Observatory of Public Sector Innovation Transferring and adapting: diffusion of innovation knowledge and lessons ALPHA VERSION: FOR DISCUSSION AND COMMENT The Observatory of Public Sector Innovation collects and analyses examples and shared experiences of public sector innovation to provide practical advice to countries on how to make innovation work. This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 671526. This document and any map included herein are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area. Co-funded by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme of the European Union 2 │ │ 3 Table of contents Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 6 The Importance of Diffusion ...................................................................................................... 7 Diffusion versus dissemination .................................................................................................. 8 Diffusion at different human scales ............................................................................................ 8 A Changing Context ................................................................................................................... 8 Facets of Innovation ................................................................................................................... 9 Phases of spread ....................................................................................................................... 10 Considerations for Effective Diffusion for Innovation............................................................. 10 Type of innovation ................................................................................................................ 10 Enabling Conditions ............................................................................................................. 11 Channels for Diffusion.......................................................................................................... 12 Approaches and Methods...................................................................................................... 12 Chapter 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................. 14 OECD and European Commission Studies on the Innovation Lifecycle ................................. 14 What is the role of diffusion? ................................................................................................... 15 Chapter 2. What is diffusion? ................................................................................................... 17 The organisational purpose of diffusion ................................................................................... 17 Traditional diffusion models and their limitations ................................................................... 19 Pattern stability ......................................................................................................................... 22 Phases of spread ....................................................................................................................... 24 Chapter 3. A Changing Context – A New Urgency for Diffusion (Chapter revised from (OECD, 2016[10])) ........................................................................................................................ 26 A Changed Understanding of the Operating Environment ...................................................... 26 A Changed Understanding of Where Innovation is Needed .................................................... 28 A Changed Understanding of What Can be Done ................................................................... 29 A Changed Context Requires a Changed Approach to Diffusion ............................................ 30 Chapter 4. Facets of Innovation................................................................................................ 32 Public sector innovation is multi-faceted ................................................................................. 32 Enhancement-oriented innovation ........................................................................................ 33 Mission-oriented innovation ................................................................................................. 34 Adaptive innovation .............................................................................................................. 34 Anticipatory innovation ........................................................................................................ 35 The public sector needs multidextrous diffusion ...................................................................... 35 Chapter 5. Diffusion and Learning Organisations ................................................................. 36 “Tacit and Explicit” Knowledge in Organisational Knowledge Management ......................... 36 Scales of analysis...................................................................................................................... 38 Diffusion and Learning Loops.................................................................................................. 39 More notes on learning from Lifecycle Report 1: Learning for Innovation (OECD, 2016[10]) 40 Learning for Efficiency and Exploitation VS Learning as Exploration ................................ 40 Learning Can be Uncomfortable, Challenging, Risky and Costly ........................................ 40 Learning may also be difficult at the leadership level. ......................................................... 41 DIFFUSING LESSONS OECD 2018 4 │ Learning is Valuable (If You Know the Reason Why) ......................................................... 42 Learning is Part of the Job, Not on Top of the Job ............................................................... 42 Learning is a Social Process ................................................................................................. 42 Learning is Increasingly an Open Process ............................................................................ 43 Chapter 6. Types of Knowledge Flows: 4 Questions ............................................................... 44 WHAT were the outputs and impacts? ..................................................................................... 46 Internal transfer ..................................................................................................................... 47 External transfer .................................................................................................................... 47 WHY and HOW did it work or not? ........................................................................................ 48 HOW did it affect the system? ................................................................................................. 49 HOW did it affect the team? ..................................................................................................... 49 Linking Supply of diffusion with demand for learning ............................................................ 50 Chapter 7. Considerations for Effective Diffusion for Innovation ........................................ 53 Types of Organisational Innovation ......................................................................................... 53 Channels for Diffusion for Innovation ..................................................................................... 54 Internal organisational networks ........................................................................................... 54 External organisational networks .......................................................................................... 56 Channels for explicit knowledge learning and diffusion ...................................................... 57 Channels for contextual learning and diffusion .................................................................... 60 Enabling Conditions for Organisational Diffusion ................................................................... 64 Purpose – clear understanding of what the organisation is trying to achieve ....................... 64 Capability – the ability to act and build on the new things ................................................... 64 Absorptive capacity - the capacity to absorb and integrate learning from outside of the organisation ........................................................................................................................... 65 Knowledge networks – active and distinct formal and informal networks for sharing information, data, and tacit knowledge ................................................................................. 65 Tension for change – a compelling need for change ............................................................ 65 Organisational memory – an awareness of the reasons behind the current status or problems ............................................................................................................................... 66 Openness - being open to different perspectives, including those from non-traditional sources or established formal and informal organisational hierarchies ...............................