The Challenges of Scaling a Technology for Social Good
From Cold Call by HBR Presents / Brian Kenny
April 14, 2026 · 30 min · Episode 280
About this episode
The episode discusses the commercialization challenges of a breakthrough sanitation technology designed for underserved markets.
In 2021, a breakthrough in sanitation technology – developed under the Gates Foundation’s “Reinvent the Toilet” challenge – stood ready for commercialization. The Single User Reinvented Toilet (SURT) offered an off-grid, self-contained system capable of processing waste, generating water, and reducing environmental impact. Turning this technical success into a viable product, however, meant confronting intertwined challenges around behavior change, infrastructure compatibility, financing models, and stakeholder incentives. Harvard Business School Assistant Professor Maria Roche and SURT engineer Dr. Shannon Yee join Brian Kenny to discuss the case “Toilets for the Underserved: The SURT Commercialization Challenge” and the central question of how to launch and then scale a technology particularly important for underserved markets, but not a lucrative short term investment opportunity.
People in this episode
Host: Brian Kenny
Guests: Maria Roche, Dr. Shannon Yee
Topics covered
- sanitation technology
- commercialization
- social good
- behavior change
- infrastructure
- stakeholder incentives
Keywords
- sanitation
- technology
- commercialization
- social impact
- Gates Foundation
- SURT
- behavior change
- infrastructure
- stakeholders
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Gates Foundation
Books & works: Toilets for the Underserved: The SURT Commercialization Challenge
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