Co-creation as social innovation: including ‘hard-to-reach’ groups in public service delivery

IMPACT

This article identifies three conditions that facilitate public sector organizations’ use of inclusive co-creation to achieve social innovation: a commitment to the inclusion of minoritized groups; active strategies for encouraging the participation of minoritized groups; and providing an environment in which minoritized groups can contribute, by sharing power with them so that substantive design inputs are incorporated in service delivery. For public sector organizations at the local level, these conditions can help with making design choices at the start of the co-creation process to ensure that minoritized groups are represented in decision-making processes. Co-creation then becomes the means through which social innovation is achieved because organizations address the social needs of minoritized groups.

ABSTRACT

How can policy-makers ensure that they include the voices of racially minoritized citizens deemed ‘hard-to-reach’ in service delivery? This article uses a design experiment methodology to examine how co-creation can achieve social innovation in service delivery. It discusses a theoretically-informed empirical investigation into how inclusive co-creation can lead to social innovation. Inclusive co-creation was found to allow racially-minoritized groups to articulate their needs. However, where they have limited influence on service delivery improvements, the co-creation process cannot be said to be socially innovative.

KEYWORDS:

• BAME representation
• co-creation
• hard-to-reach minorities
• power dynamics
• power-shaing
• racially minoritized
• social innovation

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No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.