I am noticing higher levels of interest for innovation in the Belgian public sector. At the same time, I observe organisations often confuse the disciplines of change management and innovation management and, as a consequence, whether to include all or only some employees and managers in innovation trajectories. All too often change management and innovation management are thrown into one basket: Innovation and change management are two distinct and important concepts within business management.…
Posts on Innovation Management
A matter of methods, mindsets, and mechanisms. Why innovation portfolio management? Innovation Portfolio Management has long been used by the private sector to improve returns on investments. The potential of using the same approach to improve social returns is huge. A growing number of OECD Member countries and organisations in the international development sector are exploring innovation portfolio management. Follow, for example, the exciting work of OECD-OPSI, OECD INDEF, CGIAR, UNDP, UNICEF…
Innovation portfolio management enables not only commercial actors but also public sector organisations to systematically manage and prioritise innovation activities according to concurrent and diverse purposes and priorities. It is a core component of a comprehensive approach to innovation management and a condition to assess the social return of investment across an entire portfolio. The OECD Observatory of Public Sector Innovation (OPSI) has worked in this space for a number of years. By…
With staff shortages in executive organisations, the impact of digitalisation, increasingly diverted and individualised parliaments and rising public’s expectations of public services, governments are gradually recognising the importance of innovation in their goods and services. A new era has emerged with governments professionalising their innovation processes through the establishment of dedicated innovation departments. In Europe, rarely do we see so many public organisations moving in the…
We are on the lookout for game-changing, freely available toolkits that can ignite innovative thinking and drive progress in governments worldwide. As the hosts of OECD Toolkit Navigator, one of the world’s largest compendia of public sector innovation toolkits, we’re excited to collaborate with you to identify fresh, forward-thinking resources to support governments and public servants in the design and delivery of better policies and services. Five minutes – that’s all it…
Finland conducted its first public sector innovation barometer in the Central Government. The results are in and once again reaffirm that Finland gets many things right. 93% of organisations innovated during 2020-21. Innovation activities are motivated in particular by the needs of citizens and clients, productivity and new technologies. Drivers of innovation activities are also reflected in individual innovations and their effects. Innovation Barometer: what and why? The Innovation Barometer is…
The standard advice for government innovators is: “First make sure you have the support of agency leaders.” That’s like advising soldiers: “First make sure the enemy has run out of ammunition.” It would be great, but if you wait for it to happen then you may never act. The Independent Demonstration Project is a strategy to innovate in government without…
Apple, Microsoft and Amazon. Three of the world’s tech giants, which have a larger market cap than many developed and developing nations GDP. And while opinion varies widely on the topics such powerful companies naturally bring about, one aspect is absolutely clear: these companies have learned to nurture and embrace innovation and innovative thinking. To whole-heartedly build it into its very foundations and culture. Yes, stability and education are important – I’m not taking…
“We create and re-create narratives throughout our lives to make sense of what happened, to process experience, to interpret and reinterpret our view of the world as life unfolds. I believe that beautiful and difficult process is what it is to be human.” Lauren Oakes For me, significant transitions in life prompt such introspection and recreation of narratives – to reflect on key moments that have shaped who I am and how I think. Recently,...
Do you know about real-world cases and examples of innovation management? OPSI would like to hear from you. We are starting work with Vinnova, Sweden’s Innovation Agency to explore what good innovation management looks like in practice. We will take a systematic approach to understanding the role, nature, barriers, and enablers of innovation in an organisation. This means considering innovation activities within a wider context of (e.g., leadership, culture, processes, capabilities) rather…