How can public administrators use public engagement to increase creativity and innovation in the workplace?

Some administrators approach public engagement as a chore, either because their programme framework or their funders require it. Holding a pro-forma "stakeholders meeting" or opening an X account isn't enough: stakeholder and public engagement need to be baked into the DNA of a project, and perhaps most importantly, objectives need to be set early, and strategy needs to be tailored to the available resources and budget. Expectations need to be managed too: effective stakeholder engagement takes time, money, commitment and expertise.

Public administrators can boost workplace creativity and innovation through active public engagement. Encouraging open communication, hosting inclusive sessions, and involving the public in decision-making fosters diverse perspectives. Leveraging technology for virtual engagement widens participation and nurturing a culture that values experimentation fuels creative thinking. Administrators can cultivate an environment where innovative ideas flourish by integrating public engagement seamlessly into the workplace. #PublicEngagement #Innovation 🌐🚀

There is no greater benefit in a democracy than citizen participation. Before proposing ideas or making promises that are difficult to implement, public administrators must resort to listening and this must not be done only through public hearings established by law. They must occur constantly, even before an administration is elected. It is necessary to use face-to-face communication, but above all digital communication, that expands reach, voice and listening. Give space to citizens and build a communication channel and permanent debates regarding the solutions and challenges that public authorities face. *Two heads are better than one, always!*

‭👉🏼How do you identify alarming systematic areas of concern of vulnerable groups of people if you don’t listen to them, for example, seniors in the rural area are struggling with accessing health care, or one-parent-families who don’t have sufficient income to meet their needs? 👉🏼Being in a regular dialogue with the public aims at building pragmatic solutions, flexibility, out-of-the-box-thinking. Public engagement can help to get findings which completely debunk certain myths in our society (we all live in a certain bubble) for example, that if you reach age 65 and you access your federal and provincial benefits, you will be fine.

It’s important public authorities communicate simply and effectively with citizens - ultimately each and every tax paying citizen is a ‘client’ for public officials. That accountability helps build trust but ultimately, in democratic societies the transparency enables citizens to have the final say.

A common pitfall is "analysis paralysis," or taking action to initiate "a study," rather than quickly understanding the root cause and garnering consensus on action and timeline. This challenge, also called "admiring the problem," wastes taxpayer dollars and shows a lack of courage to truly solve a problem.

En una reunión internacional escuché a un moderador solicitar que todas las delegaciones hiciéramos un esfuerzo por "speak human" y nunca volví a ver los discursos de la misma forma. Las personas del sector público muchas veces nos enganchamos con el lenguaje diplomático y refuscado que no necesariamente ayuda a comunicar los alcances y retos con la audiencia deseada. Asimismo, es necesario que las actividades que se realicen (discursos incluidos) no sean "reciclados" para todos los actores y sectores. Es importantísimo conocer a las audiencias y entender cuál es su nivel de entendimiento de la temática a revisar para lograr la vinculación deseada y/o no generar molestias en donde otros actores pudieran percibir una pérdida de tiempo

The public administrator must be prepared to open and manage dialogue channels. It is necessary, in addition to wanting to, to be prepared to mediate conflicts and explain decision-making that will certainly please one person and not please another. It will not just be one person, but a team needs to be established, with strong leadership and knowledge of the problems and possible solutions to be debated.

👉🏼Public sector organizations are facing manifold, competing, and sometimes incompatible interests (and these in turn are accountable to tax payers), in other words, to a great number of powerful stakeholders👊. 👉🏼Whereas private organizations operate within the framework of a limited number of relatively stable goals (basically growth & profitability) the tolerance for making mistakes is quite low in the public sector, affecting the capability to experiment, take risks and to think outside-the-box. Also, there is a lack of research/knowledge on how public sector entrepreneurship can be increased, how bureaucracies can be decreases and on how to create incentives for public servants.

Laid down rules and regulations help to çlarify and simplify the fields of engagement to bring up participants in a way they will not depart from.

Engaging the public is fundamental to the role of any government organisation. However, getting engagement right is tough. One issue I have seen time and again in my career is the same stakeholders being approached multiple times for feedback by different agencies on the same or related issues. This approach risks stakeholder burn out. Especially if administrators can't demonstrate the benefits of that engagement. It's a reminder to ensure your engagement is targeted, meaningful and well-coordinated.

Public administrators have an obligation to have in-depth knowledge of the history, needs and potential of what they manage. It is just as important to know the citizens, not only those who elected them, but also those who distrust their competencies.

A great way to build public engagement is through story-telling. If the goal is to boost creativity and innovation in the workplace, then getting people to share their story and explain how this was achieved, can be a really powerful tool. It provides both practical examples, and inspiration - a vital ingredient when it comes to engagement.

👉🏼I think that public engagement is a moral responsibility. It is crucial to understand the needs and values of our culturally diverse society🩷 and to align the tasks involved with those needs. 👉🏼Public engagement strategies would involve: - outsourcing to private sector (public‭–private partnerships, controlled ‬outsourcing‭), ‬- transferring (solutions‬ generated‭ ‬elsewhere‭ ‬and‭ applying them through mimicking, adapting, combining‬), - networking (co-production‭,‭ ‬co-initiation,‭ ‬collective‬ workshops, trainings, study-visits, focus-groups, hackathons, Public Innovation Labs/Hubs, - experiential‭ ‬learning‭ ‬by experimenting with trial, error, adjustment. ‬

Public administrations should take communications as seriously as the private sector does. One particular challenge is cross departmental co-ordination and ensuring diverging political perspectives don’t undermine clarity of purpose.

Public Hearings, call centers, channels on several collaborative digital platforms, podcasts, videocasts, the establishment of monthly debates with neighborhood leaders, and active participation with TV and Radio stations to report on their projects, among others.

Crie canais de participação social efetivos, onde o público possa falar e ser ouvido. Lembre-se, ainda que o direito à informação pressupõe o direto de saber e o direito de entender.

Make the decision not to hide or create unique channels of communication. Define a budget to invest in permanent contact with citizens in order to engage them through information, integration and knowledge.

It’s worth considering investing in professional help with communications, as getting this right can really dividends in future. That’s why public and private sectors alike hire agencies.

En efecto no asumir que toda la audiencia conoce o conoce de los temas a tratar, ni creer que por representar al sector público tienes la verdad absoluta de las cosas. Crear espacios de diálogo y confianza son importantes para asegurar una gobernanza participativa con diversos sectores, esto solo puede lograrse si se reconoce que hay una parte de la narrativa que se desconoce y que de compartirla y dialogarla, podría ser enriquecida o bien, planteada de forma distinta para no dejar a nadie atrás. Ser innovadores. Hacer espacios de preguntas y respuestas no es suficiente para "darle su lugar a las personas invitadas" las dinámicas, el storytelling, las encuestas, los ice-breakers, entre otras ayudan a salir del business as usual

Public engagement is not a one-time effort. Permanent attention is necessary to build public trust. Be transparent and honest in what you offer as public administration, what are the possibilities and constraints. Don’t promise what you cannot realize.

Public administrators must be strategic, inclusive, and intentional when soliciting public comments. However, private sector organizations can be proactive by monitoring public policy and giving unsolicited feedback. As a public sector executive, I recall a time when I worked on some high-impact subjects relating to the semiconductor supply chain. I researched private sector organizations that were active stakeholders and sent messages to start a conversation. They responded promptly and provided great perspective. This communication loop helped set a foundation for strong public-private engagement that is seen to this day.

No puede haber involucramiento con diversos sectores sin confianza. Partir de una base de respeto, de empatía y de no superioridad puede generar una relación colaborativa y constructiva con otros actores, particularmente no gubernamentales. El gobierno siempre es visto como "superior" pero pocas veces ha trabajado de forma colaborativa sin una perspectiva "clientelar" o de que "es abierto y buena onda por abrir espacios". Hay que cambiar la gobernanza hacia estas prácticas, es la única forma de mejorar la gestión pública, mejorar la transparencia, la rendición de cuentas y la buena gobernanza.