How might we dramatically improve business and government interaction?
Design Prospectus from the Australian Centre for Excellence in Public Sector Design November 2012
72% of businesses say the time they’re spending on ‘red-tape’ has increased in the last two years (National Red Tape Survey, ACCI 2012)
Two-thirds of Australian company directors believe that the Federal Government does not understand business (Director Sentiment Index 2012, AICD)
The Australian Centre for Excellence in Public Sector Design will assist the Australian Public Service (APS) to meet the challenges of delivering innovative, practical solutions to today’s complex problems and to explore new methods in solution formulation, development and delivery. The Centre will inspire creativity, innovation and a more citizen-centric approach through consultation, collaboration and co-design (Charter, May 2012)
Milestones
· May 2010 - Management Advisory Committee report ‘Empowering Change’ released, including recommendation for the establishment of a Centre
· April 2011 - APS 200 Project on Public Sector Innovation reports to Secretaries Board
· June 2011 - Launch of the APS Innovation Action Plan
· December 2011 - Secretaries Board Decision to proceed with establishment of a pilot Centre for Excellence in Public Sector Design
· January 2012 - Call for Expressions of Interest for CEO for the Centre
· May 2012 - Secretaries Board agreement to the Charter and overseeing Board for the Centre
· June 2012 - Appointment of CEO, Ms Jane Treadwell
· July 2012 - Commencement of Centre operations
· August 2012 - Consultation and research on the problem areas facing government
· September 2012 - Inaugural meeting of the Centre’s Board and decision on the area for project exploration
· October 2012 - Research, interviews and first cross-agency Insight Workshop exploring business-government interaction
· December 2012 - Secretaries Board and Centre Board make a decision on the Design Prospectus
· January 2013 - Commencement of full design phase of the project
At a glance
This is an opportunity to better understand the business and government relationship and how things could be made better.
The Australian Centre for Excellence in Public Sector Design (the Centre) was asked by its Board to scope projects within the problem area of government and business interactions to demonstrate the value and benefits of design thinking and design methodologies.
Government and business have a complicated, messy, and highly variable relationship. This has led to much frustration and unnecessary costs, including opportunity costs, on both sides. The focusing question is, therefore, “How might we dramatically improve business and government interaction?”
Following a design approach, an Insight Workshop[1] to rapidly generate ideas was held with representatives from 26 Departments/Agencies on 30 October 2012, along with desktop research and one-on-one interviews with a mix of stakeholders. A primary challenge space – ‘buried in bureaucracy – ease my burden’ was identified. Two key sources of pain (‘pain points’) were identified within the challenge space and it is expected that others will emerge during the proposed further fieldwork research. The two pain points described in this prospectus are: ‘I don’t know – how do I find out?’ and ‘Tell me, hear me, let me have a say’.[2] The research to date has also identified some insights of immediate value, including an area of possible further design-led exploration within the APS (see section titled Immediate Value).
What is the proposal?
This Design Prospectus seeks financial and staffing contribution from all government portfolios in order to conduct qualitative research, specifically ethnographic[3] research, and apply some early stages of the design approach in and with Australian businesses. This will allow the APS to better understand the business and government interactions and identify preliminary insights for further exploration. Ethnographic research will generate a real understanding of the ‘lived experience’ of businesses and their interactions with government and help to create more compelling solutions that will connect with users.
As an example, an international not-for-profit organisation called the Kafka Brigade has proven the utility of ethnographic research in tackling the wicked problem of ‘bureaucratic dysfunction’ to reduce government ‘red-tape’ and help businesses and bureaucracies to work better. We propose to explore the relevant elements of the proven Kafka Brigade methodology and other related immersion/observational techniques in seeking to better understand the business and government interaction challenge and to develop a core APS capability in the method.
What do you get?
· Insights into understanding business better through business segmentation categories and descriptors described by business itself
· Ethnographic research offering rich intelligence about the ‘lived experience’ of business and government interaction
· Insights into how competing tensions can be resolved, offering new options that do not compromise one for the benefit of the other
· Pointers to APS internal ‘red-tape’ sources and reduction opportunities
· Increased design thinking capability and goodwill between business and government by virtue of using an inclusive design approach
· An early demonstration of the value of design thinking
· Some key staff trained in applying design thinking to a critical problem area and further capability building in this approach across the APS
· Project deliverables will include:
o A Report of Research Findings and Insights
o Ideas and concepts for quick adoption or prototyping for early outcomes, and target areas for further design exploration. To be presented in Prototyping and Design Prospectus(s) (as appropriate) and submitted for consideration and resourcing to the Secretaries Board by no later than the end of May 2013.
Ethnographic research is based on observing people in their natural environment rather than in a formal research setting and helps to disclose points of frustration and see patterns of behaviour in a real world context.
What is the required investment?
· A funding contribution from each government portfolio of $10,000 - $20,000
· Fully funded staff contribution to create a cross-agency team of 8-12 people[4] to operate full time for a period of five months commencing in late January 2013. The team members need to have direct experience in dealing with business – policy development or delivery of programs and/or services, or be adept change facilitators; and be keen to apply the design approach and be trained in ethnographic research techniques
· Nomination of any specific industries/issues that should be explored in relation to the challenge space
· Access to relevant intelligence, expertise, data and networks of interest in the Department/Agency or its stakeholders
· Championing the project(s) in your sphere of influence.
What must happen?
· Nomination of project team members and contribution to the Centre prior to Christmas.
Some government measures to improve business/government interactions
/Challenge space and pain points
Existing government measures
/Buried in bureaucracy – ease my burden
/I don’t know – how do I find out?
/Tell me, hear me, let me have a say
COAG Seamless National Economy(High Level) / Y / N / Y
Standard Business Reporting / Y / Y / N
business.gov.au / N / Y / Y
· Grants and Assistance Finder / N / Y / N
· Advisor Finder / N / Y / N
· Business Consultation / N / N / Y
Ongoing reporting / Y / Y / N
· Best Practice
· Regulation Report / Y / N / N
Ongoing processes / Y / N / N
· Regulatory Impact Statements /
· Post Implementation Reviews / Y / N / N
We need to do this differently
The challenges identified to dramatically improve business and government interaction are in areas that have been of long-standing concern.
These are also issues that are regularly explored. Public sector agencies routinely look at how they can improve their services and stakeholder relations, and there are regular government-commissioned inquiries or reports into how things can be done better (or how a specific part can be done better) as well as policy decisions to enact changes. Yet the challenges still remain, despite best efforts at the Federal level (and matched by even more initiatives at the State and Territory level).
There have been:
· Over 800 consultation exercises as listed on business.gov.au’s Business Consultation site (since 2007)
· Major reviews including the Taskforce on Reducing Regulatory Burden on Business (2005-06) and COAG’s Seamless National Economy Processes (2008-on)
· Formal engagement processes with business representatives (e.g. Action Agendas, Industry Councils, Advisory Groups and Boards).
There is room for new approaches, outside of the realm of traditional inquiries, reviews, taskforces, committees, boards and formal consultations. Approaches that provide an integrated investigation across agency responsibilities, look at the underlying needs and provide an array of promising options for prototyping: options that may be able to break the dichotomy of choices such as cost reduction or better services.
The Centre’s design approach will also work to ensure that the experiences of both ‘sides’ of the interaction are considered and ensure that the public service ‘dark matter’[5] (the history, the intangibles and interplay of the different elements of the current systems) is not forgotten. Without understanding these aspects, it will be harder to design changes that ‘stick’ or integrate with people’s way of doing things, or inspire them to try something new.
Internal forces for change
/External forces for change
/Tensions requiring change
· Government policy, initiatives, consultation processes / · Fiscal constraints / · Consultation vs collaboration· Parliamentary inquiries / · Technological changes and
· opportunities (e.g. NBN, cloud computing) / · Communication vs understanding
· Ongoing systematic reporting (e.g. Productivity Commission, Office for Best Practice Regulation) / · Economic structural changes (changing government priorities and areas of need) / · Cost vs service
· Government commissioned
· reviews / · Changing business models / · Certainty vs flexibility
· Cost pressures / · Changes in expectations by users / · Compliance vs trust
- / - / · Regulator vs partner
The design process
Seeking / Analysing / Synthesising / Prototyping / ScalingNovember 2012 / May 2013 – A Report of Research Findings and Insights
Design and/or Prototyping Prospectus(s)
To break through the fog of ‘wicked problems’ requires a different approach, a design approach which iteratively traverses the five stages from seeking to scaling and which:
· Values the citizen – seeks to understand what truly matters to them and, creates and delivers solutions with people for people
· Appreciates the context – understands and appreciates the contextual environment in which the problem operates
· Challenges the status quo – reframes the problem in terms of positive and measurable outcomes: how might these be achieved in a different way?
· Experiments with possibilities – experiments, tries and tests possibilities and options with users and stakeholders
· Is concrete – in the representation of the problem and potential better solutions, and communicates them clearly
· Employs – the creative and rational thinking of multidisciplinary teams.
…only when you engage deeply with the subject matter will it reveal its nature and inform you on how best to tackle it
The proposed design approach – working differently OR a third way?
This Design Prospectus seeks a financial and staffing contribution for the early stages of the full design approach. The primary focus will be to use ethnographic research to achieve a deep understanding of the ‘lived experience’ of business/government interaction from a business and APS frontline perspective. This will encompass inviting the business community to define its preferred segmentation categories for better engagement. Preliminary analysis and synthesis of research information and insights will also be undertaken to target areas for further design exploration, and generate ideas and concepts for early adoption or prototyping.
Ethnography is a research method based on observing people in their natural environment rather than in a formal research setting. When ethnography is applied to design, it helps to disclose points of frustration and see patterns of behavior in a real world context that then helps to create more compelling solutions that will connect with users.[6]
For example, an international not-for-profit organisation called the Kafka Brigade[7] has proven the utility of ethnographic research in tackling the wicked problem of ‘bureaucratic dysfunction’ to reduce government ‘red-tape’ and help businesses and bureaucracies to work better. We propose to explore the relevant elements of the Kafka Brigade methodology and other related immersion/observational techniques in seeking to better understand the business and government interaction challenge and to develop a core APS capability in the method. This would be achieved by training the team formed to work on the challenge space and comprised of staff from the Centre and investing Departments/Agencies.
The expected design outcomes and products:
· Insights into understanding business better through business segmentation categories and descriptors described by business itself as a first step to better engagement
· Ethnographic research offering rich intelligence about the ‘lived experience’ of business and government interactions
· Insights into how competing tensions can be resolved, offering new options that do not compromise one for the benefit of the other
· Pointers to APS internal ‘red-tape’ sources and reduction opportunities
· Increased design-thinking capability and goodwill between business and government by virtue of using an inclusive design approach
· An early demonstration of the value of design thinking
· Some key staff trained in applying design thinking to a critical problem area and further capability building in this approach across the APS
· A Report of Research Findings and Insights
· Ideas and concepts for quick adoption or prototyping for early outcomes, and target areas for further design exploration. To be presented in Prototyping and Design Prospectus(s) (as appropriate) and submitted for consideration and resourcing to the Secretaries Board by no later than the end of May 2013.
To dramatically improve business and government interaction requires a deep understanding of the context, frustrations, concerns and expectations from the business and APS frontline perspective using the design approach in an explicitly experimental zone.