Why do public service institutions like EDOs and municipal governments need to innovate? Well, they represent a sector that has grown faster during this century than the private sector - three to five times as fast - and maybe excessively we might add. Indeed, rapid change makes obsolete a good many of the old organizations and businesses as we can all witness. At the same time, such a trying period creates opportunities to take on new endeavours and for experimentation. The starting point for your own organization and for your business community is to recognize that change is not a threat but an opportunity. A lot of misconceptions abound in matters of innovation: we imagine chaos, artists, something new or R&D only, "gun ho" entrepreneurs, crazy geniuses sweating it out in their lab, a high tech product with 150 features that nobody finds interesting or valuable except the inventor, etc. Because of those misconceptions, we are ill prepared to commit resources where the sources of innovation reside and to envision that you need an orderly process to examine change. Innovation is the tool of the entrepreneur, it consists of moving resources from a low yield area to a more productive area, so it means change and yes, abandonment. EDOs need to be entrepreneurial and innovative as much if not more than business does. With the rapid changes in society, technology and economy, EDOs will become unable to fulfill their mission as they work with programs and projects that no longer fit the environment. Abandoning some aspects of the mission will become more and more important and a key to survival and legitimacy. We help our clients articulate their innovative strategy through mastering a process and looking at the different sources for innovation. The best organizations don't wait for opportunities, they look for them and exploit them.
Case Study: CLD Maskinongé (Maskinongé EDO)
The challenge: Like many regions in the developed world, the Maskinongé region knows what "a trying period" means for its economy has suffered in the recent years from layoffs in the manufacturing sector. The CLD Maskinongé needed to consider other ways to do economic development in this context knowing that waiting for a saviour or worst, spending massive amount of money to attract it, was not the best way to create long term conditions for renewed growth. They wanted to hear about what other EDOs in rural areas were doing and using the "creative imitation" strategy, see how they could use the concepts and adapt it to their reality. They knew they could get funding if they articulated their ideas into a well thought strategy.
The solution: For the CLD MRC Maskinongé (Maskinongé Region's EDO), we helped design an innovative strategy by using and adapting concepts of Economic Gardening (improving the conditions for growth from within instead of looking for the outside "savior", so common in economic development) which particularly works in rural areas challenged by massive layoffs from few major employers.
The end result: The strategy was articulated and developed in time to present to the provincial authorities for further funding (implementation phase). Furthermore, it helped the CLD Maskinongé to better understand the role of innovation within their organization and also the implication for their business community.
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