Toolkit Navigator
A compendium of toolkits for public sector innovation and transformation, curated by OPSI and our partners around the world

This Field Guide is designed to support new-to-foresight practitioners in incorporating future thinking and foresight into everyday projects. In addition to describing methods (including purpose, pros, cons and considerations for each), it also provides guidance on how to advocate for a foresight related project or approach in your organistion, cultivate a futures/foresight mindset, and build a team.
The ""zombies" referenced represent an unexpected and unlikely event for humanity. Stories about…
This Field Guide is a systems take on typical design thinking methodology. It demonstrates how to design something with a greater emphasis on creativity and humour. The Guide goes through a systemic design project from concept to implementation. It takes you through the workshop planning process, and discusses workshop roles and client relations. In the FAQs, you’ll find explanations to some commonly asked questions about systemic design concepts to help you introduce others to SD and bring…
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…
The DesignGov experiment was an 18 month initiative of the Australian Public Service to apply design-led innovation to cross-agency problems. This resource is based on the experience of DesignGov and is intended to be a resource for others that might be looking to establish and operate a public sector innovation lab. This resource is offered as a personal contemplation about what should be considered when establishing, running and, possibly, closing a public innovation lab.
Kickbox is an innovation process that Adobe developed for its own use and then open-sourced so everyone can use it. It is both a process for individuals and a system for deploying that process across an organization at scale. It’s designed to increase innovator effectiveness, accelerate innovation velocity, and measurably improve innovation outcomes. It can also optimize innovation investments by reducing costs compared to traditional approaches. Adobe distributed 1000 physical boxes…
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…
A collection of code, tools, and case studies to help United States federal agencies adopt the Open Data Policy and unlock the potential of government data.
This project is meant to be a living document, so that collaboration in the open data ecosystem is fostered, and the continual update of technology pieces that affect update can happen at a more rapid pace. Edits to the content may be made by anyone.
It could provide other governments with examples and starter content for its own open data…
The United Kingdom government's design principles and examples of how they have been used. Each principle includes links to articles with additional explanation and reflections.
1. Start with user needs
2. Do less
3. Design with data
4. Do the hard work to make it simple
5. Iterate. Then iterate again
6. This is for everyone
7. Understand context
8. Build digital services, not websites
9. Be consistent, not uniform
10. Make things open: it makes things better
The Policy Quality Framework describes the key characteristics of quality policy advice, as well as the ‘enablers’ of great advice, like considering multiple perspectives, good commissioning, quality assurance processes and work planning.
It is one of three improvement frameworks co-designed for and by the policy community in New Zealand to help government agencies improve their policy quality and capability.
It includes several policy assessments for different stages of the policy cycle and…
This is a report from the Workshop ‘How might we approach transformational change for complex challenges in the future?’, held in London 30-31 August 2017. It provides 18 insights and considerations for playing the enabler, catalyst, and convenor roles in creating a mindset of long-termism.