Explanation
Public sector innovators need a coalition of supporters who are powerful enough to ask for constructive participation by others and to allocate the necessary resources. Stakeholders are interested in, concerned about, affected by, have a vested interest in, or are involved in some way with your idea. You need to identify the ‘key players’ and find out where each one stands in relation to your idea. You can also make stakeholders into supporters by entering into partnership with them or at least setting up a process that will ensure they are informed and given the opportunity to express their views.
Stakeholders include end-users or beneficiaries of an idea, staff that may be affected by an idea, senior and middle managers in your organisation, and politicians and their advisers. There are also external stakeholder interests such as community groups, industry or business associations, environmental groups, local councils, other government departments, citizens’ groups and local residents. Your task is to anticipate stakeholder support by asking:
- Who has a stake (positive or negative) in the problem or idea?
- Who is most affected by the problem or idea?
- Who are the key supporters for the idea?
- Who may have different views or object to the idea?
- What do stakeholders know, feel, want, believe and value in relation to the problem or idea?
Stakeholder groups might be looking for different outcomes, so be sensitive to the diversity of stakeholder views and try to understand the limitations some stakeholders may have in terms of their role or expertise. Look for mutual advantages that you can use to create stakeholder interest. The key to gaining stakeholder support is to manage their expectations and help them make the transition from awareness to appreciation, from appreciation to acceptance and from acceptance to adoption.
6. End-user support
Support from the end-users of my idea is likely to be…
- a. very positive
b. reasonably positive
c. mixed
d. somewhat negative
e. very negative.
The views of the end-users or beneficiaries of your idea are critically important if you want their support. End-user involvement in design, development and validation generates enthusiasm, acceptance and adoption. Find out about your end-users and where they stand in relation to your idea.
- Who are you trying to reach and influence through your idea?
- Is there more than one end-user group?
- What incentives are there for the end-users to embrace your idea?
- What do they know, feel, want, believe and value about your idea?
- What are the threats, risks, costs and benefits for the end-users?
- What is the best way of reaching end-users?
- If they are not already involved with your idea, what will motivate them to become involved?
- If they do not already support your idea, what will encourage them to support it?
If you proceed to develop a business case, researching end-user groups may involve setting up focus groups or discussions with people who are representative of end-users. As well as providing important information about your idea, they may also open up new channels of communication and access points for approaching other end-users. End-user support is a powerful tool in gaining the support of other stakeholders.
7. Staff support
Support from staff affected by my idea is likely to be…
- a. very positive
b. reasonably positive
c. mixed
d. somewhat negative
e. very negative.
Will the staff in your organisation see the idea as a welcome change to their jobs and their work? There are good reasons why some staff may want to support your idea.
- It may represent a way to make their job easier or more enjoyable
- They may be ideologically disposed to innovate and believe that a change is necessary
- They may be idealists who have pursued a career in the public sector because they ‘want to make a difference’
- It may enhance their career prospects to ‘get on board’ with an idea that will get their organisation out of a crisis
- They may be intellectually curious or they may find the need for a change to be an interesting challenge.
Alternatively, will the staff in your organisation see the idea as threatening because it might lead to unwelcome changes? The tendency for new ideas to change existing procedures, power structures or work patterns highlights the sensitive nature of innovations that alter existing working practices. Staff concerns about accountability, standards and continuity can also result in resistance to new ideas. Negative reactions might emerge as hostile or sceptical attitudes, turf fights, lack of enthusiasm, slow uptake or union opposition.
8. Management support
Support for my idea from senior and middle management is likely to be…
- a. very positive
b. reasonably positive
c. mixed
d. somewhat negative
e. very negative.
Senior management has traditionally determined which ideas get adopted in the public sector. Unfortunately, new ideas typically face multiple hurdles because they must go through layers of middle management signoff before senior management ever sees them. Public sector organisations also tend to be divided between policy development and program delivery. This further impedes the innovation process by removing people who develop policy from the first-hand experience of actually delivering a program.
A big challenge is winning senior management support for your idea. Many people in the public sector feel that their ideas are often ignored because the boss simply does not understand or is not interested. Too many good ideas are lost because individuals are trying to anticipate what the boss might reject rather than what is good for stakeholders. One approach is to get management on board long before a decision is required. Let your idea grow out of the problem, give it time to incubate, and try to avoid situations in which you have to ‘sell’ your idea to senior management.
Do you think senior and middle management in your organisation will support your idea? Management have always had a big influence on the culture and attitudes within public sector organisations. Through their words and actions, you should be able to judge what degree of support your idea is likely to have from management. Tangible examples of support include acknowledging that an idea is consistent with the organisation’s priorities, personal recognition for putting the idea forward, encouragement to develop the idea further, or a request to research and present a business case.
9. Poltical support
- a. very positive
b. reasonably positive
c. mixed
d. somewhat negative
e. very negative.
The public sector’s job is to support the government of the day by implementing its policies. While this does not prevent public sector organisations from putting forward ideas that move away from existing government policy, it will be more difficult to sell the merits of those ideas. Even when politicians recognise the value of an idea, if it is inconsistent with an established government policy position it is unlikely to get support.
Most of the big transformational public sector innovations are politically driven, with election promises and new policies providing a broad framework that encourages the flow of ideas. They may be ideologically based or in response to critical events and pressures. They may need strong, top-down, political determination coupled with the allocation of resources. Public sector organisations that propose transformational ideas generally require political support and in many cases formal authorisation.
A change of government or a minister can herald new ideas or approaches that are very different from existing policies involving quite radical innovations. Ideas that are consistent with government priorities, particularly those that address current problems facing the government, will have a good prospect of gaining political support. Good ideas sometimes occur at the wrong time in the political cycle and get caught up in a change of priorities. These ideas may need to wait for the right time and climate to attract the support they deserve.
10. External support
Support from external stakeholders for my idea is likely to be…
- a. very positive
b. reasonably positive
c. not relevant or important
d. somewhat negative
e. very negative.
Strong support from external stakeholders is a powerful motivator for introducing new ideas in the public sector. Ideas that are endorsed by influential community or industry leaders provide a persuasive incentive for public sector managers and politicians to get on board. Who are the external stakeholders for your idea?
- Community groups
- Industry or business associations
- Environmental groups
- Local councils
- Other government departments
- Citizens’ groups
- Local residents and individuals
- Opinion leaders
- Others
Outside service providers such as voluntary organisations or businesses can also be important external stakeholders. They sometimes use innovative techniques to deliver services on behalf of the public sector and they have a unique perspective on working with the public sector and acting as an intermediary between the public sector and other stakeholders. They are an important source of ideas, suggestions and support for new ways in which the public sector can fulfil its role.
Just as external stakeholders can be a source and driver of innovation, they can also constitute a barrier. An idea may face opposition from external interests who feel committed to the current system and resist change despite its inherent benefits. Look for ways to foster external stakeholder participation in planning and decision-making. Encouraging them to play a role in the development of your idea is one way to minimise conflict and gain support because it enables contrasting views to be heard and reconciled.
Next part – Risks
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