with real-world market needs.
Crescent Bahuman
We successfully turned-around the retention rate of CBL’s Management Associate Program by introducing a demographic profiling solution, integrated with our Graduate Assessment Center. Our approach included a range of proprietary tools, such as online cognitive assessments, structured online interviews, and experiential assessments through team-based challenges and socially relevant business simulations. Additionally, we conducted assessor training and proposed the establishment of an Executive Development Center to support the growth of both professional and para-professional employees.
Roshni Homes Trust
We partnered with Roshni Homes Trust to design a unique Learning and Development framework for the entire community. Through a series of workshops, we tested the Tarbiyah Curriculum with both caregivers and the extended community, using online assessments and experiential sessions to develop tailored tools for caregivers and students alike. Additionally, we facilitated Tarbiyah workshops for GIFT University faculty, aimed at enhancing their social consciousness and fostering a deeper connection to community development.
Incubations
MILLS Skills
Octapult incubated MILLS™ in 2014, a for-profit social enterprise focused on developing assessment and up-skilling solutions. MILLS™ has designed socially-relevant online and experiential tools that help build cognitive and behavioural profiles for students, dove-tailed with on-campus internships to enhance real-world application and problem-solving skills. Additionally, MILLS™ offers the Tarbiyah Curriculum and Faculty Development Programs to further drive educational innovation.
SAAZMAN
Sazmaan, incubated by Octapult in 2014, evolved from a hobby into an e-commerce and indirect sales start-up specialising in bed linen and home-care accessories. The brand showcases intricate, hand-stitched and embroidered ethnic designs, collaborating with artisans across Pakistan, particularly from Azad Jammu & Kashmir, to bring traditional craftsmanship to modern homes.
Communicat Design
Communicat, incubated by Octapult, transitioned from a hobby into a thriving business with our business development support and resource-based interventions. Initially a design house, Communicat has recently expanded into digital marketing. It is owned and operated by Amna Adnan, an experienced designer and graduate of the National College of Arts (NCA).
Teamgel
We collaborated closely with Mr. Pete Smith to incubate a South African entity in Pakistan, introducing LEGO in Business and LEGO in Education as innovative tools for enhancing problem-solving and decision-making. Octapult provided marketing and customer acquisition support while helping develop and test the customer value proposition through behavioral data analytics.