Author: George Liacos
More and more social sector organisations are worrying about their funding and how they will meet growing demand for their programs… how they will drive impact with less.
Our uncertain economic times are making these worries doubly troubling as we see uncertainty drive even more demand for social services whilst undermining philanthropic and tax based funding.
Innovate operations for survival and even more impact
In his recent unfortunate press club speech about making Australia a manufacturing power, the Prime Minister spoke of innovation and productivity. I think that beyond the factional appeasement, this speech was a foreshadowing of enduring fiscal tightness – government is not coming to the rescue.
Whilst some organisations may feel insulated from these current and economic pressures, even their term contracts will end and they will still have to work out how to deliver more impact with less eventually. Again, Government is not coming to the rescue in the next ten years. The piggy bank is cracked and needs repair.
I think you already know the broad shape of the answer to this dilemma. The superficial answer is to innovate your operating model for efficiency.
But that’s not a good enough answer and far too blunt… so much can hang on the lens through which we see a problem.
I think this innovation and transformation should have two design principles; Increase Efficiency and Increase Impact. Further I think that the key to unlocking this design is a sophisticated and deep understanding of stakeholder Value.
Innovating your operating model for both efficiency and impact using a value lens, has these three steps :
- Understand what Value stakeholder demand and what is needed to deliver your purpose. Value is the gains and pain relievers our purpose promises to stakeholders;
- Work out smart ways to innovate how you create this Value, using clever design and technology
- Cut everything else.
If a chocolate ice cream, in a cone, delivered to the beach is valued, stop making vanilla ice cream, in buckets for pick up – just in case. Don’t make sprinkles because we always have. Do what is valued and only that.
If you purpose is about describing the problem you exist to solve, and humans are at the heart of you purpose, then understanding the pains they experience and the gains they desire must be at the heart of your strategy and must be the lifeblood of your innovated operating model.
I believe you can get more out of your operating model and deliver more impact , by using proven design methods and emerging features of technology focusing your operating model on value and cutting the rest.