Public innovation: key factors affecting the process of innovation in the local public sector

Abstract

Public innovation is a target of emerging research that offer different approaches to analyse the change in public sector organizations. Local administrations are showing special creative abilities for innovation. More and more interesting local experiences address new public polices the establishment of political challenges and priorities, and the improvement of public services. However, most frequently local administrations have the tendency to restrict the concept of innovation to the deployment of new electronic systems, machines or industrial devices, neglecting cultural and organizational transformation as real and needed forms of innovation.  This limited scope entails a very relevant impact in the innovation success, as even when implementing new technological devices or electronic systems, if the public administration does not pay attention to the needed changes in the organizational and cultural process for implementing such devices, their innovation many times ends up failing.  This paper describes main organizational conditions for a successful process of public innovation, as identified in an empirical research on local administrations. It concludes with some challenges that public administrations will have to face to advance in public innovation.