Innovation in the Irish Public Sector
Innovation is a widely used term, but one that seems to give rise to ambiguity in a public sector context. In part this occurs because there is a myriad of definitions on innovation applying to business models but few specifically defined for a public sector text and secondly, the parameters for implementing innovation in a public sector context are quite different to those operating in the private sector. As Mulgan and Albury (2003) suggest, successful innovation is the ‘the creation and implemention of new processes, products, services and methods of delivery which result in significant improvements in outcomes efficiency, effectiveness or quality’. To achieve this outcome, a number of critical factors require to be put in place.
This study attempts to assess the critical factors necessary for public sector organisations that are implementing innovation programmes.