Enhancing innovation capacity in city government

Foreword
Acknowledgements
Executive summary
1.  Understanding innovation in cities
	Innovation and innovation capacity
		What is innovation?
		What is public sector innovation?
		What is innovation capacity?
	Why do governments focus on innovation?
		Why do governments innovate?
		How do governments innovate?
		What factors have led to successful public sector innovation in the past?
		What is limiting cities’ innovation capacity?
			Organisational and cultural barriers
			Limited data management capacity
			Limited access to new technological developments
			Limited participation and support from citizens
	Methodology and survey insights
	Analytical framework
	Clustering of cities
	Notes
	References
2.  Innovation capacity in cities – an empirical perspective
	Strategy and goals
		Formulate an innovation strategy with a clear political message
		Innovation strategies help build a city’s innovation activities
	Organisational arrangements
		Advance new organisational structures that shape innovation capacity
		Installation of innovation units/teams
			The specific features of the workplace can largely impact innovation capacity
			Leadership is an essential ingredient for supporting innovation capacity in cities
			Specific innovation units may have a major impact on cities’ capacity to innovate
			Innovation teams generally sit at the mayors’ or city manager’s office
			Innovation units are generally understaffed and are led by project managers
		Set up a specific financing framework
		Human resource management and administrative culture
			Invest in the capacity and capability of local public servants
			Promote a culture of reasonable risk taking
			Create or engage in networks that allow learning
	Data management capability
		Produce and use data for decision making
		Cities need to improve their data management capability
			An increased reliance on data tends to increase cities’ familiarity with innovation practices
		Create collaborative partnerships with external actors to strengthen data management capability
		Foster the move to open data
	Leveraging partnerships for innovation
		Promote collaboration with a diverse set of stakeholders
		Partnering with citizens for innovation
			Cities give great importance to engaging with citizens
			Improving engagement with citizens may require organisational and operational changes
		Collaboration with the private and non-profit sectors
	Note
	References
3.  Cities’ innovation capacity – the way forward
	Assessing innovation outcomes
		Why assessing innovation matters
		How cities assess the impact of innovation projects
		What problems are encountered to assess innovation
		Innovation is helping cities improve services, operations and resident outcomes
	The gaps in the research agenda
	A checklist for enhancing cities’ innovation capacity
	Next steps
	Notes
	References
		Annex A. Survey on Innovation Capacity in Cities
Annex A. Survey on Innovation Capacity in Cities
Annex B. Athens Road Map on Innovation for Inclusive Growth
Annex C. Participating cities in the OECD/Bloomberg Survey on Innovation Capacity in Cities 2018