[Originally published by the OECD Observatory of Public Sector Innovation (OPSI) under a Creative Commons Attribution – ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO).]
Today the OECD reports The Innovation System of the Public Service of Brazil: An exploration of its past, present and future journey and Innovation skills and leadership in Brazil’s public sector were launched by Marcos Bonturi, Director of Public Governance, at the Brazilian public sector Innovation Week.
The Innovation System of the Public Service of Brazil is the second OECD deep-study of a national government’s public sector innovation system. It provides insights into how the current state of public sector innovation was arrived at, what the lived experience of public sector innovation is, and explores how the system may play out over time given existing interventions as well as a range of possible pathways that could be pursued.
The country study examines the public sector innovation system of the Federal Public Service of Brazil, and assesses its ability to help the public sector anticipate and respond to the existing, evolving and emerging needs of citizens.
The report explores:
- Why a focus on innovation is necessary in general terms
- Why the Brazilian public sector context requires a particular focus on innovation
- The historical innovation journey of the Brazilian public sector and the underlying patterns and characteristics that have inhibited its ability to really embrace innovation
- The inherent biases of the public sector as an institution against innovation
- How the OECD’s innovation determinants and facets models can assist in considering how to move innovation from a sporadic to a systemic practice
- The lived experience of public sector innovation in the Brazilian context, to ensure the issues and challenges fit within the OECD’s models
- An appraisal of existing activity and what it is contributing
- Possible future pathways for the system to test assumptions
- Key areas of opportunity, categorised according to where responsibility for them may best lie within the system.
It is clear from the exploration that Brazil has made important progress along its innovation journey, including for instance in the work associated with its digital transformation agenda. However, it is also clear that more needs to be done if the public sector is going to meet the expectations of it and deliver under the constraints it faces. The report outlines some of the options available to help the Public Service of Brazil further and faster along its innovation journey.
The full report can be found here. Our country study project page provides some supplementary artefacts, including:
- A high level highlights document
- A briefing deck to aid those who may need or want to inform or educate others about the report, its finding and its implications
- A timeline of many of the major milestones and developments that shaped the public sector innovation system.
You can also find the companion report, Innovation skills and leadership in Brazil’s public sector here. This second report was produced by our colleagues in the Public Employment and Management team, and ran as a concurrent process.
If you would like to learn more about one or both of these reports, we will be holding a webinar on November 25 at 3PM CET/11AM BRT. You can register for the event here.