Search Toolkits

This resource describes a comprehensive method for the BC Public Service (BCPS) to design services for British Columbians, although it is also applicable to other governments.
The Playbook is intended to help ensure public service designers have the necessary tools and corporate support to make change.
It includes an overview of service design, a discussion of when and how to use it, as well as detailed guidance and tools for the various methods used in service design. The methods are organised according to the publisher's model: Alignment, Discovery, Opportunity, Prototype & Test, Roadmap, and Implement.
The resource also compares service design with other public service approaches, like behavioural insights, lean, etc.
The appendix includes research planning templates, template partnership agreements for service design projects, and sample matrices for evaluating opportunities.

A mashup of the original Business Model Canvas with lean startup methodology built in, this canvas is intended for social entrepreneurs to validate their offering, prioritise what to develop, and message the offering. This could also be used by a government service provider.
The website includes a checklist to evaluate whether you will likely find value in using the canvas.

A curated set of 18 canvases that walk you through the steps needed for creating services & products using the combined principles and methodologies of agile development, lean startup, and design thinking. The publisher's intent is for you to reach business objectives in an iterative and human-centric way. In adapting to a public sector context, "customers" may need to be re-framed as stakeholders or service users. GitHub source content available. Includes how-to videos.

A hands-on resource that provides practical advice, guidance, and an 8-phase process from concept development to implementation for building an open government program, with each step referencing principles, lessons learned, case studies, and a checklist for determining whether you are at the right phase. This resource complements Open Government Partnership Action Plans and and was developed as part of a year-long project with the Mexican government.

This resource is intended to support United Kingdom government teams create and run digital services according to their Digital Service Standard. It covers Accessibility and assisted digital, Agile delivery, Design, Measuring success, Service assessments and getting on GOV.UK, Technology, The team, and User research.

This online interactive playbook is intended for teams to work better together in order to get things done. It is organised into Health Monitor (checks and activities for building team health), individual plays (filterable standalone activities), and game plans (series of plays for common use cases). The playbook organises the materials by project, service, and leadership team type, provides detailed instructions on how to run the plays and offers downloads of materials. Since many plays are adapted versions of other tools, licensing varies. However, many are licensed for reuse and further adaptation.

This resource distills the United Nations Development Programme's experience and lessons with running Social Innovation Camps into a "how-to" manual for others. The publisher intends it to broaden a project's results, attract donors, find new partners, source new perspectives on an issue, and/or place beneficiaries at the centre of project design. The resource was created within an international development and social innovation context but can be adapted for public sector use.
It is available to view online or download upon creating a Scribd account.

A collection of cards describing methods for planning and executing design research, ideation, experimentation and creation within short iterations (sprints). They split the methods into tasks that follow SCREAM; a methodology which is a modified version of SCRUM, tailored to fit within the publisher's design process.
The card fronts contain basic information, such as activity type, category, and duration. The backs contain basic overviews of the methods and how-to instructions. These are intended to plan iterations and divide up tasks between team members. The publisher recommends using the Design Method Toolkit in combination with the DMT Plan Board, your Scrum Board.
The cards can be viewed for free online or ordered via the website for 50 euros.
Prior experience with design sprints or agile methodologies is recommended.

The toolkit provides step-by-step guidance for development practitioners to leverage new sources of data. It is a result of a collaboration of UNDP and UN Global Pulse with support from UN Volunteers, led by UNDP innovation teams in Europe and Central Asia and Arab States.
The guide is structured into three sections - (I) Explore the Problem & System, (II) Assemble the Team and (III) Create the Workplan. Each of the sections comprises of a series of tools for completing the steps needed to initiate and design a data innovation project, to engage the right partners and to make sure that adequate privacy and protection mechanisms are applied.

DemTools is a suite of free, open source software solutions developed by NDITech and distributed for supporting democracy building efforts around the world. The software includes contact management, issue tracking, crowdsourcing, election monitoring, open data, and petition development tools. These were built with the developing world in mind but can also be used in other contexts.
An associated DemTools Guide Book offers an overview of each of the suite of tools, including use cases, user consideration, technical specifications, security considerations, languages/translations, the type of support offered by the publisher, instructions for deploying and hosting the tools and case studies of the tools in practice.
The publisher also offers free and paid hosting service and technical support, but some resources and expertise will be required of the user for setup and ongoing maintenance of the tools.

A guide intended for the Australian government for designing public services in user-centered and iterative ways. This resource is intended to help teams start small and learn fast, and to create services that can be delivered quickly and to save money by reducing service failure.
It is organised into 4 design and delivery stages, each with an associated guide: Discovery, Alpha, Beta, Live.

X-Road, a data exchange layer for information systems, is a technological and organizational environment enabling a secure Internet-based data exchange between information systems. Source code of X-Road is open for all and it is licensed under MIT license.
Consultation services for deploying independent X-Road instances can be obtained from enterprises with such services. There is also an X-Road Community for support.
This is a collaborative project involving several countries/territories, including Estonia, Finland, and Iceland.

A front-end framework for building websites that are accessible, usable, interoperable, mobile friendly and multilingual for the Government of Canada and beyond, the resource includes a collection of of flexible and themeable templates and reusable components and related guidance. Content is also available in French.

The Hackers’ Kit supports different types of discussions around project and program design. It's aim is to normalise innovation in a large organization by embedding new practices in key project management business processes. Worked on and tested with over 25 project teams in the United Nations Development Programme, the toolkit is intended for an international development context but could be applied to any large organisation with a desire to innovate.
It includes a wall map of the process, question cards to get people "unstuck," and a collection of 19 tools that supports innovation activities throughout the project cycle. With them, one can capture insights and analyse, support decision making, challenge thinking and assumptions, plan activities, prompt discussion, and stimulate reflection. These tools can be used in group sessions, or by individuals and includes a facilitators guide.

A collection of online guidance and knowledge to assist countries and others in setting up open data strategies and platforms.
The resource is comprised seven sections:
Open Data Essentials, Starting an Open Data Initiative,Technology Options, Demand & Engagement, Supply & Quality of Data, Readiness Assessment Tool, and Technical Assistance and Funding.

“Scenes” is a tool and a method to create visual stories about products and services fast, collaboratively and iteratively. It is intended for leaders and professionals of all industries to shape their ideas and scenarios in the form of fun illustrative storyboards without the need of refined drawing skills. It uses storytelling instead of long functional specifications for new or redesigned services or concepts.
It contains free, downloadable and printable templates for professionals to construct scenes for prototyping products and services. There are also "add-on" scenes for specific situations or topics.
The toolkit contains editable and printable scenes components as well as a how-to guide.

This step-by-step toolkit describes an inclusive approach to recruiting participants for public consultation or engagement processes. The publishers designed the Civic Lottery process to mitigate the shortcomings and distortions produced by traditional recruitment methods. The approach introduces randomization at multiple stages of the participant recruitment and selection
process. This toolkit is best for those who have decided that a reference panel is right for their situation (see the publishers associated toolkit on reference panels) and want to make sure that their selection process is fair and inclusive.
The toolkit was developed based on lessons learned by the publisher in deploying reference panels in Canada.

This playbook is an online crash course on service design. It works alongside the 14 points set out in the Digital Service Standard to provide the basics needed to get started on a digital service.
It covers: About service design, Discovery phase, Alpha phase, Beta phase, Live phase, and Team roles

The Open Data Toolkit provides guidance intended for South Australia agencies and local councils release open data, although can be adapted to other contexts. It includes guidance on the following steps: Identify, Classify, Approach, Approve, Publish, Maintain.
It includes suggestions on governance decisions and roles as well as privacy, public value, and intellectual property guidance.

The Do-it-Yourself (DIY) Open Data Toolkit provides a step-by-step guidance on how to develop an open data initiative. The Toolkit is primarily intended for municipalities that have not yet begun an open data project and need some guidance on how to implement one. It can also be referenced by other governments or organizations who are considering initiating an open data initiative.
The toolkit includes: Open data orientation, Planning considerations, Publishing sample data sets, Adopting an open data policy, Executing an open data pilot project with community engagement, and
Moving your open data initiative from pilot project to operational program.

The term data collaborative refers to a new form of collaboration, beyond the public-private partnership model, in which participants from different sectors — including private companies, research institutions, and government agencies — can exchange data to help solve public problems.
This resource outlines 8 Phases for designing and implementing a data collaborative (partnership) at an institutional level. The online resource includes examples, enablers, tools, and resources for each phase.

This is a collection of tools for an Open Government Partnership communications team, including the OGP's tips on blogging, branding, talking points, press guide, etc.
While this is specifically created for Open Government Partnership partners, it it can be adapted for other public sector initiatives, services, or programs.

This playbook shares lessons the publisher has learned while working with vulnerable populations as they access digital services, with the aim of improving access and awareness to those services.
This playbook is for nonprofits, community-based organizations, and governments who serve people who are eligible for government safety-net and criminal justice services, people with low incomes, and people in contact with the justice system.
It includes guidance in the form of principles and best practices for digital outreach to vulnerable populations.

This online library contains over 400 facilitation resources, available with free login. Tools are organised by topic: Team, Energiser, Idea generation, Issue resolution, Explore and understand, Action. They include information such as time required, group size, difficulty, materials, step-by-step instructions, tips, and variations as well as user comments.
This private company also offers free and paid session planner software using the methods in the library.

The resource was developed for IFRC and National Societies to develop their literacy around data, but it could easily be applied to other organisations. It aims to promote responsible data use and develop data readiness. It has been tailored based on these audiences:
The Data Curious, who needs an ‘on ramp’ to learn and be exposed to the data basics.
The Data Advocate, who sees relevance and and wants to improve their skills and/or offer support.
The Data Active, who are motivated to self-learn and are on their way to being a ‘data-leader’.
The Data Ready, who are ‘trainers’ or ‘data leaders’ who lead data-driven projects and mentor colleagues.
It was heavily influenced by the DIY toolkit, the Atlassian Team Playbook and the Open Organization principles. The content is built to be social and modularised and used in a ‘pick and choose’ method. It includes examples, best best practices, how to’s, slides, session plans, training materials, matrices and scenarios, which are provided in formats that are easily adapted by others.

This toolkit provides guidance for public servants on how to communicate with the public using the simplest and clearest language possible and to ensure that all services are accessible, and meets the diverse needs of all our customers. The guidance is based on Universal Design principles.
The toolkit contains advice on general writing style principles, verbal and non-verbal communications, design of forms and documents, web and social media content and how to display signage. It features a series of tips and tricks for evaluating the inclusiveness of communications.
This approach is not only useful in the public sector for improving service experiences but also as a way of making overall communications more open and accessible.

The resource provides support for individuals and organizations wishing to publish open government data. Some guidance may be specific to the Swiss context. It is designed as a wiki: contributions from organizations and individuals that have experience with open data are welcomed. The resource is organised into stages: identify, prepare, publish, and support. A Github repository of the website's code is also available.

This resource includes tools, approaches and resources for local authorities sharing non-personal data. The publishers intend it for those currently working in city governments as well as those supplying data sharing services to be able to find a common language and process in approaching the sharing of data. It focuses on both the technical and non-technical aspects of sharing data, including building data sharing partnerships, building a team, ecosystem mapping, and proposal and business case development.

The SIC learning repository is an online, open resource available for innovators, researchers and policy makers to improve their skills in design for Social Innovation.
The tools section is organised by main activities/actions, including:
RECRUITING SOCIAL INNOVATORS
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
IDEATION
PRODUCT/SERVICE DEVELOPMENT
PROTOTYPING
SUSTAINABLE GROWTH AND IMPACT
FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
For each tool, time commitment and team requirements are listed and each can be downloaded as a PDF.

The MaRS Library contains articles, templates, reports, workbooks, reference guides and videos covering a range of topics, including accounting, funding, governance, intellectual property, leadership, legal issues, marketing, product management, selling, social innovation, strategy and talent.
It is intended for an entrepreneurial context, but it can be adapted for a public sector organisational context.

This document gives you the information you need to create your own lab. This could be a UNICEF lab—or could simply be a space of creativity that is aimed at solving significant global problems through the application of dedicated local resources.
It provides background on labs, defining a lab's purpose, budget and scoping, and examples of different lab models (outreach/training, product development, service development, operational research, and content broadcasting).
It also includes interactive worksheets for creating lab proposal Terms of Reference as well as examples TORs.

The toolkit's goal is to help actors conceptualize and operationalize their ambitions in terms of supporting social innovation. It contains not only “procedures” but also knowledge concerning social innovation.
The guide was designed to support European Social Fund (or other) funding organisations that want to focus mainly on service innovation (as opposed to systems innovation or internally oriented process innovation). But it also recognizes the idea of broader societal transitions and the need for changes in internal processes as a condition to make externally oriented innovative services tangible.
It contains social innovation background information, principles, strategies, project guidance, capacity building, staffing, and implementation.

A collection of tools created during the Open Data Innovation Week, which was a gathering of innovators from across the Asia-Pacific region to build a box of tools and methods for improving the design, practice and implementation of open data initiatives to help solve the region’s key political, economic, and social problems. Tools range from ethnography to mapping and analysis. Each tool contains instructions: purpose, prerequisites, who to involve, difficulty, time-frame, and step-by-step guidance.

This web-based resource contains ideas and practical help to use digital and social media in the public sector. It is organised by techniwues, strategies, examples, and (user generated) questions. This resource can assist governments with service delivery and stakeholder engagement. The publisher's main website also contains other resources for online communication.

A collection of 55 different public/stakeholder engagement techniques, including an assessment of difficulty, engagement level, cost, when might be used, how many people might be needed to run, timeframes, innovation level and a step by step guide for using each.

The Toolkit helps government employees use crowdsourcing and citizen science in their work. It provides five basic process steps for planning, designing and carrying out a crowdsourcing or citizen science project. It also includes a case study library of this process in practice as well as citizen science-related resources (examples, background information, journal articles, tools).
These methods were developed for United States Government staff but could also be used by other governments and organisations interested in engage the public in their work and collect data that might otherwise be beyond their reach.
The US Government supports this work with an associated internal community of practice.

The resource addresses the use of financial prizes to source solutions to challenges. It draws on academic literature, interviews with analysts and practitioners, surveys of prize sponsors and competitors, databases of small and large awards, and case studies of 12 effective prizes to produce lessons from a range of sectors, goals, and prize types. It provides frameworks and recommendations to help improve current prizes and stimulate effective future use. While it is targeted to philanthropic sponsors, be can also be helpful to governments considering this approach.

This resource tells the stories of 20 teams, units and funds established by governments and charged with making innovation happen. i-teams, short for innovation teams, are dedicated teams, units and funds, to structure and embed innovation methods and practice in government. They are largely affiliated with Bloomberg Philanthropies and its associated i-teams program and usually within local governments.
This resource analyses the diversity of structures and approaches, their impacts, and the key lessons for other government leaders looking to emulate these efforts.

This resource contains a framework and guidance regarding the use of user-centred design. The publisher defines the UCD process in six phases - two planning and four delivery phases. The two planning phases focus on typical project planning aspects such as problem space, resources, agency readiness, team logistics, governance, etc. The four delivery phases are about action, talking to users to understand their real needs, prototyping potential solutions, and building the minimum viable product ready for public use.
Each phase contains guidance, phase time-frames, workshop templates, tools and a checklist for deciding to proceed to the next phase.

This playbook describes 10 "plays" organised around
designing the job, finding the right people, and guiding applicants. Each play includes guiding steps and examples.

Challenge Prizes: A practice guide provides practical guidance and support to help explore challenge prizes and offers guidance on designing and running a challenge prize.
The resource covers what challenge prizes are, guidance on deciding whether a challenge prize is right for your situation, and scoping and planning a prize--including a Challenge Prize Design Worksheet and Challenge Prize Schedule Worksheet.