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Head of Research and Development at South African Centre for Public Service Innovation discusses being a conduit for innovation in the public sector, and the importance of preparing for the future
Pierre Schoonraad, Head of Research and Development at South African Centre for Public Service Innovation (CPSI), has over ten years of experience working to find innovative solutions to problems affecting the public sector. He brought this wealth of experience to the Salzburg Global Session Future of Public Service: Program Strategy Meeting, in which participants from all over the world came together to discuss the future of public service in a changing and increasingly dynamic world. His expertise in coordinating innovation efforts, and bridging the gap between those creating and those in need of solutions introduced a fresh perspective on the issue of innovation in the public sector.
Schoonraad asserts in most situations the solutions to problems already exist – accessing them is the problem: “We’ve seen that there are so many examples of solutions, but they’re not well known.”
Rather than needing to create a new solution every time a problem arises, Schoonraad and the CPSI focus on coordinating between different sectors. He says, “We link the offerings that the engineers have with the challenges offered by the public sector.”
His work is in making innovation accessible for those in need of solutions. Schoonraad says, “There are so many examples of solutions and things that people can do, so we develop case studies for people to see what other people are doing, and use this as a basis for innovation themselves.”
These case studies are simple, easy to read and made widely available, which maximizes the opportunities for those in the public or private sector to identify solutions to disruptions in their work. By producing the document and working with clients on specific issues, their relatively small team is having a significant impact across South Africa.
On top of finding and coordinating solutions, Schoonraad advocates preparing for future disruptions. This level of preparation can be particularly difficult to implement in developing countries, such as South Africa, where fundamentally significant challenges such as poverty and gang violence remain. Schoonraad says, "As a developing country, we’re so focused on existing challenges that we don’t always focus on the future of public services.” A lack of awareness of, and planning for, potential disruptions affected South Africa.
Changes to laws meant that road accident compensation claims increased substantially in a small time frame, and greater access to legal services led to an increasing number of people claiming malpractice against hospitals when they felt their own or a relative’s care wasn’t adequate. The state was unprepared for both of these disruptions. The state's lack of preparation ended up costing them a lot of money and forced them to rapidly rethink aspects of their services that they hadn’t considered before. These kinds of disruptions are why those people working for CPSI “want to help people rethink the future, and start planning accordingly.”
The problems that the South African public sector has faced provide ample evidence of the importance of planning for future disruptions, or “disrupting yourself, before someone else can,” as is Schoonraad’s philosophy. He believes that, in the public sector, the best way to prepare is by continuously asking, “Are we happy with what we’re bringing to the citizens? Are we satisfied?” By asking these questions, the public sector can continue to provide the best service possible, while remaining resilient to the disruptions that are becoming “more and more frequent.”
Future of Public Service: Program Strategy Meeting looked at how public service may change in the 21st century, and one thing has become apparent after the session and speaking with Schoonraad: the innovation is out there, but accessing it, and having the foresight to plan for the future effectively, is an increasingly important skill.
The Salzburg Global Session Future of Public Service: Program Strategy Meeting is part of the multi-year series Salzburg Global Forum on the Future of Public Service. The series is being hosted in partnership with Arizona State University. More information on the session can be found here: http://www.salzburgglobal.org/go/568