Innovation In American Government

Innovation does happen—even in government! Despite all the news about government scandals and failures, public officials are innovative. This book analyzes numerous examples of ingenious problem solving—in education in California, in the Department of Juvenile Justice in New York City, in government operations in Minnesota, in human service programs across the country. All organizations, both public and private, need innovation, but making innovation work in government is a greater challenge than doing so in business. This book identifies a number of dilemmas that complicate the process of innovating in American government. For example, there is the "trust dilemma": Innovation may be necessary to establish public faith in the ability of government agencies to perform, but before the public grants agencies a license to be truly innovative, it needs to be convinced that these same agencies have the ability to perform. The contributors to this book analyze a number of issues raised by the task of innovation, including: Who is responsible for innovating? How can innovative individuals and teams be held accountable? What kinds of organizational arrangements beget the most innovation? How can innovation be fostered in agencies devoted to routinization? How should innovative ideas be disseminated? And what exactly is an "innovation" anyway? The contributors gathered data for this book from winners and finalists in the Ford Foundation's Innovations Awards program, as well as from other innovators and innovations. In addition to the editors, the contributors are Babak J. Armajani, Michael Barzelay, W. Lance Bennett, Paul Berman, Richard F. Elmore, Robert M. Entman, Lee S. Friedman, Thomas N. Gilmore, Olivia Golden, James Krantz, Laurence E. Lynn Jr., Mark H. Moore, Beryl Nelson, Ellen Schall, Malcolm Sparrow, William Spelman, Deborah A. Stone, and Marc D. Zegans.

The Innovations in American Government Awards Program began in 1985 with a grant from the Ford Foundation to the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard to conduct a program of awards for innovations in state and local government. The foundation's objective was ambitious and, in an era of "government is the problem" rhetoric, determinedly proactive. It sought to counter declining public confidence in government by highlighting innovative and effective programs. Over twenty years later, research, recognition, and replication are the source of the program's continuing influence and its vitality. What is the future of government innovation? How can innovation enhance the quality of life for citizens and strengthen democratic governance? Innovations in Government: Research, Recognition, and Replication answers these questions by presenting a comprehensive approach to advancing the practice and study of innovation in government. The authors discuss new research on innovation, explore the impact of several programs that recognize innovation, and consider challenges to the replication of innovations. Contributors include Eugene Bardach (University of California– Berkeley), Robert Behn (Harvard University), John D. Donahue (Harvard University), Marta Ferreira Santos Farah (Center for Public Administration and Government, Fundação Getulio Vargas), Archon Fung (Harvard University), Jean Hartley (University of Warwick), Steven Kelman (Harvard University), Gowher Rizvi (Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation, Harvard University), Peter Spink (Center for Public Administration and Government, Fundação Getulio Vargas), and Jonathan Walters (Governing).

The worst economic crisis since the Great Depression has generated a fundamental re-evaluation of the free-market policies that have dominated American politics for three decades. State of Innovation brings together critical essays looking at the 'innovation industry' in the context of the current crisis. The book shows how government programs and policies have underpinned technological innovation in the US economy over the last four decades, despite the strength of 'free market' political rhetoric. The contributors provide new insights into where innovations come from and how governments can support a dynamic innovation economy as the US recovers from a profound economic crisis. State of Innovation outlines a 21st century policy paradigm that will foster cutting-edge innovation which remains accountable to the public.

Sandford Borins addresses the enduring significance of innovation in government as practiced by public servants, analyzed by scholars, discussed by media, documented by awards, and experienced by the public. In The Persistence of Innovation in Government, he maps the changing landscape of American public sector innovation in the twenty-first century, largely by addressing three key questions: • Who innovates? • When, why, and how do they do it? • What are the persistent obstacles and the proven methods for overcoming them? Probing both the process and the content of innovation in the public sector, Borins identifies major shifts and important continuities. His examination of public innovation combines several elements: his analysis of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Innovations in American Government Awards program; significant new research on government performance; and a fresh look at the findings of his earlier, highly praised book Innovating with Integrity: How Local Heroes Are Transforming American Government. He also offers a thematic survey of the field’s burgeoning literature, with a particular focus on international comparison.

In his recognition of the importance of ideas and institutions in politics, in his limited use of the jargon of political analysis, and in his evident wit and ready humor, Nelson Polsby is himself being innovative in this study of the policy process. Political Innovation In America is a welcome addition to the public policy literature. -William F. Connelly, Jr., Benchmark This book will have a significant impact in restoring the links between politics and public policy. It's safe to say that our understanding of both of these subjects will never be the same again.-Francis E. Rourke, The Johns Hopkins University

Everybody knows federal agencies are brain-dead leviathans. Everybody knows that the watchword of federal management is "that's the way we've always done it." Everybody knows that any creativity within American government shows up only in the cities and states. Everybody's wrong. In 1995 the Ford Foundation's annual "Innovation in American Government" award competition was opened up to federal candidates and a third of the winners since then have been federal institutions. This book profiles the 14 federal award winners from 1995 to 1998 and challenges the conventional wisdom about the federal bureaucracy's capacity to adapt. Examples include the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which figured out how to identify and act upon business and government's shared stake in keeping dangerous products out of consumers' hands; and the Wage and Hour inspectors in the Labor Department, who deployed market leverage to put pressure on the garment-industry scofflaws whose sweatshops had evaded conventional enforcement. The stories show how pressure, promises, and professional pride can galvanize federal managers and front-line workers to overcome what are admittedly imposing impediments to change, and persevere with new ways to deliver on their missions. And they illustrate the unfashionable truth that innovation is within Washington's repertoire after all. Copublished with the Council for Excellence in Government

In this book, two leading experts on community action provide the first scholarly examination of the civic renewal movement that has emerged in the United States in recent decades. Sirianni Friedland examine civic innovation since the 1960s as social learning in four arenas (community organizing/development, civic environmentalism, community health, and public journalism), and they link local efforts to broader networks and to the development of "public policy for democracy." They also explore the emergence of a movement for civic renewal that builds upon the civic movements in these four arenas. In contrast to some recent studies that stress broad indicators of civic decline, this study analyzes innovation as a long process of social learning within specific institutional and policy domains with complex challenges and cross-currents. It draws upon analytical frameworks of social capital, policy learning, organizational learning, regulatory culture, democratic theory, and social movement theory. The study is based upon interviews with more than 400 innovative practitioners, as well as extensive field observation, case study, action research, and historical analysis.